Signals

Data Communication & Networking

MCA 2nd Sem. 2021
 Signal
• Transmission media work by conducting energy along a
physical path.
• To be transmitted, data must be transformed to
electromagnetic signals.
• Two main types of signals:
– Analog signal is a continuous signal that contains time-
varying quantities.
– A digital signal is a signal that is constructed from a
discrete set of waveforms of a physical quantity so as to
represent a sequence of discrete values.
– In data communications, we commonly use periodic
analog signals and non-periodic digital signals.
Analog and Digital signals structures
Periodic Analog Signal
Characteristics of Periodic Analog Signal

• Frequency is the rate of change with respect

to time. Change in a short span of time means
high frequency. Similarly, change over a long
span of time means low frequency.
• If a signal does not change at all, its frequency
is zero.
• Phase describes the position of the waveform
relative to time 0.
Three signals with the same amplitude
and frequency, but different phases
 Example 1
• The period of a signal is 100 mS. What is its
frequency in kilohertz?

• First we change 100 mS to seconds, and then

we calculate the frequency from the period (1
Hz = 10−3 kHz).
 Example 2
• A sine wave is offset 1/6 cycle with respect to
time 0. What is its phase in degrees and
radians?

• We know that 1 complete cycle is 360°.

Therefore, 1/6 cycle is
 Composite Signals
• A single frequency sine wave is not useful in data
communications; we need to send a composite
signal, a signal made of many simple sine waves.
• A composite signal is made of many simple sine
wave frequencies.
• According to Fourier analysis, any composite
signal is a combination of simple sine waves with
different frequencies, amplitudes, and phases.
 Fourier analysis
• We can write a composite signal as:
S(t)=A1Sin(2πf1t+φ1)+A2Sin(2πf2t+φ2)+A3Sin(2πf3t+φ3)+….
• For example, the following square wave with peak
amplitude A and a frequency of f can be decomposed
into a series of sine waves.
A composite periodic signal
Decomposition of the composite signal
in time-frequency domains
 Spectrum
• Spectrum: The description of a signal using
the frequency domain and containing all its
components.
 Bandwidth
• The range of frequencies contained in a composite signal
is the bandwidth of that signal. It is the difference
between the highest and the lowest frequencies
contained in that signal.
• The range of frequencies that a medium can pass is
called the bandwidth of the medium.
 Problem
• A signal has a b/w of 20 Hz. The highest frequency is 60 Hz.
What is the lowest frequency? Draw the spectrum if the signal
contains all integral frequencies of the same amplitudes?
• Solution:
Let fh be the highest frequency, fl the lowest frequency, and B
the bandwidth. Then,
B =fh – fl  20 =60 - fl  fl =60 – 20 = 40 Hz
The spectrum contains all integer frequencies.
 Bit Interval & Bit Rate of Digital Signal
• Bit Interval (as period in analog signal): Time
required to send one single bit.
• Bit Rate (as frequency in analog signal):
Number of bits sent in one second, expressed
in bits per second (bps).
• Bit interval = 1 / bit rate
Digital Signal Through a Band-Limited Medium

• Best Case: Bit Rate: 6 Frequency: 0

• Worst Case:Bit Rate: 6 Frequency: 3
• To send n bps through an analog channel using the above
approximation, we need a bandwidth B such that:
B = n/2
 Using More Harmonics
• One frequency signal is inappropriate as the receiver may not
recognize the signal correctly.
• From Fourier analysis, it is clear that, we need to add some
more odd harmonics.
• Bandwidth requirement:
B = n/2 + 3n/2 + 5n/2 + ….
 Low Pass & Band Pass Channels
• Low Pass: A low pass channel has a bandwidth with
frequencies between 0 to f. Digital transmission
needs low pass.
• Band Pass: A band pass channel has a bandwidth
with frequencies between f1 and f2.
 Data Rate Limits
• Data rates depends on three factors:
– The bandwidth available.
– The levels of signals we can use.
– The quality of the channel (the level of the noise).

• Noiseless channel: Nyquist Bit Rate

– BitRate = 2 x Bandwidth x Log2L

• Noisy channel: Shannon Capacity

– Capacity = Bandwidth x Log2(1+SNR)
 Problems
1. Consider a noiseless channel with a bandwidth
of 3000 Hz transmitting a signal with two signal
levels. Determine the maximum bit rate.
2. Consider an extremely noisy channel in which
the value of the signal-to-noise ratio is almost
zero. Determine the capacity of the channel.
3. We have a channel with a 1-MHz bandwidth.
The SNR for this channel is 63. What are the
appropriate bit rate and signal level?
(Hint: Use both limits.)
 Transmission Impairment
• Signals travel through transmission media, which are
not perfect. The imperfection causes signal
impairment. This means that the signal at the
beginning of the medium is not the same as the
signal at the end of the medium. What is sent is not
what is received.
 Attenuation
• Attenuation means a loss of energy. When a signal,
simple or composite, travels through a medium, it
loses some of its energy in overcoming the resistance
of the medium.
• Measured in Decibel (dB).
 Problems
• A signal travels through a transmission medium
and its power is reduced to one-half. Calculate
the loss of power (attenuation).
• A signal travels through an amplifier, and its
power is increased 10 times. Calculate the gain of
power (amplification).
• The loss in a cable is usually defined in decibels
per kilometer (dB/km). If a signal at the beginning
of a cable with -0.3 dB/km has a power of 2 mW,
what is the power of the signal at 5 km?
 Distortion
• Distortion means that the signal changes its form or
shape.
• Distortion can occur in a composite signal made of
different frequencies.
• Each signal component has its own propagation speed
through a medium and, therefore, its own delay in
arriving at the final destination. Differences in delay
may create a difference in phase if the delay is not
exactly the same as the period duration.
• Signal components at the receiver have phases
different from what they had at the sender. The shape
of the composite signal is therefore not the same.
Distortion
 Noise
• Noise is an unwanted disturbance in a signal.
 Noise
• Several types of noise, such as:
– Thermal noise: random motion of electrons in a wire
creates an extra signal not originally sent by the
transmitter.
– Induced noise: comes from sources such as motors
and appliances. These devices act as a sending
antenna, and the transmission medium acts as the
receiving antenna.
– Crosstalk: the effect of one wire on the other.
– Impulse noise: a spike (a signal with high energy in a
very short time) that comes from power lines,
lightning etc.