Spread-Spectrum Techniques

   
 
 Motivation

! Originally developed and used for military communications.

! Want to provide resistance to intentional jamming.
(i.e., anti-jamming protection)
! Want to hide the signal by transmitting it at low power and thus making it
difficult for an unintended listener to detect its presence in noise.
(i.e., low probability to intercept)

! Basic Requirements
- Transmission bandwidth >> Minimum bandwidth required to
transmit the information.
- The spreading signal is independent of the information data.
- At the receiver, the synchronized replica of the spreading
signal is used for despreading.

   
 
 Spread-Spectrum System

Jamming Signal
Interferences

Channel Channel
Mod CH Demod Output
Information Encoder Decoder
Source Data

Pseudorandom Pseudorandom
Pattern Pattern
Generator Generator

Synchronization

! Two identical pseudorandom sequence generators are employed to generate

a pseudo-noise (PN) binary sequence for spreading.

   
 
 Benefits of Spread-Spectrum

(a) Interference suppression (or anti-jam capability)

(b) Low probability of detection (or intercept)
(c) Multiple access (CDMA)
(d) Interference rejection

   
 
 (a) Interference suppression (or anti-jam capability)

1. Suppose that the noise stems from a jammer with a fixed finite power and
with uncertainty as for which frequency band the transmitting signal is
located.
2. The jammer’s choice will be one of the followings:
! Choice 1:
Jam all the frequency band of the system with an equally small amount
of power.
! Choice 2:
Jam only the part of the frequency band with increased power.

   
 
 Effect of spectrum spreading

   
 
 (b) Low Probability of Detection (or Intercept)

! We imagine situations where it is desired that a communication link be

operated without being detected by anyone other than the intended
receiver.
! The goal of such system:
is to use the minimum signal power and the optimum signaling scheme that
results in the minimum probability of being detected.
! In the spread-spectrum system, the resulting signal power is, on the
average, spread thinly and uniformly in the spread domain.
! Therefore,
- The spread-spectrum signal be made difficult to jam.
- The signal’s very existence may be rendered difficult to perceive.

   
 
 (c) Multiple Access

! The spread-spectrum technique can be used to share a communication

resource among numerous users.
! Each simultaneous user employs a unique spread-spectrum signaling code.
- Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)
! To provide communication privacy between users

   
 
 (d) Interference Rejection

Spread signal bandwidth Undesired signal

 ≈ 

Bandwidth ≈ 

 (
) Filter
Data signal Recovered
(Data rate R) Data signal
(
) (
)
Spreading signal
(Chip rate = Rc)

! Multiplication by the spreading signal, once spreads the signal bandwidth.

! Multiplication by the spreading signal twice, followed by filtering, recovers
the original signal.
! The desired signal gets multiplied twice, but the interference signal gets
multiplied only once.

   
 
 A Catalog of Spread-Spectrum Techniques

! Direct Sequence (DS)

! Frequency Hopping (FH)
! Time Hopping (TH)
! Hybrids

Frequency Time
Spreading DS Spreading
Hybrid TH
FH

Averaging Avoidance
Method Method
DS Hybrid TH

   
 
 Transmitted Reference (TR) System

! Used during the early years of the spread-spectrum technique for

operating a transmitter and receiver synchronously with a truly random
spreading signal such as wideband noise.
! Send two versions of an unpredictable wideband carrier on separate
channels: one modulated by the data and the other the unmodulated.
! Main advantage:
- No significant synchronization problem at the receiver.
! Disadvantages:
- The spreading code is send in the clear format and thus is available to
any listener.
- The system can be easily spoofed by the jammer.
- Performance degrades at low signal levels since the noise is present on
both the signals.
- Twice the bandwidth and transmitted power are required.

   
 
 Stored Reference (SR) System

! Used in all the modern spread-spectrum system.

! The spreading code is independently generated at both the transmitter and
the receiver.
! The noiselike code signal in an SR system cannot be truly random.
! Pseudonoise (PN) or pseudorandom signals.

! Main advantage:
- Cannot be predicted by monitoring the transmission.

! Main disadvantage:
- Synchronization problems.

   
 
 Pseudonoise (PN) Sequence

! Random sequence : unpredictable

! PN sequence : predictable (deterministic), periodic

! A class of periodic PN sequence

- Maximal-length linear shift register sequence (or m-sequence):

Length :  =  −
(m = # of shift registers)
- Quadratic residue sequence:
Length :  = 
−
= prime number (k is an integer)
- Hall sequence:
Length :  =  −
= 
+  = prime number (both k and q are integers)
- Twin primes:
Length :  = ( +  ) (both p and p+2 are prime numbers)

   
 
 Properties of the m-sequence
! Balance property:
- Number of 1’s = Number of 0’s + 1 or
- Number of 0’s = Number of 1’s + 1
! Run property:
- Run = A sequence of a single type binary digits.
- Length = the number of digits in the run.
- 1/2 the runs are of length 1,
- 1/4 the runs are of length 2,
- 1/8 the runs are of length 3, …, and so on.
! Correlation property:
- The correlation function of an m-sequence is periodic and binary valued
(or two-valued).


( ) = ∑ ( )( −  )
  =

  =
 (
  
)

=

−    ≠
 
 ( ) = +

−

   
 
 Example 1 (m = 3)

 

Output Sequence

Modulo-2
Adder

! Initial state : 1 0 0
! Then the succession of states :
- 100"110"111"011"101"010"001"100…
! The output sequence : {c(n)} = 0 0 1 1 1 0 1 (N = 23 – 1 = 7)
- # of 1’s = 4 , # of 0’s = 3
- Four runs : {0 0}, {1 1 1}, {0}, {1}
- For {c(n)} = -1 -1 +1 +1 +1 -1 +1

   =



( ) = 

−     ≠
 (
  
)

   
 
 Example 2 (m = 4)

 
 
Output Sequence

Modulo-2
Adder

! Initial state and the succession of states :

- 1000"0100"0010"1001"1100"0110"1011
"0101"1010"1101"1110"1111"0111"0011
"0001"1000
! The output sequence : {c(n)} = 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 1 1 1 1 (N = 24 – 1 = 15)
- # of 1’s = 8 , # of 0’s = 7
- Eight runs : {0 0 0}, {1}, {0 0}, {1 1}, {0}, {1}, {0}, {1 1 1 1}
- For {c(n)} = -1 –1 -1 +1 -1 -1 +1 +1 -1 +1 -1 +1 +1 +1 +1

   =



( ) = 

−
    ≠
 (
  
)

   
 
 Range of PN Sequence Lengths

m N
! Example (m = 42)
4 15 - Clock frequency = 1 MHz
5 31 (Chip duration = 10-6 sec)
7 127
- N = 242 – 1 ≈ 4.398 x 1012
10 1023
12 4095
13 8191
- Time interval for one period of
16 65535
the sequence
17 131071 ≈ 4.398 x 1012 x 10-6
19 524287 = 4.398 x 106 (sec)
42 ≈ 4.398 x 1012 ≈ 50.903 (days)

   
 
 Waveform of the m-sequence

! Fundamental pulse : “PN code symbol” or “Chip”

! Pulse waveform of the binary sequence

0 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 1 1 0
+1
(
)
-1


Chip 

Duration Period

! Autocorrelation function of c(t) : 
(τ )




(τ ) = ∫ (
)(
+ τ )τ 1
 






  = ∫ 
(
)
τ





   
 
 Ideal Model (1)
(
)

 (
)
 (
) Filter
(
) Recovered
Data signal
Data signal
(
) (
)
Spreading signal Despreading signal

! Transmitted signal : (
) =  (
)(
)

! Received signal :  (
) = (
) + (
) =  (
)(
) + (
)

 (
) =  



! Despread signal :  (
) =  (
) (
) + (
)(
)

=  (
) + (
)(
)

Baseband signal Wideband spread noise

! Only the receiver knowing (
) can recover the data  (
) .

   
 
 Ideal Model (2)

   
 
 (a) Direct-Sequence Spread-Spectrum (DS-SS)

   
 
 Two Stage of Modulation

! Product modulation with the data sequence and PN sequence.

! M-ary PSK Modulation
- DS/BPSK
- DS/QPSK
BPSK (
) =    (
)(
)(ω 
)
 (
)
Data signal Mod
(Bipolar pulse)
  (ω 
) ( =  
 


)
(
)
Spreading signal
±

 (
) BPSK
LPF     ( − τ )
Demod
Recovered data signal
(
− τ )
±
 (
) =     (
− τ )(ω  (
− τ ) + φ )

 τ  
  
τ   τ (  
 τ = τ )
φ 
  (  π )

   
 
 DS/BPSK

 (
)
(
) + -
+ 0 π
- π 0

   
 
 DS/QPSK

 (
)
(ω 
+ π  )
 (
) PN seq.
Generator Linear

(
)  (ω 
+ π  ) Adder

 (
)


(
)  (
) + -
+ + π   π  
+ - π  π  
- + π   π  
- - π   π  

   
 
 Processing Gain (PG)

! Question :
- How much protection can spreading provide against interfering signals
with finite power ?
! Answer :
- Processing Gain (PG)
! Given a set of D orthogonal signals in an N-dimensional space, in general,
D << N.
 
- Signal-to-jammer ration (SJR) = 
 
- Where  = Average energy for each orthogonal signal

 = Fixed total energy of the jammer waveform
- Therefore,  

 = ≈ = or 10log(PG) in dB
  

- where  = #
 (#   !
 )

= "
 (#   
 − 
! )
 = # !
 
= " !


   
 
 (b) Frequency-Hopping Spread-Spectrum (FH-SS)

   
 
 Characteristics

! Most commonly used to M-ary FSK.

! FH modulation : Carrier frequency is pseudorandomly determined.
! Usually demodulated noncoherently.
(Difficult to maintain phase coherence from hop to hop.)
! Frequency word (a sequence of chips): one of  symbol-set positions.
! Minimum # of chip per a frequency word can be determined by the FH
bandwidth and the minimum frequency spacing.
- Example :
BWFH-SS = 400MHz, Frequency step size ∆ = 100 Hz
What is the min. # of PN chips for each frequency word ?
&     −

=  −

∆ =  ×

( )
'$ &   = 
 ×
   =  

%  =    
   $

   
 
 FH/MFSK System

 (
) MFSK FH FH MFSK  (
)
Modulator Modulator Demodulator Demodulator

Frequency Synthesizer Frequency Synthesizer

PN seq. PN seq.
Generator Generator

   
 
 Example



!  = # of bits/MFSK symbol = 2
 = # of MFSK tones = 2k = 4

= Length of PN segment/hop = 2


 = Total # of frequency hops = 2l = 4


  



! The frequency is hopped





once per symbol.



 


   





 
 



 






 

 









 

   
 
 Slow and Fast FH-SS

! Slow FH-SS
- Several symbols are transmitted on each frequency hop.
-  =

where  = Symbol rate of the M-ary FSK signal (symbol/sec)
 = Hop rate (hop/sec)

= Positive integer
! Fast FH-SS
- The carrier frequency changes (or hops) several times during the
transmission of one symbol.
-  = 

! Chip rate

= ( (   )

   
 
 Example

!  =  

 = &  
 
 = 
 =   −
=

 = &  / '012 / = 
 = &  ' − 
  =   = 

= .   -    = ,
 = + &  
*!  =  = )

   
 
 Example : Slow FH-SS






 



 























  
         





 





 








   
 
 Example : Fast FH-SS

  



























         

 


          



   
 
 Characteristics of DS-SS

! DS-SS
- Good :
1) Best noise and antijam performance
2) Most difficult to detect
3) Best discrimination against multipath
- Bad :
1) Requires wideband channel with little phase distortion
2) Long acquisition time
3) Requires a fast code generator
4) Near-far problem

   
 
 Characteristics of FS-SS

! FS-SS
- Good :
1) Great amount of spreading
2) Can be programmed to avoid portions of spectrum
3) Relatively short acquisition time
4) Less affected by near-far problem
- Bad :
1) Complex frequency synthesize
2) Not useful for range
3) Error correction required

   
 
 Applications (1)

! CDMA (Code-Division Multiple Access)

- Each code is approximately orthogonal with all other codes.
- Share the full spectrum of resource asynchronously.
- Three attractive features over TDMA:
1) CDMA dose not require an external synchronization network, which is
essential in TDMA.
2) CDMA offers a gradual degradation in performance ad the number of
users is increased.
3) CDMA offers an external interference rejection capacity.
(i.e.,multipath rejection or resistance to deliberate jamming)

   
 
 Applications (2)

! Multipath Suppression
- Multipath channel : Due to atmospheric reflection or refraction, or
reflections from buildings or other objects.
- May results in fluctuation in the received signal level.
- The DS-SS can be applied in a slow-fading channel.
- If frequency hopping (FH) is used against the multipath problem,
improvement in system performance is possible.