Module 01

• Spread Spectrum Techniques

 DSSS
 FHSS
Spread spectrum technology

• Problem of radio transmission: frequency dependent fading can wipe out narrow band signals for
duration of the interference

• Solution: spread narrow band signal into broad band signal using special code

power interference spread power signal

signal
spread
detection at interference
receiver

f f

protection against narrowband interference

• Side effects:
• coexistence of several signals without dynamic coordination
• tap-proof
• Alternatives: Direct Sequence, Frequency Hopping
Effects of spreading and interference

dP/df dP/df

user signal
i) ii) broadband interference
narrowband interference
f f
sender
dP/df dP/df dP/df

iii) iv) v)
f f f
receiver
Spreading and frequency selective fading
channel
quality

1 2 5 6
narrowband channels
3
4
frequency
narrow band guard space
signal

channel
quality
2
2 spread spectrum channels
2
2
2
1

spread frequency
spectrum
DSSS (Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum) I
• XOR of the signal with pseudo-random number (chipping sequence)
• many chips per bit (e.g., 128) result in higher bandwidth of the signal
• Advantages
• reduces frequency selective
tb
fading
• in cellular networks user data
• base stations can use the
0 1 XOR
same frequency range
tc
• several base stations can
detect and recover the signal chipping
sequence
• soft handover 01101010110101 =
• Disadvantages
• precise power control necessary resulting
signal
01101011001010

tb: bit period

tc: chip period
DSSS (Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum)

• If the chipping sequence is generated properly it appears as random

noise: this sequence is also sometimes called pseudo-noise sequence.
• The spreading factor s = tb/tc determines the bandwidth of the resulting
signal.
If the original signal needs a bandwidth w, the resulting signal needs s-w
after spreading.
• spreading factor for
1. civil applications use spreading factors between 10 and 100
2. military applications use factors of up to 10,000.
3. Wireless LANs complying with the standard IEEE 802.11 a so-called
Barker code.
DSSS (Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum) II

DSSS Transmitter:

• for example a user signal with a bandwidth of 1 MHz ; Spreading with the above 11-chip Barker

code would result in a signal with 11 MHz bandwidth.

• The radio carrier then shifts this signal to the carrier frequency (e.g., 2.4 GHz in the ISM band).

• This signal is then transmitted.

spread
spectrum transmit
user data signal signal
X modulator

chipping radio
sequence carrier

transmitter
DSSS (Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum) II

DSSS Receiver:

The DSSS receiver is more complex than the transmitter.

perform the inverse functions of the two transmitter modulation steps.

noise and multi-path propagation require additional mechanisms to reconstruct the original data.

correlator
lowpass sampled
received filtered products sums
signal signal data
demodulator X integrator decision

chipping
sequence radio
carrier
receiver
FHSS (Frequency Hopping Spread Spectrum) I
• The total available bandwidth is split into many channels of smaller bandwidth plus guard
spaces between the channels.
• Transmitter and receiver stay on one of these channels for a certain time and then hop to
another channel.
• This system implements FDM and TDM.
• The pattern of channel usage is called the hopping sequence.
• The time spend on a channel with a certain frequency is called the dwell tim
• Discrete changes of carrier frequency
• sequence of frequency changes determined via pseudo random number sequence
• Two versions
• Fast Hopping:
several frequencies per user bit
• Slow Hopping:
several user bits per frequency
• Advantages
• frequency selective fading and interference limited to short period
• simple implementation
• uses only small portion of spectrum at any time
• Disadvantages
• not as robust as DSSS
• simpler to detect
FHSS (Frequency Hopping Spread Spectrum) II

tb

user data

0 1 0 1 1 t
f
td
f3 slow
f2 hopping
(3 bits/hop)
f1

td t
f

f3 fast
f2 hopping
(3 hops/bit)
f1

tb: bit period td: dwell time

FHSS (Frequency Hopping Spread Spectrum)

Advantages

• Frequency selective fading and interference limited to short period.

• Simple implementation
• Use only small portion of spectrum at any time

Disadvantages

• Not as robust as DSSS

• Simpler to detect

• Example of an FHSS system is Bluetooth

• Bluetooth performs 1,600 hops per second and uses 79 hop carriers equally
spaced with 1 MHz in the 2.4 GHz ISM band
FHSS (Frequency Hopping Spread Spectrum) III

narrowband spread
signal transmit
user data signal
modulator modulator

frequency hopping
synthesizer sequenc
transmitter e

narrowband
received signal
signal data
demodulator demodulator

hopping frequency
sequenc synthesizer
e receiver