Baud Rate.
(b) Describe how digital information is conveyed using various digital modulation techniques (ASK or OOK, FSK, PSK and QAM) and recognize
their waveforms, bandwidth, and constellations.
(c) Using a phase diagram analyze a M-ary PSK signal to determine its symbols and bits per symbols.
(d) Discuss the effect of noise on M-ary PSK and how Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM) overcomes these detrimental effects.
1. Digital signals
Try to remember all the way back to lesson on Analog to Digital Conversion. We mentioned that we had analog signals that we wanted to represent
by digital signals. (i.e. Recording your Comm-O singing Mikey Js Thriller on karaoke night.) Now your Comm-O prides himself in being a good
singer, and decides he wants to broadcast his digital recording from karaoke night to the rest of the carrier group to raise morale (and maybe, just
maybe, get selected to go to American Idol).
All he needs to do is transmit the digital signal. Right?
Free Space
voltage
WRONG! Haha. Of course it cant be that easy. The digital binary (0 and 1) signals to which we are so accustomed are, typically, alternations
between 0Vs and 5Vs (aka. DC voltage). It just so happens, and you can just trust me on this one, antennas dont transmit DC voltage.
5V
0V
Binary digital
timesignal represent 1 or 0 using switched pulses.
We must come up with a method to transmit the digital information using radio waves (continuous sine waves).
Voltage(V)
0.5
-0.5
-1
0.5
1.5
2
Time(msec)
2.5
3.5
4
-3
x 10
0.5
Voltage(V)
1.5
Voltage(V)
0.5
0
0
-0.5
-0.5
-1
Amplitude
-1
-1.5
0.5
Frequency
1
1.5
2
Time(msec)
2.5
3.5
Phase
-3
x 10
Now think about this question. What is it we are trying to transmit? Spectacular answer! Just 1s and 0s.
-2
0
0.001
0.002
0.003
0.004
0.005
0.006
T ime(sec)
0.007
0.008
0.009
0.01
So, how do we go about representing 1s and 0s using amplitude modulation? That, my Midshipman, is the question that is about to be answered.
Just as we can vary amplitude, frequency, and phase of a high-frequency carrier in accordance with an analog waveform, we can do the same to
represent bits and since bits shift values between 0 and 1, digitial modulation techniques to varying amplitude, frequency, and phase are referred to
as shift keying.
Amplitude Shift Keying (ASK)
The simplest digital modulation scheme is a form of ASK called on-off keying (OOK). This is analogous to Morse code. A radio wave is transmitted
when the binary signal is 1 and nothing is transmitted when the binary signal is 0.
Example
Draw a modulated OOK signal below the bit stream.
1
Before we continue, you need to learn some terms that are used frequently in communication systems. We already know from our mad binary skills
that N bits can be used to represent 2N values and when were talking shift keying, the 2N values are referred to as Symbols.
S = 2N, where S is
the number of
symbols and N is the
number of bits
transmitted per
symbol.
NOTE: Read this equation again and make sure you understand it. It is a major
point that many people miss. In this example of OOK, there are only 2 symbols
with 1 bit per symbol, either 1 or 0. We will show shortly that there are often
times where there are many symbols and therefore many bits per symbol.
Dont freak out you really already know this. If you have 1 bit, you can either represent a 0 or a 1 thats it. Since you can only represent 2 binary
numbers, you have 2 symbols. If you have 2 bits, you have more options you can represent 4 numbers (00, 01, 10, 11), and therefore, 4 symbols.
Since the Comm-O is ultimately interested in getting all those 0s and 1s out fast (and through the limited bandwidth available at sea) so that his
karaoke night performance is available for everyone, the rate at which 0s and 1s are transmitted is important.
Bit Rate (Rb) is the speed of transfer of data, or the number of bits per second. Bit Rate is inversely proportional to Bit time (tb), or the
time required to transmit a single bit.
Rb
1
tb
Baud Rate (aka Symbol Rate) (RS) is the number of symbols transmitted per second, and is inversely proportional to the Symbol Period
(TS), or the time required to transmit 1 symbol.
RS
1
TS
The Bit Rate and the Baud (or Symbol) Rate are related by the number of bits per symbol (N).
Rb = R S * N
(where N = log2S)
shift keying
With FSK, the binary bits are represented by different frequencies. The binary 0 has a lower frequency of 1070 Hz and the binary 1 has a higher
frequency of 1270 Hz.
The lower frequency, binary 0, is called the space. The higher frequency, binary 1, is called the mark.
Now lets take a closer look at the output of the modulator to get the Bandwidth.
+R
Rb
Example
You have an FSK transmitter using a carrier of 500 kHz sending 10 kbps and deviating 100 kHz, how much bandwidth do you need?
to
is used in practice
simplifies demodulation
has bit errors that tend to come in pairs
Up to this point we have been looking at the possibility of one bit per symbol which means two symbols. As mentioned earlier, it is possible to have
more than one bit per symbol. In order to represent this in an easier to understand pictorial, you are about to be introduced to another representation
of the material you have learned.
Ready for the surprise?
3. Phasor diagram
We can represent the BPSK signal using a phasor diagram which shows the two possible BPSK symbols.
Consider the bit stream below and the resulting QPSK signal.
10 bit01stream
(315)
(135)
11
(225)
00
(45)
10
(315)
11
(225)
2 =S
What? Did I hear you correctly? You want to know if you can add even more bits per symbol. Absolutely!
M-ary PSK
We can further increase the number of bits per symbol by increase the number of possible phase shifts.
Consider the 8-PSK constellation below.
90
270
180
log 2 S=3
So 3 bits/symbol
8 PSK
Consider the bit stream below and the resulting 8-PSK signal.
stream
100 bit
011
(315)(90)
101
(270)
001
(45)
100
(315)
111
(225)
Wow, those dots are getting close together. At this rate, I imagine those dots
touching. If thats your thought, you might be on to something.
will soon be
To demodulate 16-PSK, the receiver must determine the phase within 11.25. Think about it. If you have 16 symbols, you have 360o/16 = 22.5o
between each symbol. That leaves you a buffer of 11.25 on either side of a symbol.
22.5o
11.25o
4. Noise effects
As weve mentioned so many
times, the number 1 most limiting factor of
communication systems is noise. In all transmissions, the received signal will be degraded by noise.
A BPSK receiver must make a decision to determine the phase of a received signal to determine the corresponding binary signal.
Now consider the same noise in the presence of a QPSK or 8-PSK signal.
Noise effects (8-PSK)
So is this it? Were limited to just a few symbols. Or did someone so handsome, so smart think of a method
limitations noise is playing on our abilities to transmit?
Think about it for a second. Up to this point, we have manipulated amplitude, frequency, or phase.
What if, and I mean WHAT IF, we were to change, say, phase and amplitude at the same time. I
CRAZY AWESOME!!!!!
8-QAM
8-QAM
Consider the bit stream below and the resulting 8-QAM signal. Note that there are both phase and amplitude changes.
In 256-QAM, you find that for each symbol you are transmitting (2 8=256) 8 bits of information. What that means is for the same bandwidth, you are
sending 8 times more information when you use 256-QAM than when you use OOK, FSK, or BPSK.
Now thats powerful!
All that singing the Comm-O
wants the carrier group to hear gets sent out at a high bit rate, morale is up, and everyone is happy.
90
270
Example
180
b)
c)
d)
e)
Example
Label the modulation schemes.
10