Chapters 4 & 5

AM Modulation
3/25/15
 Outline
Complex Envelope Representation of Bandpass Waveforms,
Representation of Modulated Signals,
Spectrum of Bandpass Signals,
Evaluation of Power,
Bandpass Filtering and Linear Distortion,
Bandpass Sampling Theorem,
Received Signal Plus Noise,
Classification of Filters and Amplifiers,
Nonlinear Distortion, Limiters, Mixers, Up Converters, and Down Converters,
Frequency Multipliers, Detector Circuits, Phase-Locked Loops and Frequency
Synthesizers, Transmitters and Receivers,
Software Radios?
Baseband & Bandpass Waveforms
 Why Modulation?
In order to transfer signals we need to transfer the
frequency to higher level
One approach is using modulation
Modulation:
Changing the amplitude of the carrier
AM modulation is one type of modulation
Easy, cheap, low-quality
Used for AM receiver and CBs (citizen bands)
Generally high carrier frequency is used to modulate the voice signal
(300 3000 Hz)
Baseband & Bandpass Waveforms, Modulation

A Communication System
Complex Envelope Representation

s(t) = v(t)
n(t)
 Modulating & Modulated Signals

Complex Envelope:
Representation of Modulated Signal

g[m(t)]
s(t)
m(t) Comp m(t)
.Env.

cos(wct)

Lets find FT, PSD, and Pv_norm of v(t)!

 Spectrum of Bandpass Signal

s(t) = v(t) Note: Re{a+jb}=(a+jb)/2 + (a-jb)/2 = a

 Power Evaluation
The total average normalized power of bandpass waveform
v(t) is

Lets look at an example!

 Example: Spectrum of Amplitude Modulated Signal
Assume the complex envelop g[m(t)] = Ao[1+m(t)]
Thus, s(t) = Ao[1+m(t)]cos(wct)
M(f)
g[m(t)]
s(t)
m(t) Comp m(t)
.Env.

cos(wct)

Find the mathematical expression for S(f) and |S(f)| for all f
using the given M(f):
Find S(f)
Find |S(f)|
Normalized power Ps= Pv
Example: Spectrum of Amplitude Modulated Signal
AM Modulation
g[m(t)]
s(t)
m(t) Comp m(t)
.Env.

cos(wct)

*
Example: Spectrum of Amplitude Modulated Signal

1) Note that
2) <v(t)2> for periodic sinusoidal functions results in half power
3) m = <m(t)2>
Amplitude Modulation

Assume:
m(t) = cos(wat)
g[m(t)]=g(t)=1+m(t)
s(t) = Re{g(t).e^jwct}
= g(t).cos(wct)
= [1+m(t)].cos(wct)
 More About AM Modulation
In AM modulation the carrier signal changes (almost)
linearly according to the modulating signal - m(t)
AM modulating has different schemes
Double-sideband Full Carrier (DSB-FC)
Also called the Ordinary AM Modulation (AM)
Double-sideband suppressed carrier (DSB-SC)
Single-sideband (SSB)
Vestigial Sideband (VSB) Not covered here!
 More About AM Modulation
In AM modulation the carrier signal changes (almost)
linearly according to the modulating signal - m(t)
AM modulating has different schemes
Lets focus on
Double-sideband Full Carrier (DSB-FC) the simplest
Also called the Ordinary AM Modulation (AM) case!

Double-sideband suppressed carrier (DSB-SC)

Single-sideband (SSB)
Vestigial Sideband (VSB) Not covered here!

We generally assume the Modulating

Signal is Sinusoidal
 AM Modulation (DSB-FC)
modulating
signal

AM DSB-FC
Envelope
Modulated
signal The result
is a
modulated
signal!
 Review: Bandpass Signal
Remember for bandpass waveform we have
e

The voltage (or current) spectrum of the bandpass signal is

The PSD will be

In case of Ordinary AM (DSB FC) modulation:

In this case Ac is the power level of the carrier signal with no

modulation;
Therefore:
Make sure you know where
these come from!
 AM: Modulation Index
Modulation Percentage (m)

Note that m(t) has peak

amplitude of Am =
mEm=mAc
We note that for ordinary
AM modulation,
if the modulation percentage
> %100, implying m(t) < -1,
Therefore
Amax Amin
m=
Amax + Amin
AM: Modulation Index

if the modulation percentage > %100

 AM: MATLAB Model
This is how we generate the ordinary AM using MATLAB
 AM: Normalized Average Power
Normalized Average Power
Note that

(Total) each sideband will have half the power!

Pc is the normalized carrier power(1/2)Ac^2

The rest is the power of each side band (lower sideband or
LSB & USB)
Thus:
* Ac

Note that we are

assuming Load Pusf ( * Ac*<m(t) ^ 2>)/2
Resistance, R=1.
 A Practical Example:
Ordinary AM Mathematical Expression
In this case:
Vc(t) = Ec sinct ; Carrier signal
Vm(t) = Em sinmt ; Modulating signal
VAM(t) =SAM(t) = Ec sinct + Em sinmt . sinct ; AM modulated signal

Emsinmt

Gain due to
high power transmitter

sinct Modulation
Ec
Index!

VAM(t) = [Ec + Em sinmt ]. sinct = [1+ m.sinmt ]. Ec. sinct

Constant + Modulated Carrier
Amplitude of the Modulated Signal
modulated Wave

Assume Em = mEc; where 0<m<1 m is called the modulation index,

or percentage modulation!
 AM Modulation and Modulation Index
Rearranging the relationship:

In this case we have:

| Carrier | + | LSB | + | USB |
Note that for m=1 (modulation percentage of 100 percent)
Vam_max = Ec + mEc = 2Ec
Vam_min = 0 ;
AM Modulation and Modulation Index
 AM Power Distribution
P = E2/2R = Vp2/2R ; R = load resistance
Remember: Pavg Vrms2/R ; where Vrms for sinusoidal is
Vp/sqrt(2)

Pcarrier_average = Ec2/2R
Pusb_average = (mEc/2)2/2R = (m2/4)Pc
Ptotal = Pcarrier_average + Pusb_average + Plsb_average

What happens as m
increases?
 Current Analysis
Measuring output voltage may not be very practical, that is
measuring Vp in P = Vp2/2R is difficult in across an antenna!
However, measuring the current passing through an
antenna may be more possible: Total Power is PT = IT2R
Total power

Carrier power

Note that we can obtain m if we measure currents!

Examples (5A, 5C)
General Case: m(t) can be any bandpass
 AM: Modulation Efficiency
Defined as the percentage of the total power of the
modulated signal that conveys information
Signal Power/Total Power

Defined as:
Note that
<m2(t)> =
m2.Pns;
Pns is the
normalized
Normalized Peak Envelop Power is defined as signal power
PPEP = (Ac2 / 2) * (1 + Amax)2
(when load resistance R=1)
We use PPEP to express transmitter output power.
In general, Normalized Peak Envelop Power, PPEP ,can be
expressed as follow:
 Example (5B)
Assume Pc_avg = 5000 W for a radio station (un-modulated
carrier signal); If m=1 (100 modulation index) with
modulated frequency of 1KHz sinusoid find the following:
Peak Voltage across the load (Ac)
Total normalized power (<s(t)2>)
Total Average (actual) Power
Normalized PEP
Average PEP
Modulation Efficiency Is it good?
AM: Voltage and Current Spectrum Issues
We know for AM:
The voltage or Current Spectrum will be

Note that BW is 2B
doubled compared to M(f)

1- Large bandwidth
requirement

2- Duplicated Information in
Upper and Lower Sides

3- We are wasting power to

send the discrete carrier
power
 Building an Ordinary AM Modulator
Transferring AC power to RF power!
Two general types
Low power modulators
High power modulators
Low Power Modulators
Using multipliers and amplifiers
Issue: Linear amplifiers must be used; however not so efficient when
it comes to high power transfer
High Power Modulators
Using PWM
 Building an Ordinary AM Modulator
Power Amplifier (PA)

USING PULSE WIDTH MODULATION

AND POWER AMPLIFIERS (CLASS C)
 Double Sideband Suppressed Carrier
DSB-SC is useful to ensure the discrete carrier signal is
suppressed:

The voltage or current spectrum of DSB-SC will be

Therefore no waste of power for discrete carrier

component !
What is the modulation efficiency? 100 Percent!
Effic = <m(t) 2>/ <m(t) 2>
percentage of the total power of the modulated signal that conveys information

DSB-SC:
DSB-SC Modulation & Coherent Demodulation
Modulation Demodulation

2wc 2wc
 DSB-SC Coherent Demodulation

Multiplying the signal m(t)cosct by a local carrier wave cosct

e(t) = m(t)cos2ct = (1/2)[m(t) + m(t)cos2ct]
E() = (1/2)M() + (1/4)[M( + 2c) + M( - 2c)]

Passing through a low pass filter: So() = (1/2)M()

The output signal: so(t) = (1/2)m(t)

The issue is how to keep the same exact fc on modulator & demodulator!
The coherent demodulator must be synchronized with the modulator both in
frequency and phase!
BUTwhat if it is not?
DSB-SC Coherent Demodulation Issues
So, what if the Local Oscillator frequency is a bit off with the center frequency ()?

Multiplying the signal m(t)cosct by a local carrier wave cos[(c+)t]

e(t) = m(t)cosct . cos[(c+)t]
= (1/2)[m(t)] . {cos[ct -(c+)t] + cos[ct +(c+)t] }
= (1/2)[m(t)] . {cos(t) + cos (2c+)t}
= m(t)/2 . cos(t) The beating factor (being distorted)
The coherent demodulator must be synchronized with the modulator both in
frequency and phase!
Disadvantages:
1. It transmits both sidebands which contain identical information and thus
waste the channel bandwidth resources;
2. It requires a fairly complicated (expensive) circuitry at a remotely located
receiver in order to avoid phase errors.
 Demodulation DSB-SC
One common approach to eliminate phase error impact is
using Squaring Loop:

Using the loop, we are effectively

extracting the carrier frequency!

Acting as an amplitude limiter

Note that in this case the initial phase must be known!

 Building AM Modulators
AM Modulating Circuits are categorized as
Low-level Transmitters
Medium-level Transmitters
High-level Transmitters
 Other Key Components
Mixers & Multipliers
Phase shifter
RC
Inverters
Amplifiers
Linear
Nonlinear
 AM Modulators: Frequency Multiplier

Nonlinear amplifier and a

filter to extract the nth harmonic!
 Low-Level AM Modulators
Mainly for low-power applications RC Filter
For decoupling
Requires less modulating signal
power to achieve high m Vc(t)
Uses an Emitter Modulator (low
power)
Incapable of providing high-power Vm(t)

The amplifier has two inputs: Vc(t) Carrier

and Vm(t)
Modulating Signal
The amplifier operates in both
linear and nonlinear modes
HOW? See next slide!
 Low-Level AM Modulators Circuit Operation
If Vm(t) =0 amplifier will be in linear mode
Aout=Vccos(wct); Vc is voltage gain collector voltage (unit less)
If Vm(t) >0 amplifier will be in nonlinear mode
Aout=[Vc + Vmcos(wct)] cos(wct)
Vm(t) is isolated using T1
The value of Vm(t) results in Q1 to go into cutoff or saturation modes
C2 is used for coupling
Removes modulating frequency from AM waveform

Vc
Collector
C2 Voltage

Vm(t)

T1
Modulated Carrier
with Modulating
signal removed (due
to C2)
 High-Level AM Modulators Circuit Operation
Used for high-power
transmission
Uses an Collector Modulator
(high power)
Nonlinear modulator
The amplifier has two inputs:
Vc(t) and Vm(t)
RFC is radio frequency choke
blocks RF
 High-Level AM Modulators Circuit Operation
General operation:
If Base Voltage > 0.7 Q1 is ON Ic != 0 Saturation
If Base Voltage < 0.7 Q1 is OFF Ic = 0 Cutoff
The Transistor changes between Saturation and Cutoff
When in nonlinear high harmonics are generated Vout must be bandlimited
See next slide

ic

Base Voltage
Ic, Saturation
and Cutoff

Vout(t)
 High-Level AM Modulators Circuit Operation
CL and LL tank can be added to act as Bandlimited
Only fc + fm and fc fm can be transmitted

Bandlimitting
RC Circuit
 AM Modulators Using Integrated Devices
XR-2206 is an integrated circuit function generator
In this case fc=1/R1C1 Hz
Assuming fm = 4kHz; fc = 100kHz we will have the following:

R1 & C1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5p5ZMXkaPW0
 Building AM Demodulators
Coherent
Non-Coherent
Squaring Loop
Envelope Detectors
 AM Demodulators: Envelope Detector
It is considered as a non-coherent
demodulator
The diode acts as a nonlinear mixer
Other names
Nonlinear
Diode Detector Mixer
Peak Detector (Positive)
Envelope Detector
Basic operation: Assume fc = 300
KHz and fm = 2KHz
Then there will be frequencies 298,
300, 302 KHz
The detector will detect many different
frequencies (due to nonlinearity)
AM frequencies + AM harmonics +
SUM of AM frequencies + DIFF of AM
frequencies
The RC LPF is set to pass only DIFF
frequencies
 Envelope Detector Basic Operation
The diode has Vbarrier = Vb = 0.3V
When Vin < Vb Reverse Biased
DIODE is OFF
id = 0 Vcap = 0
When Vin > Vb Forward Biased
DIODE is ON
id > 0 Vcap = Vin - 0.3

Stores due to
value of RC
What should be the value of RC, then?
 Envelope Detector Distortion
What should be the value of RC?
If too low then discharges too fast
If too high the envelope will be distorted RC too small
The highest modulating signal:

2
(1 / m ) 1
fm(max) = RC too large
2 RC
Note that in most cases m=0.70 or 70 percent of modulation

1
fm(max) =
2 RC
Therefore:
Envelope Detection for Different RC

RC is a bit too small RC is ok

RC is a bit too large RC is too large

 Applets
Crystal Radio (receiver with no amplifier)
http://www.falstad.com/circuit/e-amdetect.html
Amplitude clipper
http://www.falstad.com/circuit/e-diodeclip.html
 Single Sideband AM (SSB)
Is there anyway to reduce the bandwidth in ordinary AM?
The complex envelop of SSB AM is defined by
Note that
(+) USSB &
Thus, we will have (-) LSSB

We define (m^(t) as the Hilbert Transfer of m(t)):

Where: Hilbert Transfer

With impulse response of -90o phase
m(t) m^(t)
Thus: shift across
freq. of m(t)

H(f)=0, f=0

See
Notes
 Simple Example on Hilbert Transfer
What is the H[x(t)] if x(t) is s(t)cos(2fct+):
Shifted by -90 degree cos() sin()
H[x(t)] = s(t)sin(2fct+)
 Frequency Spectrum of SSB-AM - USSB
For Upper SSB use (+)

Therefore:

(f-fc)>0 (-f-fc)>0
f -f>fc
f>fc
f<-fc

Normalized Average Power:

Frequency Spectrum of SSB-AM - USSB

f
 Basic Method

This is also called Quadrature AM (QAM) modulator

with I and Q channels
I refers to In phase; Q refers to Quadrature phase)
 References
Leon W. Couch II, Digital and Analog Communication
Systems, 8th edition, Pearson / Prentice, Chapter 5
Electronic Communications System: Fundamentals Through
Advanced, Fifth Edition by Wayne Tomasi Chapter 4 & 5
(https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/209442.Electronic_Communications_System)

See
Notes
Side Notes
 Standard (Ordinary) AM

AM signal generation

Gain due to
high power transmitter

Waveform :
sAM(t) = Acosct + m(t)cosct = [A + m(t)]cosct

Spectrum :
SAM() = (1/2)[M( + c) + M( - c)] + A[( + m) +
( - m)]
 Standard (Ordinary) AM
The disadvantage of high cost receiver circuit of the DSB-SC
system can be solved by use of AM, but at the price of a less
efficient transmitter

An AM system transmits a large power carrier wave, Acosct,

along with the modulated signal, m(t)cosct, so that there is no
need to generate a carrier at the receiver.
Advantage : simple and low cost receiver

In a broadcast system, the transmitter is associated with a large

number of low cost receivers. The AM system is therefore
preferred for this type of application.