05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 99

PART
TWO Wireless Communication
Technology

CHAPTER 5
ANTENNAS AND
PROPAGATION
5.1 Antennas
Radiation Patterns
Antenna Types
Antenna Gain
5.2 Propagation Modes
Ground Wave Propagation
Sky Wave Propagation
Line-of-Sight Propagation
5.3 Line-of-Sight Transmission
Attenuation
Free Space Loss
Noise
The Expression Eb/N0
Atmospheric Absorption
Multipath
Refraction
5.4 Fading in the Mobile Environment
Multipath Propagation
Error Compensation Mechanisms
5.5 Recommended Reading

5.6 Key Terms, Review Questions, and Problems

05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 100

100 CHAPTER 5 / CONCURRENCY: MUTUAL EXCLUSION AND SYNCHRONIZATION

his chapter provides some fundamental background for wireless transmission.

T We begin with an overview of antennas and then look at signal propagation.

5.1 ANTENNAS

An antenna can be defined as an electrical conductor or system of conductors used

either for radiating electromagnetic energy into space or for collecting electromag-
netic energy from space. For transmission of a signal, radio-frequency electrical
energy from the transmitter is converted into electromagnetic energy by the antenna
and radiated into the surrounding environment (atmosphere, space, water). For
reception of a signal, electromagnetic energy impinging on the antenna is converted
into radio-frequency electrical energy and fed into the receiver.
In two-way communication, the same antenna can be and often is used for
both transmission and reception. This is possible because any antenna transfers
energy from the surrounding environment to its input receiver terminals with the
same efficiency that it transfers energy from the output transmitter terminals into
the surrounding environment, assuming that the same frequency is used in both
directions. Put another way, antenna characteristics are essentially the same whether
an antenna is sending or receiving electromagnetic energy.

Radiation Patterns
An antenna will radiate power in all directions but, typically, does not perform
equally well in all directions. A common way to characterize the performance of an
antenna is the radiation pattern, which is a graphical representation of the radiation
properties of an antenna as a function of space coordinates. The simplest pattern is
produced by an idealized antenna known as the isotropic antenna. An isotropic
antenna is a point in space that radiates power in all directions equally. The actual
radiation pattern for the isotropic antenna is a sphere with the antenna at the cen-
ter. However, radiation patterns are almost always depicted as a two-dimensional
cross section of the three-dimensional pattern. The pattern for the isotropic antenna
is shown in Figure 5.1a. The distance from the antenna to each point on the radia-
tion pattern is proportional to the power radiated from the antenna in that direc-
tion. Figure 5.1b shows the radiation pattern of another idealized antenna. This is a
directional antenna in which the preferred direction of radiation is along one axis.
The actual size of a radiation pattern is arbitrary. What is important is the rel-
ative distance from the antenna position in each direction. The relative distance
determines the relative power. To determine the relative power in a given direction,
a line is drawn from the antenna position at the appropriate angle, and the point of
intercept with the radiation pattern is determined. Figure 5.1 shows a comparison
of two transmission angles, A and B, drawn on the two radiation patterns. The
isotropic antenna produces an omnidirectional radiation pattern of equal strength
in all directions, so the A and B vectors are of equal length. For the Hertz antenna,
the B vector is longer than the A vector, indicating that more power is radiated in
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 101

5.1 / ANTENNAS 101

A A

B B

Antenna location

(a) Omnidirectional (b) Directional

Figure 5.1 Idealized Radiation Patterns

the B direction than in the A direction, and the relative lengths of the two vectors
are proportional to the amount of power radiated in the two directions.
The radiation pattern provides a convenient means of determining the beam
width of an antenna, which is a common measure of the directivity of an antenna.
The beam width, also referred to as the half-power beam width, is the angle within
which the power radiated by the antenna is at least half of what it is in the most pre-
ferred direction.
When an antenna is used for reception, the radiation pattern becomes a
reception pattern. The longest sections of the pattern indicates the best direction
for reception.

Antenna Types
Dipoles
Two of the simplest and most basic antennas are the half-wave dipole, or
Hertz, antenna (Figure 5.2a) and the quarter-wave vertical, or Marconi, antenna
(Figure 5.2b). The half-wave dipole consists of two straight collinear conductors of
equal length, separated by a small feeding gap. The length of the antenna is one-half

λ/2
λ/4

(a) Half-wave dipole

(b) Quarter-wave antenna

Figure 5.2 Simple Antennas

05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 102

102 CHAPTER 5 / CONCURRENCY: MUTUAL EXCLUSION AND SYNCHRONIZATION

y y z

x z x

Side view (xy-plane) Side view (zy-plane) Top view (xz-plane)

(a) Simple dipole

y y z

x z x

Side view (xy-plane) Side view (zy-plane) Top view (xz-plane)

(b) Directed antenna

Figure 5.3 Radiation Patterns in Three Dimensions [SCHI00]

the wavelength of the signal that can be transmitted most efficiently. A vertical
quarter-wave antenna is the type commonly used for automobile radios and port-
able radios.
A half-wave dipole has a uniform or omnidirectional radiation pattern in one
dimension and a figure eight pattern in the other two dimensions (Figure 5.3a).
More complex antenna configurations can be used to produce a directional beam.
A typical directional radiation pattern is shown in Figure 5.3b. In this case the main
strength of the antenna is in the x direction.

Parabolic Reflective Antenna

An important type of antenna is the parabolic reflective antenna, which is used
in terrestrial microwave and satellite applications. You may recall from your pre-
college geometry studies that a parabola is the locus of all points equidistant from
a fixed line and a fixed point not on the line. The fixed point is called the focus and
the fixed line is called the directrix (Figure 5.4a). If a parabola is revolved about its
axis, the surface generated is called a paraboloid. A cross section through the parab-
oloid parallel to its axis forms a parabola and a cross section perpendicular to the
axis forms a circle. Such surfaces are used in headlights, optical and radio telescopes,
and microwave antennas because of the following property: If a source of electro-
magnetic energy (or sound) is placed at the focus of the paraboloid, and if the par-
aboloid is a reflecting surface, then the wave will bounce back in lines parallel to
the axis of the paraboloid; Figure 5.4b shows this effect in cross section. In theory,
this effect creates a parallel beam without dispersion. In practice, there will be some
dispersion, because the source of energy must occupy more than one point. The con-
verse is also true. If incoming waves are parallel to the axis of the reflecting par-
aboloid, the resulting signal will be concentrated at the focus.
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 103

5.1 / ANTENNAS 103

b
a
b
Directrix
c
c
f f
Focus x

(a) Parabola (b) Cross section of parabolic antenna

showing reflective property

(c) Cross section of parabolic antenna

showing radiation pattern

Figure 5.4 Parabolic Reflective Antenna

Figure 5.4c shows a typical radiation pattern for the parabolic reflective
antenna, and Table 5.1 lists beam widths for antennas of various sizes at a frequency
of 12 GHz. Note that the larger the diameter of the antenna, the more tightly direc-
tional is the beam.

Antenna Gain
Antenna gain is a measure of the directionality of an antenna. Antenna gain is
defined as the power output, in a particular direction, compared to that produced
in any direction by a perfect omnidirectional antenna (isotropic antenna). For exam-
ple, if an antenna has a gain of 3 dB, that antenna improves upon the isotropic
antenna in that direction by 3 dB, or a factor of 2. The increased power radiated in
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 104

104 CHAPTER 5 / CONCURRENCY: MUTUAL EXCLUSION AND SYNCHRONIZATION

Table 5.1 Antenna Beamwidths for Various Diameter

Parabolic Reflective Antennas at f  12 GHz [FREE97]

Antenna Diameter (m) Beam Width (degrees)

0.5 3.5

0.75 2.33

1.0 1.75

1.5 1.166

2.0 0.875
2.5 0.7

5.0 0.35

a given direction is at the expense of other directions. In effect, increased power

is radiated in one direction by reducing the power radiated in other directions. It is
important to note that antenna gain does not refer to obtaining more output power
than input power but rather to directionality.
A concept related to that of antenna gain is the effective area of an antenna.
The effective area of an antenna is related to the physical size of the antenna and to
its shape. The relationship between antenna gain and effective area is
4pA e 4pf2A e
G 2
 (5.1)
l c2
where
G  antenna gain
Ae  effective area
f  carrier frequency
c  speed of light ( 3  108 m/s)
  carrier wavelength
Table 5.2 shows the antenna gain and effective area of some typical antenna
shapes.

Table 5.2 Antenna Gains and Effective Areas [COUC01]

Power Gain (relative

Type of Antenna Effective Area Ae (m2) to isotropic)

Isotropic 2⁄4 1

Infinitesimal dipole or loop 1.5 2⁄4 1.5

Half-wave dipole 1.64 2/4 1.64

Horn, mouth area A 0.81 A 10 A/2

Parabolic, face area A 0.56 A 7 A/2

Turnstile (two crossed, 1.15 2⁄4 1.15

perpendicular dipoles)
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 105

5.2 / PROPAGATION MODES 105

Example. For a parabolic reflective antenna with a diameter of 2 m, operating at 12 GHz,

what is the effective area and the antenna gain? We have an area of A  r2   and an
effective area of Ae  0.56. The wavelength is   c / f  (3  108) / (12  109)  0.025 m.
Then
G  (7A) / 2  (7  ) / (0.025)2  35,186
GdB 45.46 dB

5.2 PROPAGATION MODES

A signal radiated from an antenna travels along one of three routes: ground wave,
sky wave, or line of sight (LOS). Table 5.3 shows in which frequency range each pre-
dominates. In this book, we are almost exclusively concerned with LOS communi-
cation, but a short overview of each mode is given in this section.

Ground Wave Propagation

Ground wave propagation (Figure 5.5a) more or less follows the contour of the
earth and can propagate considerable distances, well over the visual horizon. This
effect is found in frequencies up to about 2 MHz. Several factors account for the
tendency of electromagnetic wave in this frequency band to follow the earth’s cur-
vature. One factor is that the electromagnetic wave induces a current in the earth’s
surface, the result of which is to slow the wavefront near the earth, causing the wave-
front to tilt downward and hence follow the earth’s curvature. Another factor is dif-
fraction, which is a phenomenon having to do with the behavior of electromagnetic
waves in the presence of obstacles.
Electromagnetic waves in this frequency range are scattered by the atmos-
phere in such a way that they do not penetrate the upper atmosphere.
The best-known example of ground wave communication is AM radio.

Sky Wave Propagation

Sky wave propagation is used for amateur radio, CB radio, and international broad-
casts such as BBC and Voice of America. With sky wave propagation, a signal from
an earth-based antenna is reflected from the ionized layer of the upper atmosphere
(ionosphere) back down to earth. Although it appears the wave is reflected from the
ionosphere as if the ionosphere were a hard reflecting surface, the effect is in fact
caused by refraction. Refraction is described subsequently.
A sky wave signal can travel through a number of hops, bouncing back and
forth between the ionosphere and the earth’s surface (Figure 5.5b). With this propa-
gation mode, a signal can be picked up thousands of kilometers from the transmitter.

Line-of-Sight Propagation
Above 30 MHz, neither ground wave nor sky wave propagation modes operate, and
communication must be by line of sight (Figure 5.5c). For satellite communication,
106
05 StallingsIII

Table 5.3 Frequency Bands

Free-Space
5/15/01

Band Frequency Range Wavelength Range Propagation Characteristics Typical Use

ELF (extremely 30 to 300 Hz 10,000 to 1,000 km GW Power line frequencies; used by some home
low frequency) control systems.
1:17 PM

VF (voice 300 to 3000 Hz 1,000 to 100 km GW Used by the telephone system for analog
frequency) subscriber lines.

VLF (very 3 to 30 kHz 100 to 10 km GW; low attenuation day and night; Long-range navigation; submarine
low frequency) high atmospheric noise level communication
Page 106

LF 30 to 300 kHz 10 to 1 km GW; slightly less reliable than VLF; Long-range navigation; marine communication
(low frequency) absorption in daytime radio beacons

MF (medium 300 to 3000 kHz 1,000 to 100 m GW and night SW; attenuation low at Maritime radio; direction finding; AM
frequency) night, high in day; atmospheric noise broadcasting.

HF 3 to 30 MHz 100 to 10 m SW; quality varies with time of day, Amateur radio; international broadcasting,
(high frequency) season, and frequency. military communication; long-distance aircraft
and ship communication

VHF (very 30 to 300 MHz 10 to 1 m LOS; scattering because of VHF television; FM broadcast and two-
high frequency) temperature inversion; cosmic noise way radio, AM aircraft communication; aircraft
navigational aids

UHF (ultra 300 to 3000 MHz 100 to 10 cm LOS; cosmic noise UHF television; cellular telephone; radar;
high frequency) microwave links; personal communications systems

SHF (super 3 to 30 GHz 10 to 1 cm LOS; rainfall attenuation above Satellite communication; radar; terrestrial
high frequency) 10 GHz;atmospheric attenuation due microwave links; wireless local loop
to oxygen and water vapor

EHF (extremely 30 to 300 GHz 10 to 1 mm LOS; atmospheric attenuation due to Experimental; wireless local loop
high frequency) oxygen and water vapor

Infrared 300 GHz to 400 THz 1 mm to 770 nm LOS Infrared LANs; consumer electronic applications

Visible light 400 THz to 900 THz 770 nm to 330 nm LOS Optical communication
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 107

Signal
propagation

Transmit Receive
antenna Earth antenna

(a) Ground wave propagation (below 2 MHz)

e
her
n

sp
atio
pag l
pro igna

no
Io
S

Transmit Receive
antenna Earth antenna

(b) Sky wave propagation (2 to 30 MHz)

Signal
propagation

Transmit Receive
antenna Earth antenna

(c) Line-of-sight (LOS) propagation (above 30 MHz)

Figure 5.5 Wireless Propagation Modes

107
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 108

108 CHAPTER 5 / CONCURRENCY: MUTUAL EXCLUSION AND SYNCHRONIZATION

a signal above 30 MHz is not reflected by the ionosphere and therefore a signal can
be transmitted between an earth station and a satellite overhead that is not beyond
the horizon. For ground-based communication, the transmitting and receiving
antennas must be within an effective line of sight of each other. The term effective is
used because microwaves are bent or refracted by the atmosphere. The amount and
even the direction of the bend depends on conditions, but generally microwaves are
bent with the curvature of the earth and will therefore propagate farther than the
optical line of sight.

Refraction
Before proceeding, a brief discussion of refraction is warranted. Refraction
occurs because the velocity of an electromagnetic wave is a function of the density
of the medium through which it travels. In a vacuum, an electromagnetic wave (such
as light or a radio wave) travels at approximately 3  108 m/s. This is the constant,
c, commonly referred to as the speed of light, but actually referring to the speed of
light in a vacuum. In air, water, glass, and other transparent or partially transparent
media, electromagnetic waves travel at speeds less than c.
When an electromagnetic wave moves from a medium of one density to a
medium of another density, its speed changes. The effect is to cause a one-time
bending of the direction of the wave at the boundary between the two media. This
is illustrated in Figure 5.6. If moving from a less dense to a more dense medium,
the wave will bend toward the more dense medium. This phenomenon is easily
observed by partially immersing a stick in water. The result will look much like Fig-
ure 5.6, with the stick appearing shorter and bent.

Incident
Area of lower direction
refractive index

Area of higher
refractive index
Refracted
direction

Figure 5.6 Refraction of an Electromagnetic Wave [POOL98]

05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 109

5.2 / PROPAGATION MODES 109

Radio horizon

Antenna
Optical horizon

Earth

Figure 5.7 Optical and Radio Horizons

The index of refraction of one medium relative to another is the sine of the
angle of incidence divided by the sine of the angle of refraction. The index of refrac-
tion is also equal to the ratio of the respective velocities in the two media. The
absolute index of refraction of a medium is calculated in comparison with that of a
vacuum. Refractive index varies with wavelength, so that refractive effects differ for
signals with different wavelengths.
Although Figure 5.6 shows an abrupt, one-time change in direction as a signal
moves from one medium to another, a continuous, gradual bending of a signal will
occur if it is moving through a medium in which the index of refraction gradually
changes. Under normal propagation conditions, the refractive index of the atmos-
phere decreases with height so that radio waves travel more slowly near the ground
than at higher altitudes. The result is a slight bending of the radio waves toward
the earth.

Optical and Radio Line of Sight

With no intervening obstacles, the optical line of sight can be expressed as

d  3.572h

where d is the distance between an antenna and the horizon in kilometers and h is
the antenna height in meters. The effective, or radio, line of sight to the horizon is
expressed as (Figure 5.7)

d  3.572Kh

where K is an adjustment factor to account for the refraction. A good rule of

thumb is K  4/3. Thus, the maximum distance between two antennas for LOS
propagation is 3.5712Kh1  2Kh2 2 , where h1 and h2 are the heights of the two
antennas.

Example. The maximum distance between two antennas for LOS transmission if one
antenna is 100 m high and the other is at ground level is

d  3.572Kh  3.572133  41 km
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 110

110 CHAPTER 5 / CONCURRENCY: MUTUAL EXCLUSION AND SYNCHRONIZATION

Now suppose that the receiving antenna is 10 m high. To achieve the same distance, how
high must the transmitting antenna be? The result is

41  3.571 2Kh1  213.32

41
2 Kh1   213.3  7.84
3.57
h1  7.842>1.33  46.2 m

This is a savings of over 50 m in the height of the transmitting antenna. This example illus-
trates the benefit of raising receiving antennas above ground level to reduce the necessary
height of the transmitter.

5.3 LINE-OF-SIGHT TRANSMISSION

With any communications system, the signal that is received will differ from the sig-
nal that is transmitted, due to various transmission impairments. For analog signals,
these impairments introduce various random modifications that degrade the signal
quality. For digital data, bit errors are introduced: A binary 1 is transformed into a
binary 0, and vice versa. In this section we examine the various impairments and
comment on their effect on the information-carrying capacity of a communications
link. Our concern in this book is with LOS wireless transmission, and in this con-
text, the most significant impairments are as follows:

• Attenuation and attenuation distortion

• Free space loss
• Noise
• Atmospheric absorption
• Multipath
• Refraction

Attenuation
The strength of a signal falls off with distance over any transmission medium. For
guided media, this reduction in strength, or attenuation, is generally logarithmic and
thus is typically expressed as a constant number of decibels per unit distance. For
unguided media, attenuation is a more complex function of distance and the makeup
of the atmosphere. Attenuation introduces three factors for the transmission engineer:

1. A received signal must have sufficient strength so that the electronic circuitry
in the receiver can detect and interpret the signal.
2. The signal must maintain a level sufficiently higher than noise to be received
without error.
3. Attenuation is greater at higher frequencies, causing distortion.
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 111

5.3 / LINE-OF-SITE TRANSMISSION 111

The first and second factors are dealt with by attention to signal strength and
the use of amplifiers or repeaters. For a point-to-point link, the signal strength of
the transmitter must be strong enough to be received intelligibly, but not so strong
as to overload the circuitry of the transmitter or receiver, which would cause dis-
tortion. Beyond a certain distance, the attenuation becomes unacceptably great, and
repeaters or amplifiers are used to boost the signal at regular intervals. These prob-
lems are more complex when there are multiple receivers, where the distance from
transmitter to receiver is variable.
The third factor is known as attenuation distortion. Because the attenuation
varies as a function of frequency, the received signal is distorted, reducing intelligi-
bility. Specifically, the frequency components of the received signal have different
relative strengths than the frequency components of the transmitted signal. To over-
come this problem, techniques are available for equalizing attenuation across a band
of frequencies. One approach is to use amplifiers that amplify high frequencies more
than lower frequencies.

Free Space Loss

For any type of wireless communication the signal disperses with distance. There-
fore, an antenna with a fixed area will receive less signal power the farther it is from
the transmitting antenna. For satellite communication this is the primary mode of
signal loss. Even if no other sources of attenuation or impairment are assumed, a
transmitted signal attenuates over distance because the signal is being spread over
a larger and larger area. This form of attenuation is known as free space loss, which
can be express in terms of the ratio of the radiated power Pt to the power Pr received
by the antenna or, in decibels, by taking 10 times the log of that ratio. For the ideal
isotropic antenna, free space loss is

Pt 14pd2 2 14pfd2 2
 
Pr l2 c2

where

Pt signal power at the transmitting antenna

Prsignal power at the receiving antenna
 carrier wavelength
d propagation distance between antennas
c speed of light (3  108 m/s)

where d and  are in the same units (e.g., meters).

This can be recast as

 20 log a b   20 log 1l2  20 log 1d2  21.98 dB

Pt 4pd
LdB  10 log
Pr l
(5.2)
 20 log a b  20 log 1f2  20 log 1d2  147.56 dB
4pfd
c
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 112

112 CHAPTER 5 / CONCURRENCY: MUTUAL EXCLUSION AND SYNCHRONIZATION

Figure 5.8 illustrates the free space loss equation.1

For other antennas, we must take into account the gain of the antenna, which
yields the following free space loss equation:

Pt 14p2 2 1d2 2 1ld2 2 1cd2 2

  
Pr GrGtl2 A rA t f2A rA t
where
Gt  gain of the transmitting antenna
Gr  gain of the receiving antenna
At  effective area of the transmitting antenna
Ar  effective area of the receiving antenna

180

170 GHz
300
f
160

150 Hz
30 G
f
140

130 z
3 GH
f
Loss (dB)

120

110 z
MH
300
f
100

90 Hz
30 M
f
80

70

60
1 5 10 50 100
Distance (km)
Figure 5.8 Free Space Loss

1
As was mentioned in Appendix 2A, there is some inconsistency in the literature over the use of the terms
gain and loss. Equation (5.2) follows the convention of Equation (2.2).
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 113

5.3 / LINE-OF-SITE TRANSMISSION 113

The third fraction is derived from the second fraction using the relationship
between antenna gain and effective area defined in Equation (5.1). We can recast
this equation as

LdB  20 log ()  20 log (d)  10 log (AtAr)

 20 log (f)  20 log (d)  10 log (AtAt) 169.54 dB (5.3)

Thus, for the same antenna dimensions and separation, the longer the carrier wave-
length (lower the carrier frequency f ), the higher is the free space path loss. It is
interesting to compare Equations (5.2) and (5.3). Equation (5.2) indicates that as the
frequency increases, the free space loss also increases, which would suggest that
at higher frequencies, losses become more burdensome. However, Equation (5.3)
shows that we can easily compensate for this increased loss with antenna gains. In
fact, there is a net gain at higher frequencies, other factors remaining constant.
Equation (5.2) shows that at a fixed distance an increase in frequency results in an
increased loss measured by 20 log(f ). However, if we take into account antenna
gain, and fix antenna area, then the change in loss is measured by 20 log(f); that
is, there is actually a decrease in loss at higher frequencies.

Example. Determine the isotropic free space loss at 4 GHz for the shortest path to a
synchronous ssttelite from earth (35,863 km). At 4 GHz, the wavelength is (3  108) /
(4  109)  0.075 m. Then
LdB  20 log (0.075)  20 log(35.853  106)  21.98  195.6 dB

Now consider the antenna gain of both the satellite- and ground-based antennas. Typical
values are 44 dB and 48 dB, respectively. The free space loss is
LdB  195.6  44  48  103.6 dB

Now assume a transmit power of 250 W at the earth station. What is the power received
at the satellite antenna? A power of 250 W translates into 24 dBW, so the power at the
receiving antenna is 24  103.6  79.6 dBW.

Noise
For any data transmission event, the received signal will consist of the transmitted
signal, modified by the various distortions imposed by the transmission system, plus
additional unwanted signals that are inserted somewhere between transmission and
reception. These unwanted signals are referred to as noise. Noise is the major lim-
iting factor in communications system performance.
Noise may be divided into four categories:

• Thermal noise
• Intermodulation noise
• Crosstalk
• Impulse noise
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 114

114 CHAPTER 5 / CONCURRENCY: MUTUAL EXCLUSION AND SYNCHRONIZATION

Thermal noise is due to thermal agitation of electrons. It is present in all elec-

tronic devices and transmission media and is a function of temperature. Thermal
noise is uniformly distributed across the frequency spectrum and hence is often
referred to as white noise. Thermal noise cannot be eliminated and therefore places
an upper bound on communications system performance. Because of the weakness
of the signal received by satellite earth stations, thermal noise is particularly signif-
icant for satellite communication.
The amount of thermal noise to be found in a bandwidth of 1 Hz in any device
or conductor is
N0  kT (W/Hz)
where2

N0 noise power density in watts per 1 Hz of bandwidth

k Boltzmann’s constant  1.3803  1023 J/K
T temperature, in kelvins (absolute temperature)

Example. Room temperature is usually specified as T  17°C, or 290 K. At this temper-

ature, the thermal noise power density is
N0  (1.3803  1023)  290  4  1021 W/Hz  204 dBW/Hz
where dBW is the decibel-watt, defined in Appendix 2A.

The noise is assumed to be independent of frequency. Thus the thermal noise

in watts present in a bandwidth of B Hertz can be expressed as

N  kTB

or, in decibel-watts,

N  10 log k  10 log T  10 log B

 228.6 dBW  10 log T  10 log B

Example. Given a receiver with an effective noise temperature of 294 K and a 10-MHz
bandwidth, the thermal noise level at the receiver’s output is

N  228.6 dBW  10 log(294)  10 log 107

 228.6  24.7  70
 133.9 dBW

2
A Joule (J) is the International System (SI) unit of electrical, mechanical, and thermal energy. A watt
is the SI unit of power, equal to one joule per second. The kelvin (K) is the SI unit of thermodynamic
temperature. For a temperature in degrees kelvin of T, the corresponding temperature in degrees
Celsius is equal to T  273.15.
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 115

5.3 / LINE-OF-SITE TRANSMISSION 115

When signals at different frequencies share the same transmission medium,
the result may be intermodulation noise. Intermodulation noise produces signals at
a frequency that is the sum or difference of the two original frequencies or multi-
ples of those frequencies. For example, the mixing of signals at frequencies f1 and f2
might produce energy at the frequency f1  f2. This derived signal could interfere
with an intended signal at the frequency f1  f2.
Intermodulation noise is produced when there is some nonlinearity in the
transmitter, receiver, or intervening transmission system. Normally, these compo-
nents behave as linear systems; that is, the output is equal to the input times a
constant. In a nonlinear system, the output is a more complex function of the input.
Such nonlinearity can be caused by component malfunction, the use of excessive sig-
nal strength, or just the nature of the amplifiers used. It is under these circumstances
that the sum and difference frequency terms occur.
Crosstalk has been experienced by anyone who, while using the telephone, has
been able to hear another conversation; it is an unwanted coupling between signal
paths. It can occur by electrical coupling between nearby twisted pairs or, rarely,
coax cable lines carrying multiple signals. Crosstalk can also occur when unwanted
signals are picked up by microwave antennas; although highly directional attennas
are used, microwave energy does spread during propagation. Typically, crosstalk is
of the same order of magnitude as, or less than, thermal noise. However, in the unli-
censed ISM bands, crosstalk often dominates.
All of the types of noise discussed so far have reasonably predictable and rel-
atively constant magnitudes. Thus it is possible to engineer a transmission system to
cope with them. Impulse noise, however, is noncontinuous, consisting of irregular
pulses or noise spikes of short duration and of relatively high amplitude. It is gen-
erated from a variety of causes, including external electromagnetic disturbances,
such as lightning, and faults and flaws in the communications system.
Impulse noise is generally only a minor annoyance for analog data. For exam-
ple, voice transmission may be corrupted by short clicks and crackles with no loss of
intelligibility. However, impulse noise is the primary source of error in digital data
transmission. For example, a sharp spike of energy of 0.01 s duration would not
destroy any voice data but would wash out about 560 bits of data being transmitted
at 56 kbps.

The Expression Eb/N0

Chapter 2 introduced the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). There is a parameter related
to SNR that is more convenient for determining digital data rates and error rates
and that is the standard quality measure for digital communication system perfor-
mance. The parameter is the ratio of signal energy per bit to noise power density
per Hertz, Eb/N0. Consider a signal, digital or analog, that contains binary digital
data transmitted at a certain bit rate R. Recalling that 1 watt  1 J/s, the energy per
bit in a signal is given by Eb  STb, where S is the signal power and Tb is the time
required to send one bit. The data rate R is just R  1/Tb . Thus

Eb S>R S
 
N0 N0 kTR
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 116

116 CHAPTER 5 / CONCURRENCY: MUTUAL EXCLUSION AND SYNCHRONIZATION

or, in decibel notation,

a b  SdBW  10 log R  10 log k  10 log T

Eb
N0 dB

 SdBW  10 log R  228.6 dBW  10 log T

The ratio Eb/N0 is important because the bit error rate for digital data is a (decreas-
ing) function of this ratio. Given a value of Eb/N0 needed to achieve a desired error
rate, the parameters in the preceding formula may be selected. Note that as the bit
rate R increases, the transmitted signal power, relative to noise, must increase to
maintain the required Eb/N0.
Let us try to grasp this result intuitively by considering again Figure 2.9. The
signal here is digital, but the reasoning would be the same for an analog signal.
In several instances, the noise is sufficient to alter the value of a bit. If the data rate
were doubled, the bits would be more tightly packed together, and the same pas-
sage of noise might destroy two bits. Thus, for constant signal and noise strength, an
increase in data rate increases the error rate.
The advantage of Eb/N0 over SNR is that the latter quantity depends on the
bandwidth.

Example. Suppose a signal encoding technique requires that Eb/N0  8.4 dB for a bit error
rate of 104 (one bit error out of every 10,000). If the effective noise temperature is 290°K
(room temperature) and the data rate is 2400 bps, what received signal level is required
to overcome thermal noise?
We have
8.4  SdBW  10 log 2400  228.6 dBW  10 log 290
 SdBW  (10)(3.38)  228.6  (10)(2.46)
S  161.8 dBW

We can relate Eb/N0 to SNR as follows. We have

Eb S

N0 N0R

The parameter N0 is the noise power density in watts/hertz. Hence, the noise in a
signal with bandwidth BT is N  N0BT. Substituting, we have
Eb S BT
 (5.4)
N0 N R

Another formulation of interest relates to Eb/N0 spectral efficiency. Recall,

from Chapter 2, Shannon’s result that the maximum channel capacity, in bits per
second, obeys the equation

C  B log2 (1  S/N)
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 117

5.3 / LINE-OF-SITE TRANSMISSION 117

where C is the capacity of the channel in bits per second and B is the bandwidth of
the channel in Hertz. This can be rewritten as

S
 2C>B  1
N

Using Equation (5.4), and equating BT with B and R with C, we have

 12C>B  12
Eb B
N0 C

This is a useful formula that relates the achievable spectral efficiency C/B to Eb/N0.

Example. Suppose we want to find the minimum Eb/N0 required to achieve a spectral effi-
ciency of 6 bps/Hz. Then Eb/N0  (1/6)(26  1)  10.5  10.21 dB.

Atmospheric Absorption
An additional loss between the transmitting and receiving antennas is atmospheric
absorption. Water vapor and oxygen contribute most to attenuation. A peak atten-
uation occurs in the vicinity of 22 GHz due to water vapor. At frequencies below 15
GHz, the attenuation is less. The presence of oxygen results in an absorption peak
in the vicinity of 60 GHz but contributes less at frequencies below 30 GHz. Rain
and fog (suspended water droplets) cause scattering of radio waves that results in
attenuation. This can be a major cause of signal loss. Thus, in areas of significant
precipitation, either path lengths have to be kept short or lower-frequency bands
should be used.

Multipath
For wireless facilities where there is a relatively free choice of where antennas are
to be located, they can be placed so that if there are no nearby interfering obstacles,
there is a direct line-of-sight path from transmitter to receiver. This is generally the
case for many satellite facilities and for point-to-point microwave. In other cases,
such as mobile telephony, there are obstacles in abundance. The signal can be
reflected by such obstacles so that multiple copies of the signal with varying delays
can be received. In fact, in extreme cases, there may be no direct signal. Depending
on the differences in the path lengths of the direct and reflected waves, the com-
posite signal can be either larger or smaller than the direct signal. Reinforcement
and cancellation of the signal resulting from the signal following multiple paths can
be controlled for communication between fixed, well-sited antennas, and between
satellites and fixed ground stations. One exception is when the path goes across
water, where the wind keeps the reflective surface of the water in motion. For
mobile telephony and communication to antennas that are not well sited, multipath
considerations can be paramount.
Figure 5.9 illustrates in general terms the types of multipath interference
typical in terrestrial, fixed microwave and in mobile communications. For fixed
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 118

118 CHAPTER 5 / CONCURRENCY: MUTUAL EXCLUSION AND SYNCHRONIZATION

(a) Microwave line of sight

(b) Mobile radio

Figure 5.9 Examples of Multipath Interference

microwave, in addition to the direct line of sight, the signal may follow a curved path
through the atmosphere due to refraction and the signal may also reflect from the
ground. For mobile communications, structures and topographic features provide
reflection surfaces.

Refraction
Radio waves are refracted (or bent) when they propagate through the atmosphere.
The refraction is caused by changes in the speed of the signal with altitude or by
other spatial changes in the atmospheric conditions. Normally, the speed of the
signal increases with altitude, causing radio waves to bend downward. However, on
occasion, weather conditions may lead to variations in speed with height that differ
significantly from the typical variations. This may result in a situation in which only
a fraction or no part of the line-of-sight wave reaches the receiving antenna.

5.4 FADING IN THE MOBILE ENVIRONMENT

Perhaps the most challenging technical problem facing communications systems

engineers is fading in a mobile environment. The term fading refers to the time vari-
ation of received signal power caused by changes in the transmission medium or
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 119

5.4 / FADING IN THE MOBILE ENVIRONMENT 119

path(s). In a fixed environment, fading is affected by changes in atmospheric con-

ditions, such as rainfall. But in a mobile environment, where one of the two anten-
nas is moving relative to the other, the relative location of various obstacles changes
over time, creating complex transmission effects.

Multipath Propagation
Three propagation mechanisms, illustrated in Figure 5.10, play a role. Reflection
occurs when an electromagnetic signal encounters a surface that is large relative to
the wavelength of the signal. For example, suppose a ground-reflected wave near
the mobile unit is received. Because the ground-reflected wave has a 180° phase shift
after reflection, the ground wave and the line-of-sight (LOS) wave may tend to
cancel, resulting in high signal loss.3 Further, because the mobile antenna is lower
than most human-made structures in the area, multipath interference occurs. These
reflected waves may interfere constructively or destructively at the receiver.
Diffraction occurs at the edge of an impenetrable body that is large compared
to the wavelength of the radio wave. When a radio wave encounters such an edge,
waves propagate in different directions with the edge as the source. Thus, signals
can be received even when there is no unobstructed LOS from the transmitter.

Lamp
post

Figure 5.10 Sketch of Three Important Propagation Mechanisms: Reflection (R),

Scattering (S), Diffraction (D) [ANDE95]

3
On the other hand, the reflected signal has a longer path, which creates a phase shift due to delay rela-
tive to the unreflected signal. When this delay is equivalent to half a wavelength, the two signals are back
in phase.
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 120

120 CHAPTER 5 / CONCURRENCY: MUTUAL EXCLUSION AND SYNCHRONIZATION

If the size of an obstacle is on the order of the wavelength of the signal or less,
scattering occurs. An incoming signal is scattered into several weaker outgoing
signals. At typical cellular microwave frequencies, there are numerous objects, such
as lamp posts and traffic signs, that can cause scattering. Thus, scattering effects are
difficult to predict.
These three propagation effects influence system performance in various ways
depending on local conditions and as the mobile unit moves within a cell. If a mobile
unit has a clear LOS to the transmitter, then diffraction and scattering are generally
minor effects, although reflection may have a significant impact. If there is no clear
LOS, such as in an urban area at street level, then diffraction and scattering are the
primary means of signal reception.

The Effects of Multipath Propagation

As just noted, one unwanted effect of multipath propagation is that multiple
copies of a signal may arrive at different phases. If these phases add destructively,
the signal level relative to noise declines, making signal detection at the receiver
more difficult.
A second phenomenon, of particular importance for digital transmission, is
intersymbol interference (ISI). Consider that we are sending a narrow pulse at a
given frequency across a link between a fixed antenna and a mobile unit. Figure 5.11
shows what the channel may deliver to the receiver if the impulse is sent at two dif-
ferent times. The upper line shows two pulses at the time of transmission. The lower
line shows the resulting pulses at the receiver. In each case the first received pulse is
the desired LOS signal. The magnitude of that pulse may change because of changes
in atmospheric attenuation. Further, as the mobile unit moves farther away from the
fixed antenna, the amount of LOS attenuation increases. But in addition to this pri-
mary pulse, there may be multiple secondary pulses due to reflection, diffraction,

Transmitted Transmitted
pulse pulse

Time

Received Received Received Received

LOS pulse multipath LOS pulse multipath
pulses pulses

Time
Figure 5.11 Two Pulses in Time-Variant Multipath
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 121

5.4 / FADING IN THE MOBILE ENVIRONMENT 121

and scattering. Now suppose that this pulse encodes one or more bits of data. In that
case, one or more delayed copies of a pulse may arrive at the same time as the pri-
mary pulse for a subsequent bit. These delayed pulses act as a form of noise to the
subsequent primary pulse, making recovery of the bit information more difficult.
As the mobile antenna moves, the location of various obstacles changes; hence
the number, magnitude, and timing of the secondary pulses change. This makes it
difficult to design signal processing techniques that will filter out multipath effects
so that the intended signal is recovered with fidelity.

Types of Fading
Fading effects in a mobile environment can be classified as either fast or slow. Refer-
ring to Figure 5.10, as the mobile unit moves down a street in an urban environment,
rapid variations in signal strength occur over distances of about one-half a wave-
length. At a frequency of 900 MHz, which is typical for mobile cellular applications,
a wavelength is 0.33 m. The rapidly changing waveform in Figure 5.12 shows an
example of the spatial variation of received signal amplitude at 900 MHz in an urban
setting. Note that changes of amplitude can be as much as 20 or 30 dB over a short
distance. This type of rapidly changing fading phenomenon, known as fast fading,
affects not only mobile phones in automobiles, but even a mobile phone user walk-
ing down an urban street.
As the mobile user covers distances well in excess of a wavelength, the urban
environment changes, as the user passes buildings of different heights, vacant lots,
intersections, and so forth. Over these longer distances, there is a change in the aver-
age received power level about which the rapid fluctuations occur. This is indicated
by the slowly changing waveform in Figure 5.12 and is referred to as slow fading.
Fading effects can also be classified as flat or selective. Flat fading, or non-
selective fading, is that type of fading in which all frequency components of the
received signal fluctuate in the same proportions simultaneously. Selective fading
affects unequally the different spectral components of a radio signal. The term selec-

80

90
Amplitude (dBm)

100

110

120

130
0 5 10 15 20 25 30
Position (m)
Figure 5.12 Typical Slow and Fast Fading in an Urban Mobile Environment
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 122

122 CHAPTER 5 / CONCURRENCY: MUTUAL EXCLUSION AND SYNCHRONIZATION

tive fading is usually significant only relative to the bandwidth of the overall
communications channel. If attenuation occurs over a portion of the bandwidth of
the signal, the fading is considered to be selective; nonselective fading implies that
the signal bandwidth of interest is narrower than, and completely covered by, the
spectrum affected by the fading.

The Fading Channel

In designing a communications system, the communications engineer needs
to estimate the effects of multipath fading and noise on the mobile channel. The
simplest channel model, from the point of view of analysis, is the additive white
Gaussian noise (AWGN) channel. In this channel, the desired signal is degraded by
thermal noise associated with the physical channel itself as well as electronics at the
transmitter and receiver (and any intermediate amplifiers or repeaters). This model
is fairly accurate in some cases, such as space communications and some wire trans-
missions, such as coaxial cable. For terrestrial wireless transmission, particularly in
the mobile situation, AWGN is not a good guide for the designer.
Rayleigh fading occurs when there are multiple indirect paths between trans-
mitter and receiver and no distinct dominant path, such as an LOS path. This rep-
resents a worst-case scenario. Fortunately, Rayleigh fading can be dealt with
analytically, providing insights into performance characteristics that can be used in
difficult environments, such as downtown urban settings.
Rician fading best characterizes a situation where there is a direct LOS path
in addition to a number of indirect multipath signals. The Rician model is often
applicable in an indoor environment whereas the Rayleigh model characterizes out-
door settings. The Rician model also becomes more applicable in smaller cells or in
more open outdoor environments. The channels can be characterized by a parame-
ter K, defined as follows:

power in the dominant path

K
power in the scattered paths

When K  0 the channel is Rayleigh (i.e., numerator is zero) and when K  ,

the channel is AWGN (i.e., denominator is zero). Figure 5.13, based on [FREE98a]
and [SKLA01], shows system performance in the presence of noise. Here bit error
rate is plotted as a function of the ratio Eb/N0. Of course, as that ratio increases,
the bit error rate drops. The figure shows that with a reasonably strong signal, rel-
ative to noise, an AWGN exhibit provides fairly good performance, as do Rician
channels with larger values of K, roughly corresponding to microcells or an open
country environment. The performance would be adequate for a digitized voice
application, but for digital data transfer efforts to compensate would be needed.
The Rayleigh channel provides relatively poor performance; this is likely to be seen
for flat fading and for slow fading; in these cases, error compensation mechanisms
become more desirable. Finally, some environments produce fading effects worse
than the so-called worst case of Rayleigh. Examples are fast fading in an urban
environment and the fading within the affected band of a selective fading channel.
In these cases, no level of Eb/N0 will help achieve the desired performance, and
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 123

5.4 / FADING IN THE MOBILE ENVIRONMENT 123

Frequency-selective fading or
fast fading distortion

101
Probability of bit error (BER)

Flat fading
102 and slow fading
Rayleigh limit

103
Rici
Rician
Additiv noise
gaussia

an f
K
K  16

adin
fading

4
e whit
n

g
e

10-4
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35
(Eb /N0) (dB)

Figure 5.13 Theoretical Bit Error Rate for Various Fading Conditions

compensation mechanisms are mandatory. We turn to a discussion of those mecha-

nisms next.

Error Compensation Mechanisms

The efforts to compensate for the errors and distortions introduced by multi-
path fading fall into three general categories: forward error correction, adaptive
equalization, and diversity techniques. In the typical mobile wireless environment,
techniques from all three categories are combined to combat the error rates
encountered.
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 124

124 CHAPTER 5 / CONCURRENCY: MUTUAL EXCLUSION AND SYNCHRONIZATION

Forward Error Correction

Forward error correction is applicable in digital transmission applications:
those in which the transmitted signal carries digital data or digitized voice or video
data. The term forward refers to procedures whereby a receiver, using only infor-
mation contained in the incoming digital transmission, corrects bit errors in the data.
This is in contrast to backward error correction, in which the receiver merely
detects the presence of errors and then sends a request back to the transmitter to
retransmit the data in error. Backward error correction is not practical in many
wireless applications. For example, in satellite communications, the amount of delay
involved makes retransmission undesirable. In mobile communications, the error
rates are often so high that there is a high probability that the retransmitted block
of bits will also contain errors. In these applications, forward error correction is
required. In essence, forward error correction is achieved as follows:

1. The transmitter adds a number of additional, redundant bits to each transmit-

ted block of data. These bits form an error-correcting code and are calculated
as a function of the data bits.
2. For each incoming block of bits (data plus error-correcting code), the receiver
calculates a new error-correcting code from the incoming data bits. If the cal-
culated code matches the incoming code, then the receiver assumes that no
error has occurred in this block of bits.
3. If the incoming and calculated codes do not match, then one or more bits are
in error. If the number of bit errors is below a threshold that depends on the
length of the code and the nature of the algorithm, it is possible for the re-
ceiver to determine the bit positions in error and correct all errors.

Typically in mobile wireless applications, the ratio of total bits sent to data bits
sent is between 2 and 3. This may seem an extravagant amount of overhead, in that
the capacity of the system is cut to one-half or one-third of its potential, but the mobile
wireless environment is so difficult that such levels of redundancy are necessary.
Chapter 8 examines forward error correction techniques in detail.

Adaptive Equalization
Adaptive equalization can be applied to transmissions that carry analog infor-
mation (e.g., analog voice or video) or digital information (e.g., digital data, digi-
tized voice or video) and is used to combat intersymbol interference. The process
of equalization involves some method of gathering the dispersed symbol energy
back together into its original time interval. Equalization is a broad topic; tech-
niques include the use of so-called lumped analog circuits as well as sophisticated
digital signal processing algorithms. Here we give a flavor of the digital signal pro-
cessing approach.
Figure 5.14 illustrates a common approach using a linear equalizer circuit. In
this specific example, for each output symbol, the input signal is sampled at five uni-
formly spaced intervals of time, separated by a delay . These samples are individ-
ually weighted by the coefficients Ci and then summed to produce the output. The
circuit is referred to as adaptive because the coefficients are dynamically adjusted.
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 125

5.4 / FADING IN THE MOBILE ENVIRONMENT 125

Unequalized
input
τ τ τ τ

C2 C–1 C0 C1 C2
× × × × ×
Equalized
output
Σ

Algorithm for tap

gain adjustment

Figure 5.14 Linear Equalizer Circuit [PROA94]

Typically, the coefficients are set using a training sequence, which is a known
sequence of bits. The training sequence is transmitted. The receiver compares the
received training sequence with the expected training sequence and on the basis of
the comparison calculates suitable values for the coefficients. Periodically, a new
training sequence is sent to account for changes in the transmission environment.
For Rayleigh channels, or worse, it may be necessary to include a new training
sequence with every single block of data. Again, this represents considerable over-
head but is justified by the error rates encountered in a mobile wireless environment.

Diversity Techniques
Diversity is based on the fact that individual channels experience independent
fading events. We can therefore compensate for error effects by providing multiple
logical channels in some sense between transmitter and receiver and sending part of
the signal over each channel. This technique does not eliminate errors but it does
reduce the error rate, since we have spread the transmission out to avoid being sub-
jected to the highest error rate that might occur. The other techniques (equalization,
forward error correction) can then cope with the reduced error rate.
Some diversity techniques involve the physical transmission path and are
referred to as space diversity. For example, multiple nearby antennas may be used
to receive the message, with the signals combined in some fashion to reconstruct the
most likely transmitted signal. Another example is the use of collocated multiple
directional antennas, each oriented to a different reception angle with the incoming
signals again combined to reconstitute the transmitted signal.
More commonly, the term diversity refers to frequency diversity or time di-
versity techniques. With frequency diversity, the signal is spread out over a larger
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 126

126 CHAPTER 5 / CONCURRENCY: MUTUAL EXCLUSION AND SYNCHRONIZATION

frequency bandwidth or carried on multiple frequency carriers. The most important

example of this approach is spread spectrum, which is examined in Chapter 7.
Time diversity techniques aim to spread the data out over time so that a noise
burst affects fewer bits. Time diversity can be quite effective in a region of slow
fading. If a mobile unit is moving slowly, it may remain in a region of a high level
of fading for a relatively long interval. The result will be a long burst of errors even
though the local mean signal level is much higher than the interference. Even pow-
erful error correction codes may be unable to cope with an extended error burst. If
digital data is transmitted in a time division multiplex (TDM) structure, in which
multiple users share the same physical channel by the use of time slots (see Figure
2.13b), then block interleaving can be used to provide time diversity. Figure 5.15a,

D A B C

D A B C D A B C D A

Time
Fade giving rise to errors
(a) TDM stream

A2 A3 A4 A5 A6 A7 A8 A9

A2 A6 A10 A14 A3 A7 A11 A15

Time
Fade giving rise to errors
(b) Interleaving without TDM

Figure 5.15 Interleaving Data Blocks to Spread the Effects of Error Bursts
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 127

5.6 / KEY TERMS, REVIEW QUESTIONS, AND PROBLEMS 127

based on one in [JONE93], illustrates the concept. Note that the same number of
bits are still affected by the noise surge, but they are spread out over a number of log-
ical channels. If each channel is protected by forward error correction, the error-
correcting code may be able to cope with the fewer number of bits that are in error
in a particular logical channel. If TDM is not used, time diversity can still be applied
by viewing the stream of bits from the source as a sequence of blocks and then
shuffling the blocks. In Figure 5.15b, blocks are shuffled in groups of four. Again,
the same number of bits is in error, but the error-correcting code is applied to sets
of bits that are spread out in time. Even greater diversity is achieved by combining
TDM interleaving with block shuffling.
The tradeoff with time diversity is delay. The greater the degree of inter-
leaving and shuffling used, the longer the delay in reconstructing the original bit
sequence at the receiver.

5.5 RECOMMENDED READING

[FREE97] provides good coverage of all of the topics in this chapter. A rigorous treatment
of antennas and propagation is found in [BERT00]. [THUR00] provides an exceptionally
clear discussion of antennas.

BERT00 Bertoni, H. Radio Propagation for Modern Wireless Systems. Upper Saddle
River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2000.
FREE97 Freeman, R. Radio System Design for Telecommunications. New York: Wiley, 1997.
THUR00 Thurwachter, C. Data and Telecommunications: Systems and Applications.
Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2000.

5.6 KEY TERMS, REVIEW QUESTIONS, AND PROBLEMS

Key Terms
adaptive equalization flat fading optical LOS
antenna forward error correction parabolic reflective antenna
antenna gain (FEC) radiation pattern
atmospheric absorption free space loss radio LOS
attenuation ground wave propagation reception pattern
beam width Hertz antenna reflection
crosstalk impulse noise refraction
diffraction intermodulation noise scattering
dipole isotropic antenna selective fading
diversity line of sight (LOS) sky wave propagation
fading multipath slow fading
fast fading noise thermal noise
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 128

128 CHAPTER 5 / CONCURRENCY: MUTUAL EXCLUSION AND SYNCHRONIZATION

Review Questions
1 What two functions are performed by an antenna?
2 What is an isotropic antenna?
3 What information is available from a radiation pattern?
4 What is the advantage of a parabolic reflective antenna?
5 What factors determine antenna gain?
6 What is the primary cause of signal loss in satellite communications?
7 Name and briefly define four types of noise.
8 What is refraction?
9 What is fading?
10 What is the difference between diffraction and scattering?
11 What is the difference between fast and slow fading?
12 What is the difference between flat and selective fading?
13 Name and briefly define three diversity techniques.

Problems
1 For radio transmission in free space, signal power is reduced in proportion to the
square of the distance form the source, whereas in wire transmission, the attenuation
is a fixed number of dB per kilometer. The following table is used to show the dB
reduction relative to some reference for free space radio and uniform wire. Fill in the
missing numbers to complete the table.
2 Find the optimum wavelength and frequency for a half-wave dipole of length 10 m.
3 It turns out that the depth in the ocean to which airborne electromagnetic signals can
be detected grows with the wavelength. Therefore, the military got the idea of using
very long wavelengths corresponding to about 30 Hz to communicate with submarines

Distance (km) Radio (dB) Wire (dB)

1 6 3
2
4
8
16

throughout the world. If we want to have an antenna that is about one-half wave-
length long, how long would that be?
4 The audio power of the human voice is concentrated at about 300 Hz. Antennas of
the appropriate size for this frequency are impracticably large, so that to send voice
by radio the voice signal must be used to modulate a higher (carrier) frequency for
which the natural antenna size is smaller.
a. What is the length of an antenna one-half wavelength long for sending radio at 300 Hz?
b. An alternative is to use a modulation scheme, as described in Chapter 6, for trans-
mitting the voice signal by modulating a carrier frequency, so that the bandwidth of
the signal is a narrow band centered on the carrier frequency. Suppose we would like
a half-wave antenna to have a length of 1 m. What carrier frequency would we use?
5 Stories abound of people who receive radio signals in fillings in their teeth. Suppose
you have one filling that is 2.5 mm (0.0025 m) long that acts as a radio antenna. That
is, it is equal in length to one-half the wavelength. What frequency do you receive?
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 129

5.6 / KEY TERMS, REVIEW QUESTIONS, AND PROBLEMS 129

M
y
β
P(x1, y1)
L

0 F(p/2, 0) x

Figure 5.16 Parabolic Reflection

6 Section 5.1 stated that if a source of electromagnetic energy is placed at the focus of
the paraboloid, and if the paraboloid is a reflecting surface, then the wave will bounce
back in lines parallel to the axis of the paraboloid. To demonstrate this, consider the
parabola y2  2px shown in Figure 5.16. Let P(x1, y1) be a point on the parabola, and
PF be the line from P to the focus. Construct the line L through P parallel to the x-
axis and the line M tangent to the parabola at P. The angle between L and M is
, and
the angle between PF and M is . The angle  is the angle at which a ray from F
strikes the parabola at P. Because the angle of incidence equals the angle of reflec-
tion, the ray reflected from P must be at an angle  to M. Thus, if we can show that
 
, we have demonstrated that rays reflected from the parabola starting at F will
be parallel to the x axis.
a. First show that tan
 (p/y1). Hint: Recall from trigonometry that the slope of a
line is equal to the tangent of the angle the line makes with the positive x direction.
Also recall that the slope of the line tangent to a curve at a given point is equal to
the derivative of the curve at that point.
b. Now show that tan   (p/y1), which demonstrates that  
. Hint: Recall from
trigonometry that the formula for the tangent of the difference between two angles
1 and 2 is tan(2  1)  (tan 2  tan 1 ) / (1  tan 2  tan 1).
7 For each of the antenna types listed in Table 5.2, what is the effective area and gain
at a wavelength of 30 cm? Repeat for a wavelength of 3 mm. Assume that the actual
area for the horn and parabolic antennas is .
8 It is often more convenient to express distance in km rather than m and frequency in
MHz rather than Hz. Rewrite Equation (5.2) using these dimensions.
9 Assume that two antennas are half-wave dipoles and each has a directive gain of 3 dB.
If the transmitted power is 1 W and the two antennas are separated by a distance of
05 StallingsIII 5/15/01 1:17 PM Page 130

130 CHAPTER 5 / CONCURRENCY: MUTUAL EXCLUSION AND SYNCHRONIZATION

10 km, what is the received power? Assume that the antennas are aligned so that the
directive gain numbers are correct and that the frequency used is 100 MHz.
10 Suppose a transmitter produces 50 W of power.
a. Express the transmit power in units of dBm and dBW.
b. If the transmitter’s power is applied to a unity gain antenna with a 900-MHz carrier
frequency, what is the received power in dBm at a free space distance of 100 m?
c. Repeat (b) for a distance of 10 km.
d. Repeat (c) but assume a receiver antenna gain of 2.
11 A microwave transmitter has an output of 0.1 W at 2 GHz. Assume that this trans-
mitter is used in a microwave communication system where the transmitting and
receiving antennas are parabolas, each 1.2 m in diameter.
a. What is the gain of each antenna in decibels?
b. Taking into account antenna gain, what is the effective radiated power of the trans-
mitted signal?
c. If the receiving antenna is located 24 km from the transmitting antenna over a free
space path, find the available signal power out of the receiving antenna in dBm
units.
12 Section 5.2 states that with no intervening obstacles, the optical line of sight can be
expressed as d  3.57 2h, where d is the distance between an antenna and the hori-
zon in kilometers and h is the antenna height in meters. Using a value for the earth’s
radius of 6370 km, derive this equation. Hint: Assume that the antenna is perpendic-
ular to the earth’s surface, and note that the line from the top of the antenna to the
horizon forms a tangent to the earth’s surface at the horizon. Draw a picture showing
the antenna, the line of sight, and the earth’s radius to help visualize the problem.
13 Determine the height of an antenna for a TV station that must be able to reach cus-
tomers up to 80 km away.
14 What is the thermal noise level of a channel with a bandwidth of 10 kHz carrying 1000
watts of power operating at 50°C? Compare the noise level to the operating power.
15 The square wave of Figure 2.5c, with T  1 ms, is passed through a low-pass filter that
passes frequencies up to 8 kHz with no attenuation.
a. Find the power in the output waveform.
b. Assuming that at the filter input there is a thermal noise voltage with N0 
0.1 W/Hz, find the output signal to noise ratio in dB.
16 If the received signal level for a particular digital system is 151 dBW and the
receiver system effective noise temperature is 1500°K, what is Eb/N0 for a link trans-
mitting 2400 bps?
17 Suppose a ray of visible light passes from the atmosphere into water at an angle to the
horizontal of 30°. What is the angle of the ray in the water? Note: At standard atmos-
pheric conditions at the earth’s surface, a reasonable value for refractive index is
1.0003. A typical value of refractive index for water is 4/3.