Module-1 Propagation mechanisms,

Free space model, Two ray model,

 Properties of Radio Waves

 Are easy to generate

 Can travel long distances

 Can penetrate buildings

 May be used for both indoor and outdoor coverage

 Are omni-directional-can travel in all directions

 Can be narrowly focused at high frequencies(>100MHz) using

parabolic antenna
 Propagation -Introduction
• Due to multiple reflections from
various objects, the em waves travel
along different paths of varying
lengths.
• Interaction between these waves
causes multipath fading at specific
locations.
• Signal strength  inversely
proportional to distance between
Tx. And Rx.
• Propagation models focus on
predicting the average signal
strength at a given distance from the
Tx. / RX variability of signal strength
in a close spatial proximity to a
particular location.
 Propagation mechanism
• Unlike wired channels that are stationary and
predictable, Radio channels are extremely random
and do not offer easy analysis
• Even the speed of motion impacts how rapidly the
signal level fades as mobile terminal moves in space
• Most cellular radio systems operate in urban areas
(no direct Line of Sight path between Tx and Rx)
• Mechanisms behind EM waves propagation are
diverse, generally attributed to
- Reflection
- Diffraction
- Scattering
 Basic Propagation Mechanism
• Reflection: Reflection occurs when a propagating
electromagnetic wave impinges on an object which has
very large dimensions as compared to wavelength e.g.
surface of earth , buildings, walls
• Scattering occurs when medium has objects that are
smaller or comparable to the wavelength (small objects,
irregularities on channel, foliage, street signs etc)
• Diffraction: occurs when the radio path between the
transmitter and receiver is obstructed by a surface that has
sharp irregularities(edges)
Sketch of Three Important Propagation Mechanism
 Reflection
• Occurs when a radio wave propagating in one medium impinges
upon another medium having different electrical properties
• If radio wave is incident on a perfect dielectric
• Part of energy is reflected back
• Part of energy is transmitted
• In addition to the change of direction, the interaction between the
wave and boundary causes the energy to be split between reflected
and transmitted waves
• The amplitudes of the reflected and transmitted waves are given
relative to the incident wave amplitude by Fresnel reflection
coefficients
 Reflection
• The Reflection Coefficient is a function of the material
properties, and also depends on
– Wave Polarization
– Angle of Incidence
– Frequency of the
propagating wave
• Fresnel Reflection Coefficient (Γ) gives the relationship
between the electric field intensity of the reflected and
transmitted waves to the incident wave in the medium
of origin
 Propagation Models
• The statistical modeling is usually done based on data
measurements made specifically for
– the intended communication system

– the intended spectrum

• They are tools used for:

– Predicting the average signal strength at a given

- distance from the transmitter

- Estimating the variability of the signal strength in close

spatial proximity to a particular locations
 Propagation Models
• Large Scale Propagation Model:

– Predict the mean signal strength for an arbitrary

transmitter-receiver(T-R) separation

– Estimate radio coverage of a transmitter

– Characterize signal strength over large T-R

separation distances(several 100’s to 1000’s
meters)
 Propagation Model
 As mobile moves over very small distances,
instantaneous received signal strength may
fluctuate rapidly giving rise to small scale
fading
 Small Scale or Fading Models:

 Characterize rapid fluctuations of received signal

strength over

 Very short travel distances( a few wavelengths) or

 Short time durations(on the order of seconds)

Small Scale and Large Scale Fading
 Free Space Propagation Model
• Predict received signal strength - For clear LOS between T-R
Ex: satellite & microwave communications

• Free space power received by a receiver antenna located at a

distance ‘d’ from the radiating transmitter antenna is given by
Friis free space equation


• and must be expressed in same units.

• are dimensionless quantities.
•  and expressed in meters.
• is system loss factor – not related to propagation; its due to
transmission line attenuation, filter losses and antenna losses.
L 1 (L=1 indicates no loss in system hardware).
 Free Space Propagation Model
Gain of the antenna is related to its effective aperture

 Area through
which power
• Effective aperture is associated with the receiving antenna. is radiated or
received.

• Effective Aperture of an antenna is the measure of the ability of an antenna

to extract energy from the electromagnetic wave.
Effective isotropic radiated power EIRP =PtGt (Omni directional antenna) (dBi)
ERP (Effective Radiated Power)=dipole antenna (dBd)
• Path loss, which represents the signal attenuation as a positive quantity
measured in dB, is the difference between the effective transmitted power
and the received power and may or may not include the effect of antenna
gains.

 Free Space Propagation Model
• When Gt=Gr=1,

• Conditions:
 Predicts Pr for values of d which are in the far-field of the
transmitting antenna.
 Far-field (Fraunhofer region) of a transmitting antenna is the
region beyond the far-field distance . [ , where D –

largest physical dimension of the antenna].
 Additionally to be in far-field region,
and 
d0
 Free Space Propagation Model
• Large scale propagation models use a close-in distance,
d0, as a known received power reference point.
• Received power Pr(d) at any distance d>d0, is predicted
from

• The reference distance d0 for practical systems using

low gain antenna in the 1-2 GHz range is chosen to be
1m in indoor and 100m or 1km in outdoor
environments.
 Ground Reflection (Two Ray) Model
• In mobile radio channel, single direct path between base station and
mobile and is seldom only physical means for propagation
• Free space model as a stand alone is inaccurate
• Two ray ground reflection model is useful
• Based on geometric optics
• Considers both direct and ground reflected path
• Reasonably accurate for predicting large scale signal strength over
several kms that use tall towers
• Assumption: The height of Transmitter >50 meters also for LoS
micro cell channels in urban environments
• In most communication systems, the maximum T-R separation
distance is at most only a few kilometers, and the earth may be
assumed to be flat.
• The total received E-field is the result of direct LoS component and
the ground reflected component.
Two Ray Ground Reflection Model
Two Ray Ground Reflection
Path Difference
 Phase Difference

E 0d 0  
E (t )  2 sin

 2 h r ht
  0 .3 rad
2 d
E 0 d 0 2 h r ht k
E TO T (t )  2 V/m
d d d 2
Relation between power and radiating field

Field equation of antenna

 Relation between power and radiating field
In free space power flux density pd (W/m2) is given by

Power flux density at distance d is

a. Power flux density at a distance from point source a. Model of input voltage applied to the receiver

It is Useful to relate received power level to receiver input voltage and induced E

field at the receiver antenna

 Problems
18. Find the Fraunhofer (far Field) distance for
an antenna with maximum dimension of 1m and
operating frequency of 900 MHz. If antennas
have unity gain, calculate the path loss (free
space).
19. If a transmitter produces 50watts of power
express the power of(a) dBw (b)dBm. If 50 watts
is applied to a unity gain antenna with a 900
MHz carrier frequency, find the received power
in dBm at a free space distance of 100m from
the antenna. What is Pr(10km)? Assume unity
gain for the receive antenna
 Problems
20.Assuming free space propagation, a receiver is
located at 10km from a 50W transmitter. The
carrier frequency is 900MHz antenna gain at the
transmitter and receiver is 1 and 2 respectively,
calculate:
a) power received at the receiver
b) the magnitude of E field at the receiver antenna
c) Open circuit rms voltage is applied to the
receiver input. The receiver antenna has
impedance of 50 and is matched to the
receiver
 Problems
21. A mobile is located 5 km away from a base station and uses a
vertical /4 monopole antenna with a gain of 2.56 dB to receive
cellular radio signals. The E- field at 1 km from the transmitter is
measured to be 10-3 V/m. The carrier frequency used for this system is
900MHz.
a. Find the length and the effective aperture of the receiving
antenna
b. Find the received power at the mobile using two ray ground
reflection model assuming the height of the transmitting antenna
is 50m and receiving antenna is 1.5m above the ground.
22.If a 100 W power is applied to a unit gain antenna with a 600 MHz
carrier frequency, find the received power in dBm at a distance of
200m from the antenna. What is Pr (10km)?
23. In a certain cellular system, the base station radiates 15W. Suppose
that the cells are split and the new cells have one fourth the radius of
the original cells. Find the power that the base stations in the new
layouts must transmit to maintain the SNR at the cell boundaries. The
path loss exponent γ = 4.
 Problems
23.In the following case , check whether two ray
model could be applied and explain why or why
not?
i) ht=35m, hr=3m, d=250m
ii) ht=30m, hr=1.5m, d=450m