Radio-Frequency Engineering

&
Circuit Design for Communication
Systems
Lecture 1
Prof. Dr. Peter Weber

Winter Term 2021/22

Information and Communication Technology (B.Eng.)
Information Technology (M)

With best thanks to Prof. Dr. Kastell and Prof. Dr. Zimmer. Their material was invaluable for the creation of this lecture.
 Scope

Radio-Frequency Engineering & Circuit Design

For 4th year Bachelor Course: For 1st year Master course:
• First step into the topic • Learning the basics for the following courses
• Basic preparation in the matter • Aligning different levels of pre-knowledge

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 Organization
Lectures: Additional Topics – Q&A:
Thursday 14:15 h bis 16:45 h (15 min break @ 15:30 h) Thursday 16:45 h bis 17:30 h
Start: Oct. 28 2021 – End: Feb. 17 2022 Start: Oct. 28 2021 – End: Feb. 17 2022
Zoom Link: Same Zoom Link:
https://fra-uas.zoom.us/j/85485385428
Meeting-ID: 854 8538 5428
Entry Code: 204600

Moodle Course:
https://moodle.frankfurt-university.de/course/view.php?id=9418
Weber: Radio-Frequency Engineering & Circuit Design for Communication Systems - WS 21/22
Enrollment Key: „edinburgh“
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 For Further Study

E.g.:
Zimmer; RF-Engineering; Lecture Notes
Blaunstein et. al.; Introduction to Radio Engineering;
Boca Raton CRC Press Taylor & Francis Group 2017
Gustrau; Hochfrequenztechnik - Grundlagen der mobilen
Kommunikationstechnik; München Carl Hanser Verlag 2013
Strauß; Grundkurs Hochfrequenztechnik - Eine Einführung;
Wiesbaden Springer Fachmedien 2017
Guicking; Schwingungen: Theorie und Anwendungen in Mechanik, Akustik,
Elektrik und Optik; Wiesbaden Springer Fachmedien 2016

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 Radio-Frequencies & Circuit Design
What is your first thought?
Everyone please enter 2 words!

https://www.menti.com/28ziwikhg9
Voting Code: 68 03 22 5

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 Radio-Frequencies & Circuit Design
What is your first thought?

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 Content Of Lecture 1

1. Introduction
What´s Radio-Frequency Engineering?
Brief Review Of Waves (In General)
What´s New In RF Engineering?

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 What´s Our Topic?
In the upcoming 19th century, Napoleon Bonaparte used semaphores for transmission of information.

By Unknown author - 19th century painting . Photographed in Musee des Arts et Metiers, Von Patrick87 - Eigenes Werk, CC BY-SA 3.0, Von Jeunamateur - Eigenes Werk d'après "La télégraphie Chappe", FNHAR, 1993,
Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=4676438 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=25266327 CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=19700042

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 Ranged Communications
Nowadays, ranged communication is done by e.g.:
• TV Broarcasting
• Radio Broarcasting
• Radio Communications
• Telephone
• Mobile Phone
• RFID
• LAN
• W-LAN
• Blue Tooth
• LASER
…where the range significanty differs from application to application.

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 Radio Frequencies
Here are some most commonly used radio frequency ranges in daily applications:
Abbreviation
Frequency and
Band name Applications (Examples)
Wavelength

Low frequency 30–300 kHz

LF AM longwave broadcasting (Europe and parts of Asia), RFID
10–1 km
Medium frequency 300–3,000 kHz
MF AM (medium-wave) broadcasts
1,000–100 m
High frequency 3–30 MHz
HF Shortwave broadcasts, RFID
100–10 m
Very high frequency 30–300 MHz
VHF FM broadcasting, television broadcasts
10–1 m
Ultra high frequency 300–3,000 MHz Television broadcasts, microwave oven, mobile phones, wireless LAN (2.4 GHz),
UHF
1–0.1 m Bluetooth, ZigBee (e.g. home automation), GPS, Remote control Systems
Super high frequency 3–30 GHz wireless LAN (5 GHz), most modern radars, communications satellites, satellite
SHF
100–10 mm television broadcasting

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 Radio Frequencies
…and an overview from a german textbook:

Gustrau; Hochfrequenztechnik - Grundlagen der mobilen Kommunikationstechnik; München Carl Hanser Verlag 2013

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 Radio Frequencies
We deal with the transmission of information Types of signals
by means of electronics and telecomunications technology • Binary signals
• Information is transmitted by a „signal“ • Analog signals
• Signal = time-varying voltage, current or electromagnetic-field quantity • Digital signals

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 Remember Fourier Series Expansion?
Every periodic signal can be expanded in a series of sines and cosines,
the Fourier Series Expansion.

X 𝑡 = +∑ 𝑎 ⋅ cos 𝑛𝜔𝑡 + 𝑏 ⋅ sin 𝑛𝜔𝑡

Thus, no need to bother with complicated functions.

When we know the response of a system on a sinusodial excitation, we
know it‘s response on any periodic signal.

From now on we only consider sine (or cosine) functions!

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 What´s Our Topic?
We focuss on wireless communication, i.e. electromagnetic waves
being transmitted from one antenna to another.
• Signal, i.e. information is modulated on an electromagnetic wave

Types of modulation for analog as well as digital data: Von Berserkerus - Eigenes Werk, CC BY-SA 2.5,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5071748 Von Averse, CC BY-SA 3.0,
https://commons.wikimedia.o
rg/w/index.php?curid=31982
24

• Frequency (FM)
• Amplitude (AM)

https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=41436811
Nevertheless, RF-Engineering also has to consider the delivery

Von Chetvorno - Eigenes Werk, CC0,

of a signal to, and acquisition of a signal from an antenna.
 Propagation of RF-waves in space (vacuum, air)
 Propagation of RF-waves in media (wires, transmission lines)

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 Remember Waves? Von Roger McLassus, CC BY-SA 3.0,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.
php?curid=513043

O0 O1 O2 O3 O4 O5 O6 O7 O8
Wave = Chain of coupled identical oscillators
A0
• With angular frequency , characterizing each
oscillator‘s local behaviour in time 𝑨(𝒕) = 𝑨𝟎 𝒔𝒊𝒏 (−𝝎 𝒕) z
-A0
• With , being the phase shift from one to the next
oscillator
𝑨(𝒕) 𝑶𝟎 = 𝑨𝟎 𝒔𝒊𝒏 (−𝝎 𝒕 + 𝟎∆𝝋)
Now  …
𝑨(𝒕) 𝑶𝟏 = 𝑨𝟎 𝒔𝒊𝒏 (−𝝎 𝒕 + 𝟏∆𝝋)
• …is a measure for the spacial coupling between each two neighbouring oscillators
• …determines the spacial propagation of the wave 𝑨(𝒕) 𝑶𝟐 = 𝑨𝟎 𝒔𝒊𝒏 (−𝝎 𝒕 + 𝟐∆𝝋)

• …is a constant along the chain 𝑨(𝒕) 𝑶𝟑 = 𝑨𝟎 𝒔𝒊𝒏 (−𝝎 𝒕 + 𝟑∆𝝋)

• …can be cast into the constant of spacial propagation: k = Wave number

𝑨(𝒕) 𝑶𝟒 = 𝑨𝟎 𝒔𝒊𝒏 (−𝝎 𝒕 + 𝟒∆𝝋)

A(z, t) = A0 sin (−ω t + φ(z)) = A0 sin (−ω t + k z) and so forth…

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 Remember Waves? Von Roger McLassus, CC BY-SA 3.0,
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.
php?curid=513043

ω is the angular frequency, i.e. angle (radian The relation between  and k is a constant and
measure) per time. It is the characteristic quantity for determined by the coupling of the oscillators.
the oscillation in time-domain. This constant is the velocity of propagation of a
k is the wave number, i.e. angle (radian measure) per wave in a particular medium: c
distance. It is the characteristic quantity for the
oscillation in space-domain.

A(z, t) = A0 sin (k z − ω t)
time-domain space-domain
Angular Frequency λ 𝑓 ω Angular Wave Number
c= = =
2π T 𝜈 k 2π
ω= =2π 𝑓 k= = 2π 𝜈
T λ

Period and Frequency Wavelength and Wave Number

1 1
T= λ=
𝑓 𝜈

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 What´s New With Radio Frequencies?
Up to now you dealt with Active Elements
• Directed-Current (DC) Circuits
DC Circuits
• Alternating-Current (AC) Circuits
• Passive Elements
• Active Elements
RC (resistance-capacitance coupled) circuits
RC Amplifiers
Passive Elements

AC Circuits
1
I R jL jC

e.g. LC resonator

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 What´s New With Radio Frequencies?
Up to now electric circuits consisted of
RC Amplifiers
• Localized components (lump elements)
• Connected by ideal wire leads (conducting lines)

Properties of ideal leads were:

• Neglegible resistivity
• Instantaneous transport of charge
• No attenuation, no phase shifts

Or, in brief:
• Conducting lines were regarded as infinitesimally short.
• Components were treated as being directly connected.
• Only components affected the behaviour of the circuit, not the lines
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 What´s New With Radio Frequencies?
Now: RF-Engineering takes spacial dimensions into account
• Length of transmission lines l is within the order of magnitude of the wavelength 
• Generally the case, as soon as l > /10
Wave propagation along transmission lines has to be taken into account

This leads to transmission line theory

• Voltage and current along the line are not constant anymore
• Besides resistance, additional characteristic quantities for the line need to be introduced
• Propagation Parameter  z

Gustrau; Hochfrequenztechnik - Grundlagen der

mobilen Kommunikationstechnik; München Carl
• Characteristic (surge) Impedance ZL
i(z,t)
• (as we will se later)
u(z,t)

Hanser Verlag 2013

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 2. Basics of Transmission Line Theory
2. Basics of Transmission Line Theory
Typical geometries
Phasor
Equivalent Circuit
Wave Equation Of Transmission Lines
Solution of the Wave Equation
Characteristics of a Transmission Line
The Lossless Line – Phase Constant
The Lossless Line – Wave Propagation
The Lossless Line – Impedance
Summary - Lossless Transmission Line
Side Trip to Maxwell
The Lossy Line – Wave Propagation
The Lossy Line – Impedance

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 University of Applied Sciences Faculty 2 – Computer Science
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