UNIT-2 (Part-2)

ANGLE MODULATION (FM)

Topics: Basic definitions, FM, narrow band FM, wide band FM, transmission bandwidth of FM
waves, and generation of FM waves: indirect FM and direct FM. Demodulation of FM.

Angle modulation is a method of analog modulation in which either the phase or

frequency of the carrier wave is varied according to the message signal. In this method of
modulation the amplitude of the carrier wave is maintained constant.

• Angle Modulation is a method of modulation in which either Frequency or Phase of the

carrier wave is varied according to the message signal.

In general form, an angle modulated signal can represented as

( ) ( ) ( )

where Ac is the amplitude of the carrier wave and θ(t) is the angle of the modulated carrier and
also the function of the message signal.

The instantaneous frequency of the angle modulated signal, s(t) is given by

( )
( ) ( )

The modulated signal, s(t) is normally considered as a rotating phasor of length Ac and angle θ(t).
The angular velocity of such a phasor is dθ(t)/dt , measured in radians per second.

An un-modulated carrier has the angle θ(t) defined as

( ) ( )

Where fc is the carrier signal frequency and ϕc is the value of θ(t) at t = 0.

The angle modulated signal has the angle, θ(t) defined by

( ) ( ) ( )

There are two commonly used methods of angle modulation:

1. Frequency Modulation, and

2. Phase Modulation.

Phase Modulation (PM):

In phase modulation the angle is varied linearly with the message signal m(t) as :

( ) ( ) ( )

where kp is the phase sensitivity of the modulator in radians per volt.

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Thus the phase modulated signal is defined as

Frequency Modulation (FM):

In frequency modulation the instantaneous frequency fi(t) is varied linearly with message signal,
m(t) as:

( ) ( ) ( )

where kf is the frequency sensitivity of the modulator in hertz per volt.

The instantaneous angle can now be defined as

( ) ∫ ( ) ( )

Hence the frequency modulated signal is given by

( ) [ ∫ ( ) ] ( )

The PM and FM waveforms for the sinusoidal message signal are shown in the fig-2.1.

Fig: 2.1 – PM and FM Waveforms with a message signal

Example 2.1:

Find the instantaneous frequency of the following waveforms:

(a) S1(t) = Ac Cos [100π t + 0.25 π ]

(b) S2(t) = Ac Cos [100π t + sin ( 20 π t) ]

(c) S3(t) = Ac Cos [100π t + ( π t2) ]

Solution: Using equations (2.1) and (2.2):

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(a) fi(t) = 50 Hz; Instantaneous frequency is constant.

(b) fi(t) = 50 + 10 cos( 20 π t); Maximum value is 60 Hz and minimum value is 40 Hz.

Hence, instantaneous frequency oscillates between 40 Hz and 60 Hz.

(c) fi(t) = (50 + t)

The instantaneous frequency is 50 Hz at t=0 and varies linearly at 1 Hz/sec.

Relation between Frequency Modulation and Phase Modulation:

A frequency modulated signal can be generated using a phase modulator by first

integrating m(t) and using it as an input to a phase modulator. This is possible by considering FM
signal as phase modulated signal in which the modulating wave is integral of m(t) in place of m(t).
This is shown in the fig-2.2(a). Similarly, a PM signal can be generated by first differentiating
m(t) and then using the resultant signal as the input to a FM modulator, as shown in fig-2.2(b).

Fig: 2.2 – Scheme for generation of FM and PM Waveforms

Single-Tone Frequency Modulation:

Consider a sinusoidal modulating signal defined as:

m(t) = Am Cos( 2π fm t) …. (2.10)

Substituting for m(t) in equation (5.9), the instantaneous frequency of the FM signal is

f i (t )  f c  k f Am cos( 2f mt )  f c  f cos( 2f mt )

where Δf is called the frequency deviation given by Δf = kf Am ..... (2.11a)

and the instantaneous angle is

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The resultant FM signal is

( ) ( ) ( )

The frequency deviation factor indicates the amount of frequency change in the FM signal from
the carrier frequency fc on either side of it. Thus FM signal will have the frequency components
between (fc - Δf ) to (fc +Δf ). The modulation index, β represents the phase deviation of the FM
signal and is measured in radians. Depending on the value of β, FM signal can be classified into
two types:

1. Narrow band FM (β << 1) and

2. Wide band FM (β >> 1).

Example-2.2: A sinusoidal wave of amplitude 10volts and frequency of 1 kHz is applied to an

FM generator that has a frequency sensitivity constant of 40 Hz/volt. Determine the frequency
deviation and modulating index.

Solution: Message signal amplitude, Am = 10 volts, Frequency fm = 1000 Hz and the frequency
sensitivity, kf = 40 Hz/volt.

Frequency deviation, Δf = kf Am = 400 Hz

Modulation index, β = Δf / fm = 0.4, (indicates a narrow band FM).

Example-2.3: A modulating signal m(t) =10 Cos(10000t) modulates a carrier signal, Ac

Cos(2fct). Find the frequency deviation and modulation index of the resulting FM signal. Use
kf = 5kHz/volt.

Solution: Message signal amplitude, Am = 10 volts, Frequency fm = 5000 Hz and the frequency
sensitivity, kf = 5 kHz/volt.

Frequency deviation, Δf = kf Am = 50 kHz

Modulation index, β = Δf / fm = 10, (indicates a wide band FM).

Frequency Domain Representation of Narrow Band FM signal:

Expanding the equation (2.12) using trigonometric identities,

s(t )  Ac cos2f ct   sin( 2f mt )

 Ac cos2f ct cos sin( 2f mt )  Ac sin 2f ct sin  sin( 2f mt )

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For NBFM, (β << 1), we can approximate,

cos sin( 2f mt )  1 and sin  sin( 2f mt )   sin( 2f mt )

Hence,
( ) ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )

Using trigonometric relations;

Ac 
s(t )  Ac cos(2f c t )  cos(2 ( f c  f m ) t )  cos(2 ( f c  f m ) t  ..2.14
2
The above equation represents the NBFM signal. This representation is similar to an AM signal,
except that the lower side frequency has negative sign. The magnitude spectrum of NBFM signal
is shown in fig-2.3, which is similar to AM signal spectrum. The bandwidth of the NBFM signal
is 2fm, which is same as AM signal.

Fig: 2.3 - Magnitude Spectrum of NBFM Waveform.

Frequency Domain Representation of Wide-Band FM signals:

The FM wave for sinusoidal modulation is given by

s(t )  Ac cos2f ct   sin( 2f mt )

 Ac cos2f ct cos sin( 2f mt )  Ac sin 2f ct sin  sin( 2f mt )

The FM wave can be expressed in terms of complex envelope as:

s(t )  ReAc exp j 2f c t  j sin 2f mt 

 Re~
s (t ) exp j 2f t 
c ... 2.15

The complex envelope of the FM wave

s (t )  Ac exp  j sin 2f mt  and ~

~ s (t ) : periodic function with f m

The complex envelope is a periodic function of time, with a fundamental frequency equal to the
modulation frequency fm. The complex envelope can be expanded in the form of complex series:

~
s (t )  c n exp j 2 nf mt  ... 2.16
n  

The complex Fourier coefficient, cn equals,

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 1
2 fm

cn  f m  s (t ) exp  j 2nf m t dt

~
1

2 fm
1
 f m Ac  2 f1m exp j sin 2f m t   j 2nf m t dt ... 2.17 

2 fm

Substituting x = (2π fm t ), in the above equation we can rewrite


  exp j sin x  nx dx ... 2.18
Ac
cn 
2 

The nth order Bessel function of the first kind is defined as


  exp j sin x  nxdx ... 2.19
1
J n ( ) 
2 

Comparing equations (2.18) and (2.19), we get Cn = Ac Jn(β)

Substituting in (2.16), the complex envelope is



c  J n (  )exp j 2nf m t  ... 2.20

~s (t)  A
n - 

Substituting in (2.15), the FM signal can be written as

  
s (t )  Ac Re   J n (  ) exp j 2  f c  nf m t 
n 

s(t)  Ac J n (  ) cos2  f c  nf m t  ... 2.21
n  

The above equation is the Fourier series representation of the single tone FM wave. Applying the
Fourier transform to (2.21),

J n (  )  f  f c  nf m     f  f c  nf m  ... 2.22
A
S( f )  c
2

n

The spectrum S(f) is shown in fig-2.4. The above equation indicates the following:

(i) FM signal has infinite number of side bands at frequencies (fc + nfm).

(ii) Relative amplitudes of all the spectral lines depends on the value of Jn(β).

(iii) The number of significant side bands depends on the modulation index (β). With (β<<1),
only J0(β) and J1(β) are significant. But for (β>>1), many sidebands exists.

(iv) The average power of an FM wave is P = 0.5Ac2 (based on Bessel function property).

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 Fig: 2.4 - Magnitude Spectrum of Wide Band FM Wave.

Bessel’s Function:
Bessel function is a useful function to represent the FM wave spectrum. The general plots of
Bessel functions are shown in fig-2.5 and table (2.1) gives the values for Bessel function
coefficients. Some of the useful properties of Bessel functions are given below:

(a) J n (  )  (1) n J n (  ) for all n (2.23a)

2n
(b) J n1 (  )  J n1 (  )  J n ( ) (2.23b)



J ( )  1
2
(c) n (2.23c)
n  


(d) For smaller values of β, J 0 (  )  1, J1 (  )  and J n (  )  0, for n  2
2

Fig: 2.5 – Plots of Bessel functions

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 Table: 2.1

The Spectrum of FM signals for three different values of β are shown in the fig-2.6. In this
spectrum the amplitude of the carrier component is kept as a unity constant. The variation in the
amplitudes of all the frequency components is indicated.

For β = 1, the amplitude of the carrier component is more than the side band frequencies as
shown in fig-2.6a. The amplitude level of the side band frequencies is decreasing. The dominant
components are (fc + fm) and (fc + 2fm). The amplitude of the frequency components (fc + nfm) for
n>2 are negligible.

For β = 2, the amplitude of the carrier component is considered as unity. The spectrum is
shown in fig-2.6b. The amplitude level of the side band frequencies is varying. The amplitude
levels of the components (fc + fm) and (fc + 2fm) are more than carrier frequency component;
whereas the amplitude of the component (fc + 3fm) is lower than the carrier amplitude. The
amplitude of frequency components (fc + nfm) for n>3 are negligible.

The spectrum for β = 5, is shown in fig-2.6c. The amplitude of the carrier component is
considered as unity. The amplitude level of the side band frequencies is varying. The amplitude
levels of the components (fc + fm), (fc + 3fm), (fc + 4fm) and (fc + 5fm), are more than carrier
frequency component; whereas the amplitude of the component (fc + 2fm) is lower than the carrier
amplitude. The amplitude of frequency components (fc + nfm) for n>8 are negligible.

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 Fig: 2.6 – Plots of Spectrum for different values of modulation index.
(Amplitude of carrier component is constant at unity)
Example-2.4:

An FM transmitter has a power output of 10 W. If the index of modulation is 1.0, determine

the power in the various frequency components of the signal.

Solution: The various frequency components of the FM signal are

fc, (fc + fm), (fc + 2fm), (fc + 3fm), and so on.

The power associated with the above frequency components are: (Refer (2.21))

(J0)2, (J1)2, (J2)2 , and (J3)2 respectively.

From the Bessel function Table, for β = 1;

J0 = 0.77, J1 = 0.44, J2 = 0.11, and J3 = 0.02

Let P = 0.5(Ac)2 = 10 W.

Power associated with fc component is P0 = P (J0)2 = 10 (0.77)2 = 5.929 W.

Similarly, P1 = P (J1)2 = 10 (0.44)2 = 1.936 W.

P2 = P (J2)2 = 10 (0.11)2 = 0.121 W.

P3 = P (J3)2 = 10 (0.02)2 = 0.004 W.

Note: Total power in the FM wave,

Ptotal = P0 + 2P1 + 2P2 + 2P3

= 5.929 + 2(1.936) + 2(.121) + 2(.004) = 10.051 W

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Example-2.5:

A 100 MHz un-modulated carrier delivers 100 Watts of power to a load. The carrier is
frequency modulated by a 2 kHz modulating signal causing a maximum frequency deviation
of 8 kHz. This FM signal is coupled to a load through an ideal Band Pass filter with
100MHz as center frequency and a variable bandwidth. Determine the power delivered to
the load when the filter bandwidth is:

(a) 2.2 kHz (b) 10.5 kHz (c) 15 kHz (d) 21 kHz

Ans: Modulation index, β = 8 k / 2 k = 4;

From the Bessel function Table- 5.1; for β = 4;

J0 = -0.4, J1 = - 0.07, J2 = 0.36, J3 = 0.43, J4 = 0.28, J5 = 0.13, J6 = 0.05, J7 = 0.02

Let P = 0.5(Ac)2 = 100 W and

P0 = P (J0)2 = 100 (-0.4) 2 = 16 Watts.

P1 = P (J1)2 = 100 (-0.07)2 = 0.490 W.

P2 = P (J2)2 = 100 (0.36)2 = 12.960 W.

P3 = P (J3)2 = 100 (0.43)2 = 18.490 W.

P4 = P (J4)2 = 100 (0.28)2 = 7.840 W.

P5 = P (J5)2 = 100 (0.13)2 = 1.690 W.

P6 = P (J6)2 = 100 (0.05)2 = 0.250 W.

(a) Filter Bandwidth = 2.2 kHz

The output of band pass filter will contain only one frequency component fc.

Power delivered to the load, Pd = P0 = 16 Watts.

(b) Filter Bandwidth = 10.5 kHz

The output of band pass filter will contain the following frequency components:

fc, (fc + fm), and (fc + 2fm)

Power delivered to the load, Pd = P0 + 2P1 + 2P2 = 42.9 Watts.

(c) Filter Bandwidth = 15 kHz

The output of band pass filter will contain the following frequency components:

fc, (fc + fm), (fc + 2fm), and (fc + 3fm),

Power delivered to the load, Pd = P0 + 2P1 + 2P2 + 2P3 = 79.9 Watts.

(d) Filter Bandwidth = 21 kHz

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 The output of band pass filter will contain the following frequency components:

fc, (fc + fm), (fc + 2fm), (fc + 3fm), (fc + 4fm), and (fc + 5fm),

Power delivered to the load, Pd = P0 + 2P1 + 2P2 + 2P3 + 2P4 + 2P5 = 98.94 Watts.

Example-2.6:

A carrier wave is frequency modulated using a sinusoidal signal of frequency f m and

amplitude Am. In a certain experiment conducted with fm=1 kHz and increasing Am, starting
from zero, it is found that the carrier component of the FM wave is reduced to zero for the
first time when Am=2 volts. What is the frequency sensitivity of the modulator? What is the
value of Am for which the carrier component is reduced to zero for the second time?

Ans: The carrier component will be zero when its coefficient, J0(β) is zero.

From Table 2.1: J0(x) = 0 for x= 2.44, 5.53, 8.65.

β = Δf / fm = kf Am / fm and kf = β fm /Am = (2.40)(1000) / 2 = 1.22 kHz/V

Frequency Sensitivity, kf = 1.22 kHz/V

The carrier component will become zero for second time when β = 5.53.

Therefore, Am = β fm / kf = 5.53 (1000) / 1220 = 4.53 volts

Transmission Bandwidth of FM waves:

An FM wave consists of infinite number of side bands so that the bandwidth is theoretically
infinite. But, in practice, the FM wave is effectively limited to a finite number of side band
frequencies compatible with a small amount of distortion. There are many ways to find the
bandwidth of the FM wave.

1. Carson’s Rule: In single–tone modulation, for the smaller values of modulation index the
bandwidth is approximated as 2fm. For the higher values of modulation index, the bandwidth is
considered as slightly greater than the total deviation 2Δf. Thus the Bandwidth for sinusoidal
modulation is defined as:

 1
BT  2f  2 f m  2f 1  
 
 2(   1) f m 2.24

For non-sinusoidal modulation, a factor called Deviation ratio (D) is considered. The deviation
ratio is defined as the ratio of maximum frequency deviation to the bandwidth of message signal.

Deviation ratio , D = ( Δf / W ), where W is the bandwidth of the message signal and the
corresponding bandwidth of the FM signal is,

BT = 2(D + 1) W ... (2.25)

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2. Universal Curve : An accurate method of bandwidth assessment is done by retaining the
maximum number of significant side frequencies with amplitudes greater than 1% of the un-
modulated carrier wave. Thus the bandwidth is defined as “the 99 percent bandwidth of an FM
wave as the separation between the two frequencies beyond which none of the side-band
frequencies is greater than 1% of the carrier amplitude obtained when the modulation is
removed”.
Transmission Bandwidth - BW = 2 nmax fm , (2.26)

where fm is the modulation frequency and ‘n’ is the number of pairs of side-frequencies such that
Jn()> 0.01. The value of nmax varies with modulation index and can be determined from the
Bessel coefficients. The Table 2.2 shows the number of significant side frequencies for different
values of modulation index.

The transmission bandwidth calculated using this method can be expressed in the form of a
universal curve which is normalised with respect to the frequency deviation and plotted it versus
the modulation index. (Refer fig-2.7).

Table 2.2

From the universal curve, for a given message signal frequency and modulation index the ratio (B/
Δf ) is obtained from the curve. Then the bandwidth is calculated as:

... 2.27
BT B
BT  ( )f   ( T ) f m
f f

Fig: 2.7 – Universal Curve

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Example-2.7:

Find the bandwidth of a single tone modulated FM signal described by

S(t)=10 cos[2108t + 6 sin(2103t)].

Solution: Comparing the given s(t) with equation-(2.12) we get

Modulation index, β = 6 and Message signal frequency, fm = 1000 Hz.

By Carson’s rule (equation - 2.24),

Transmission Bandwidth, BT = 2(β + 1) fm

BT = 2(7)1000 = 14000 Hz = 14 kHz

Example-2.8:

Q. A carrier wave of frequency 91 MHz is frequency modulated by a sine wave of amplitude 10

Volts and 15 kHz. The frequency sensitivity of the modulator is 3 kHz/V.
(a) Determine the approximate bandwidth of FM wave using Carson’s Rule.
(b) Repeat part (a), assuming that the amplitude of the modulating wave is doubled.
(c) Repeat part (a), assuming that the frequency of the modulating wave is doubled.

Solution: (a) Modulation Index, β = Δf / fm = kf Am / fm = 3x10/15 = 2

By Carson’s rule; Bandwidth, BT = 2(β + 1) fm = 90 kHz

(b) When the amplitude, Am is doubled,

New Modulation Index, β = Δf / fm = kf Am / fm = 3x20/15 = 4

Bandwidth, BT = 2(β+1)fm = 150 kHz

(c) when the frequency of the message signal, fm is doubled

New Modulation Index, β = 3x10/30 = 1

Bandwidth, BT = 2(β+1)fm = 120 kHz.

Example-2.9:

Q. Determine the bandwidth of an FM signal, if the maximum value of the frequency deviation
Δf is fixed at 75kHz for commercial FM broadcasting by radio and modulation frequency is W=
15 kHz.

Solution: Frequency deviation, D = ( Δf / W ) = 5

Transmission Bandwidth, BT = 2(D + 1) W = 12x15 kHz = 180 kHz

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Example-2.10:

Q. Consider an FM signal obtained from a modulating signal frequency of 2000 Hz and

maximum Amplitude of 5 volts. The frequency sensitivity of modulator is 2 kHz/V. Find the
bandwidth of the FM signal considering only the significant side band frequencies.

Solution: Frequency Deviation = 10 kHz

Modulation Index, β = Δf / fm = kf Am / fm = 5;

From table –(5.2) ; 2nmax = 16 for β =5,

Bandwidth, BT = 2 nmax fm = 16x2 kHz = 32 kHz.

Example-2.11: A carrier wave of frequency 91 MHz is frequency modulated by a sine wave of

amplitude 10 Volts and 15 kHz. The frequency sensitivity of the modulator is 3 kHz/V.
Determine the bandwidth by transmitting only those side frequencies with amplitudes that exceed
1% of the unmodulated carrier wave amplitude. Use universal curve for this calculation.

Solution:

Frequency Deviation, Δf = 30 kHz

Modulation Index, β = 3x10/15 = 2

From the Universal curve; for β = 2; (B / Δf) = 4.3

Bandwidth, B = 4.3 Δf = 129 kHz

Generation of FM Waves:
There are two basic methods of generating FM waves: indirect method and direct method.
In indirect method a NBFM wave is generated first and frequency multiplication is next used to
increase the frequency deviation to the desired level. In direct method, the carrier frequency is
directly varied in accordance with the message signal. To understand the indirect method it is
required to know the generation of NBFM waves and the working of frequency multipliers.

Generation of NBFM wave:

A frequency modulated wave is defined as: (from equation 2.9)

( ) ( ) ( )

t
Where 1 (t )  2 k1  m(t )dt
0

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 s1 (t )  AC cos (2 f C t ) cos[1 (t )] - AC sin (2 f C t ) sin[1 (t )]

Assuming ϕ1(t) is small, then using cos[ϕ1(t)] = 1 and sin[ϕ1(t) ] = ϕ1(t).

s1 (t )  AC cos (2 f C t ) - AC sin (2 f C t ) .[1 (t )]

...2.29 
t
s1 (t )  AC cos (2 f C t ) - 2 k1 AC sin (2 f C t ) .  m(t )dt
0

The above equation defines a narrow band FM wave. The generation scheme of such a narrow
band FM wave is shown in the fig-2.8. The scaling factor, (2πk1) is taken care of by the product
modulator. The part of the FM modulator shown inside the dotted lines represents a narrow-band
phase modulator.

The narrow band FM wave, thus generated will have some higher order harmonic
distortions. This distortions can be limited to negligible levels by restricting the modulation index
to β < 0.5 radians.

Fig: 2.8 – Scheme to generate a NBFM Waveform.

Frequency Multiplier:
The frequency multiplier consists of a nonlinear device followed by a band-pass filter. The
nonlinear device used is a memory less device. If the input to the nonlinear device is an FM wave
with frequency, fc and deviation, Δf1 then its output v(t) will consist of dc component and ‘n’
frequency modulated waves with carrier frequencies, fc, 2fc, 3fc, …… nfc and frequency
deviations a Δf1, 2Δf1 , 3Δf1 , ........ nΔf1 respectively.

The band pass filter is designed in such a way that it passes the FM wave centered at the
frequency, nfc with frequency deviation nΔf1 and to suppress all other FM components. Thus the
frequency multiplier can be used to generate a wide band FM wave from a narrow band FM wave.

Fig: 2.9 – Frequency Multiplier

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Generation of WBFM using Indirect Method:
In indirect method a NBFM wave is generated first and frequency multiplication is next
used to increase the frequency deviation to the desired level. The narrow band FM wave is
generated using a narrow band phase modulator and an oscillator. The narrow band FM wave is
then passed through a frequency multiplier to obtain the wide band FM wave, as shown in the
fig:2.9. The crystal controlled oscillator provides good frequency stability. But this scheme does
not provide both the desired frequency deviation and carrier frequency at the same time. This
problem can be solved by using multiple stages of frequency multiplier and a mixer stage.

Fig: 2.9 – Generation of WBFM wave

Generation of WBFM by Armstrong’s Method:

Armstrong method is an indirect method of FM generation. It is used to generate FM
signal having both the desired frequency deviation and the carrier frequency. In this method, two-
stage frequency multiplier and an intermediate stage of frequency translator is used, as shown in
the fig:2.10. The first multiplier converts a narrow band FM signal into a wide band signal. The
frequency translator, consisting of a mixer and a crystal controlled oscillator shifts the wide band
signal to higher or lower frequency band. The second multiplier then increases the frequency
deviation and at the same time increases the center frequency also. The main design criteria in this
method are the selection of multiplier gains and oscillator frequencies. This is explained in the
following steps.

Fig: 2.10 – Generation of WBFM wave by Armstrong method

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Design Steps:

Q: How to choose n1 and n2 for the given specifications?

1. Select the value of β < 0.5 for the narrow band phase modulator. This value limits the
harmonic distortion by NBPM to minimum.

2. The requirement is that the frequency deviation produced by the lowest modulation
frequencies is raised to required Δf. So choose the frequency deviation of NBFM, Δf1 by
selecting the minimum value of fm.

Δf1 = β fm (min). ---- (a)

3. Frequency Multipliers change the frequency deviation. Hence the total change in the
frequency deviation is product of the two deviations:

n1.n2 = Δf / Δf1 ----- (b)

4. Frequency Translator (mixer & oscillator) will not change the frequency deviation, it only
shifts the FM signal to either upwards and downwards in the spectrum. The output of
mixer is

For down ward translation: fc = n2 (f2 - n1. f1 ) ---- (c)

and for upward translation: fc = n2 (n1. f1 - f2).

5. Choose suitable value for f2 and solve the equations (b) and (c) simultaneously to find the
multiplying factors n1and n2.

Example 2.12: Design Armstrong FM generator for the generation of WBFM signal with f =
75 kHz and fc = 100 MHz, using the narrow band carrier as 100 kHz and second carrier as 9.5
MHz. Find the suitable multiplying factors. Assume the message signal is defined in the range,
100Hz ~ 15KHz.

Solution:

1. Let phase deviation be, β = 0.2

2. Frequency deviation of NBFM, Δf1 = β fm (min) = 0.2x 100 = 20 Hz

3. n1.n2 = Δf / Δf1 = 75000/20 = 3750 (A)

4. Let f1 and f2 be 0.1MHz and 9.5 MHz and fc is given as 100 MHz.

fc = (f2 - n1. f1 )n2 ;

100 M = (9.5 M - n1. 0.1M )n2 (B)

Solving the equations (A) and (B) simultaneously we get n1= 75 and n2 = 50.

Communication Engineering-I – 21ET44 Page 17

Generation of WBFM using Direct Method:
In direct method of FM generation, the instantaneous frequency of the carrier wave is
directly varied in accordance with the message signal by means of an voltage controlled oscillator.
The frequency determining network in the oscillator is chosen with high quality factor (Q-factor)
and the oscillator is controlled by the incremental variation of the reactive components in the tank
circuit of the oscillator. A Hartley Oscillator can be used for this purpose.

Fig: 2.11 – Hartley Oscillator (tank circuit) for generation of WBFM wave.

The portion of the tank circuit in the oscillator is shown in fig: 2.11. The capacitive component of
the tank circuit consists of a fixed capacitor shunted by a voltage-variable capacitor. The resulting
capacitance is represented by C(t) in the figure. The voltage variable capacitor commonly called
as varactor or varicap, is one whose capacitance depends on the voltage applied across its
electrodes. The varactor diode in the reverse bias condition can be used as a voltage variable
capacitor. The larger the voltage applied across the diode, the smaller the transition capacitance of
the diode. The frequency of oscillation of the Hartley oscillator is given by:

...2.30
1
f i (t ) 
2 L1  L2 c(t )

Where the L1 and L2 are the inductances in the tank circuit and the total capacitance, c(t) is the
fixed capacitor and voltage variable capacitor and given by:

c(t )  c0  c cos2f m t  ...2.31

Let the un-modulated frequency of oscillation be f0. The instantaneous frequency fi(t) is defined
1

 c 
cos2f m t  ... 2.32 
2
as: f i (t )  f 0 1 
 c0 

...5.33
1
where f 0 
2 L1  L2 c0

1

 c 
cos2f mt 
2
 f i (t )  f 0 1 
 c0 
 c 
 f 0 1  cos2f mt 
 2c0 

Thus the instantaneous frequency fi(t) is defined as:

Communication Engineering-I – 21ET44 Page 18

  f i (t )  f 0  f cos2f m t  ... 2.34 

The term, Δf represents the frequency deviation and the relation with Δc is given by:

 c f 
   ... 2.35
 0
2c f 0 

Thus the output of the oscillator will be an FM wave. But the direct method of generation has the
disadvantage that the carrier frequency will not be stable as it is not generated from a highly stable
oscillator. Generally, in FM transmitter the frequency stability of the modulator is achieved by the
use of an auxiliary stabilization circuit as shown in the fig.(2.12).

Fig: 2.12 – Frequency stabilized FM modulator.

The output of the FM generator is applied to a mixer together with the output of crystal controlled
oscillator and the difference is obtained. The mixer output is applied to a frequency discriminator,
which gives an output voltage proportional to the instantaneous frequency of the FM wave applied
to its input. The discriminator is filtered by a low pass filter and then amplified to provide a dc
voltage. This dc voltage is applied to a voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) to modify the
frequency of the oscillator of the FM generator. The deviations in the transmitter carrier frequency
from its assigned value will cause a change in the dc voltage in a way such that it restores the
carrier frequency to its required value.

Advantages and disadvantages of FM over AM:

Advantages of FM over AM are:
1. Less radiated power.
2. Low distortion due to improved signal to noise ratio (about 25dB) w.r.t. to man
made interference.
3. Smaller geographical interference between neighbouring stations.
4. Well defined service areas for given transmitter power.
Disadvantages of FM:
1. Much more Bandwidth (as much as 20 times as much).
2. More complicated receiver and transmitter.
Applications:
Some of the applications of the FM modulation are listed below:
I. FM Radio,(88-108 MHz band, 75 kHz, )
II. TV sound broadcast, 25 kHz,
III. 2-way mobile radio, 5 kHz / 2.5 kHz.

Communication Engineering-I – 21ET44 Page 19

Additional Examples:
Example 2.13: An FM wave is defined below.

S(t) = 12 sin(6x108 π t + 5 sin1250 πt)

Find the carrier and modulating frequencies, the modulating index, and the maximum deviation of
the FM wave. Also find the bandwidth of the FM wave. What power will the FM wave dissipate
in a 10 ohm resistor?

Solution: From equation 2.12, we have s (t )  Ac cos2f c t   sin( 2f mt )

Comparing with the given FM wave,

Carrier frequency = 3x108 Hz = 300 MHz &Modulating signal frequency, fm = 625 Hz

Modulation Index, β = 5 ; Maximum frequency deviation, Δf = β fm = 3125 Hz.

Using Carson’s rule, Bandwidth = 2(3125 + 625) = 7500 Hz

Power dissipated across resistor = P,

P
 Ac 
144
2
 7.2W 
2R 20
Example 2.14: Consider an FM signal with :

f = 10 kHz, fm = 10 kHz, Ac = 10 V, fc = 500 kHz

Compute and draw the spectrum for FM signal.

Solution:

Modulation index, β = 10 k / 10 k = 1;

From Bessel function Table- 2.1;

for β = 1; the coefficients are J0 = 0.77, J1 = 0.44, J2 = 0.11, J3 = 0.02.

The spectrum is defined as



 J   f  f  nf m     f  f c  nf m 
Ac
S( f )  n c
2 n

The single sided spectrum is shown in fig: Ex-5.14.

Fig: Ex-2.14 – Frequency Spectrum (for example 2.14)

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Demodulation of FM wave:
Frequency demodulation is the process that enables us to recover the original modulating
signal from a frequency modulated signal. Frequency Demodulator produces an output signal with
amplitude directly proportional to the instantaneous frequency of FM wave.

Frequency demodulators are broadly classified into two categories:

(i) Direct method – examples: frequency discriminators and zero crossing detectors.

(ii) Indirect method – example: phase locked loop.

The direct methods use the direct application of the definition of instantaneous frequency.

The indirect method depends on the use of feed back to track variations in the instantaneous
frequency of the input signal.

Slope Circuit:

This is a circuit in which the output voltage is proportional to the input frequency. An example is
a differentiator. The output of the differentiator, x(t) = ds(t)/dt and the transfer function, H(f) =
j2πf.

Fig: 2.14 – A simple differentiator with transfer function.

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Slope detector:

A slope detector circuit consists of two units: a slope circuit and an envelope detector. The slope
circuit converts the frequency variations in the FM signal into a voltage signal, which resembles
an AM signal. The envelope circuit obtains the output signal proportional to the message signal.

Fig: 2.15 – Block diagram of a Slope detector.

Consider an FM signal as defined below: (equation 2.36)

s(t )  Ac cos  2 f ct  2 k f m( )d  ,

t

 
0 
where f i (t )  f c  k f m(t ) (2.36)

Let the slope circuit be simply differentiator:

s1 (t )   Ac  2 f c  2 k f m(t )  sin  2 f ct  2 k f  m( ) d 

t

 0 
so (t )   Ac  2 f c  2 k f m(t ) 

The output of the slope circuit is thus proportional to the message signal, m(t).

A simple slope detector circuit is shown if fig-2.16, consists of slope circuit and an envelope
circuit.

Fig: 2.16 – A simple Slope detector circuit.

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Balanced Frequency Discriminator: The frequency discriminator consists of slope circuits and
envelope detectors. An ideal slope circuit is characterized by the transfer function that is purely
imaginary, varying linearly with frequency inside a prescribed frequency interval

Thus an ideal frequency discriminator can be modelled as a pair of slope circuits followed by
envelope detectors and a summer as shown in fig-2.17 which is called balanced frequency
discriminator.

Fig: 2.17 –Idealized model of Balanced frequency discriminator.

The idealized model can be closely realized using the circuit shown in fig-2.18 which consists of
two resonant circuits. The upper and lower resonant filters are tuned to frequencies above and
below the un-modulated carrier frequency, fc. The amplitude responses of the tuned filters and the
total response are shown in the fig-2.19.

Fig: 2.19 –Balanced frequency discriminator.

The overall performance of the balanced frequency discriminator will be good only when both the
filters have high Q-factor and a proper frequency separation between the tuning frequencies of the
two filters. However there will be distortions present in the output due to the following factors:

1. Spectrum of FM wave is not exactly zero for the frequencies outside the range.

2. Tuned filters are not strictly band-limited

Communication Engineering-I – 21ET44 Page 23

 3. RC filters in the envelope detector introduce distortions

4. Tuned filter characteristics are not linear over the whole frequency band.

Fig: 2.20 – Frequency response.

FM Stereo Multiplexing:

Stereo multiplexing is a form of frequency division multiplexing designed to transmit two

separate signals via the same carrier. It is widely used in the FM radio broadcasting to send two
different elements of a program. For example the different elements can be sections of orchestra, a
vocalist and an accompanist. This gives a spatial dimension to its perception for the listener at the
receiving end.

The two important factors that influence the FM stereo transmission are:

1. The transmission has to operate within the allocated FM broadcast channels.

2. It has to compatible with the monophonic receivers.

The FM stereo transmitter consists of a multiplexing system. The block diagram of the
multiplexer is shown in fig-2.21.

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 Fig: 2.21 –Multiplexer system in transmitter of FM stereo.

Let ml(t) and mr(t) denote the two signals from the two different microphones at the transmitter
end of the system. They are applied to a matrixer that generates the sum signal and the difference
signal. The sum signal [ml(t)+mr(t)] is used in the base band form only. The difference signal
[ml(t) - mr(t)] along with a 38 kHz sub-carrier are applied to a product modulator to generate a
DSBSC modulated wave. The sub- carrier is generated from a frequency doubler using 19 kHz
oscillator. The three signals: sum signal, difference signal and a pilot carrier signal of frequency
19 kHz are combined/added to obtain the multiplexed signal. The multiplexed signal can be
defined as:

m(t) = [ ml(t) + mr(t) ] + [ ml(t) - mr(t) ] cos(4fct) + K cos(2fct) ... (2.37)

where fc=19 kHz and K is a constant, chosen to maintain the pilot between 8% and 10% of the
peak frequency deviation. The spectrum of the multiplexed signal is shown in the fig 2.22.

Fig: 2.22 - Spectrum of Stereo multiplexed signal, m(t).

The multiplexed signal is used as a modulating signal for the FM modulator to produce an FM
signal for transmission.

The FM stereo receiver consists of demodulator and de-multiplexer. The de-multiplexer is

shown in fig.2.23. The de-multiplexer consists of three filters: a low pass filter and two band pass

Communication Engineering-I – 21ET44 Page 25

filters. The base band low pass filter recovers the sum signal in the band 0-15 kHz, the band pass
filter recovers the modulated difference signal in the band 23-53 kHz and a narrow band pass
filter is used to recover the pilot carrier 19 kHz. The sub-carrier signal of frequency 38 kHz is
obtained by frequency doubling the pilot carrier. The difference signal is then obtained from sub-
carrier and modulated difference signal using a coherent detector. The matrixer ( add/subtractor)
reconstructs the left signal, ml(t) and the right signal, mr(t).

Fig: 2.23: De-multiplexer system in receiver of FM stereo.

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