Digital Microwave Communication Principles

Digital Microwave
Communication Principles
www.huawei.com
Copyright © 2006 Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. All rights reserved.

Foreword
 This course is developed to meet the requirement of Huawei Optical Network

RTN microwave products.
 This course informs engineers of the basics on digital microwave

communications, which will pave the way for learning the RTN series
microwave products later.
Copyright © 2006 Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. All rights reserved. Page 2
Learning Guide
 Microwave communication is developed on the basis of the electromagnetic field
theory.
Therefore, before learning this course, you are supposed to have mastered the
following knowledge:
 Network communications technology basics
 Electromagnetic field basic theory
Objectives
 After this course, you will be able to explain:
 Concept and characteristics of digital microwave communications
 Functions and principles of each component of digital microwave equipment
 Common networking modes and application scenarios of digital microwave
equipment
 Propagation principles of digital microwave communication and various
types of fading
 Anti-fading technologies
 Procedure and key points in designing microwave transmission link
Contents
1. Digital Microwave Communication Overview
2. Digital Microwave Communication Equipment
3. Digital Microwave Networking and Application
4. Microwave Propagation and Anti-fading Technologies
5. Designing Microwave Transmission Links
Transmission Methods
in Current Communications Networks
Coaxial cable communication
Microwave TE Optical fiber communication
Microwave TE
MUX/DEMUX Microwave MUX/DEMUX
communication
Satellite communication
Microwave Communication
vs. Optical Fiber Communication
Microwave Communication Optical Fiber Communication
Powerful space cross ability, little land Optical fiber burying and land
occupied, not limited by land privatization occupation required
Small investment, short construction

Large investment ,long construction period
period, easy maintenance
Strong protection ability against natural Outdoor optical fiber maintenance required
disaster and easy to be recover and hard to recover from natural disaster
Limited frequency resources (frequency Not limited by frequency, license not

license required) required
Transmission quality greatly affected by Stable and reliable transmission quality

climate and landform and not affected by external factors
Limited transmission capacity Large transmission capacity
Definition of Microwave
 Microwave
 Microwave is a kind of electromagnetic wave. In a broad sense, the
microwave frequency range is from 300 MHz to 300 GHz. But In microwave
communication, the frequency range is generally from 3 GHz to 30 GHz.
 According to the characteristics of microwave propagation, microwave can
be considered as plane wave.
 The plane wave has no electric field and magnetic field longitudinal
components along the propagation direction. The electric field and magnetic
field components are vertical to the propagation direction. Therefore, it is
called transverse electromagnetic wave and TEM wave for short.
Development of Microwave Communication
Transmission
capacity bit SDH digital microwave
155M /s/ch) communication system
34/140M PDH digital microwave

communication system
2/4/6/8M Small and medium

capacity digital microwave
communication system Late 1990s to now
480 voice
channels Analog microwave
communication system
1980s
1970s
1950s
Note:
Small capacity: < 10M
Medium capacity: 10M to 100M
Large capacity: > 100M
Concept of Digital
Microwave Communication
 Digital microwave communication is a way of transmitting digital information in
atmosphere through microwave or radio frequency (RF).
 Microwave communication refers to the communication that use microwave as carrier .
 Digital microwave communication refers to the microwave communication that adopts the digital
modulation.
 The baseband signal is modulated to intermediate frequency (IF) first . Then the intermediate
frequency is converted into the microwave frequency.
 The baseband signal can also be modulated directly to microwave frequency, but only phase shift
keying (PSK) modulation method is applicable.
 The electromagnetic field theory is the basis on which the microwave communication theory is
developed.
Microwave Frequency Band
Selection and RF Channel Configuration (1)
 Generally-used frequency bands in digital microwave transmission:
 7G/8G/11G/13G/15G/18G/23G/26G/32G/38G (defined by ITU-R Recommendations)
1.5 GHz 2.5 GHz

Regional network
3.3 GHz Long haul trunk 11 GHz

network
Regional network, local network, and
2/8/34
Mbit/s boundary network
34/140/155 Mbit/s
2/8/34/140/155 Mbit/s
GHz
1 2 3 4 5 8 10 20 30 40 50
 In each frequency band, subband frequency ranges, transmitting/receiving s
pacing (T/R spacing), and channel spacing are defined.
Frequency range
f0 (center frequency)
Low frequency band High frequency band
T/R spacing
Protection T/R spacing
spacing
Channel Adjacent channel Channel

spacing T/R spacing spacing
f1 f2 fn f1 ’ f2 ’ fn ’
Frequency range (7425M–7725M)
f0 (7575M)
T/R spacing: 154M
28M
f1=7442 f2=7470 f5 f1’=7596 f2 ’ f5 ’
7G Frequency F0 (MHz) T/R Spacing (MH Channel Spacing Primary and Non-
Range z) (MHz) primary Stations
Fn=f0-161+28n,
7425–7725 7575 154 28 Fn’=f0- 7+28n,
(n: 1–5)
7575 161 7
7110–7750 7275 196 28
7597 196 28
7250–7550 7400 161 3.5
… … … … …
Digital Microwave
Communication Modulation (1)
　 Digital baseband signal is the unmodulated digital signal. The baseband
signal cannot be directly transmitted over microwave radio channels and must
be converted into carrier signal for microwave transmission.
Baseband signal rate
Channel bandwidth
Modulation
Digital baseband signal IF signal
Service signal
transmitted
Digital Microwave
Communication Modulation (2)
　 The following formula indicates a digital baseband signal being converted in
to a digital frequency band signal.
A*COS(Wc*t+φ) PSK and QAM are

most frequently used
in digital
microwave.
Amplitude Frequency Phase
 ASK: Amplitude Shift Keying. Use the digital baseband signal to change the
carrier amplitude (A). Wc and φ remain unchanged.
 FSK: Frequency Shift Keying. Use the digital baseband signal to change the
carrier frequency (Wc). A and φ remain unchanged.
 PSK: Phase Shift Keying. Use the digital baseband signal to change the carr
ier phase (φ). Wc and A remain unchanged.
 QAM: Quadrature Amplitude Modulation. ). Use the digital baseband signal to cha
nge the carrier phase (φ) and amplitude (A). Wc remains unchanged.
Microwave Frame Structure (1)
 RFCOH
171.072 Mbit/s
15.552 Mbit/s STM-1 155.52 Mbit/s
RFCOH SOH Payload
MLCM DMY XPIC ATPC WS RSC INI ID FA

11.84 Mbit/s 64 kbit/s 16 kbit/s 64 kbit/s 2.24 Mbit/s 864 kbit/s 144 kbit/s 32 kbit/s 288 kbit/s
RFCOH: Radio Frame Complementary Overhead

RSC: Radio Service Channel
MLCM: Multi-Level Coding Modulation
INI: N:1 switching command
DMY: Dummy
ID: Identifier
XPIC: Cross-polarization Interference Cancellation
FA: Frame Alignment
ATPC: Automatic Transmit Power Control
WS: Wayside Service
Microwave Frame Structure (2)
 RFCOH is multiplexed into the STM-1 data and a block multiframe is formed. Each multiframe
has six rows and each row has 3564 bits. One multiframe is composed of two basic frames. Each
basic frame has 1776 bits. The remaining 12 bits are used for frame alignment.
Multiframe 3564 bits

FS Basic frame 1 FS Basic frame 2
6 bits
6 bits 6 bits
1776 bits （ 148 words ） 1776 bits (148 words)
I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I
I I I I I I I I b I I C2 I I I I I a I I b I I C2
I I C1 I I C1 I I C1 I I C1 I I C1 I I C1 I I C1 I I C1
12 bits (the 1st word) 12 bits (the 148th word)

I: STM-1 information bit
C1/C2: Two-level correction coding monitoring bits
FS: Frame synchronization
a/b: Other complementary overheads
Questions
 What is microwave?
 What is digital microwave communication?
 What are the frequently used digital microwave frequency bands?
 What concepts are involved in microwave frequency setting?
 What are the frequently used modulation schemes? Which are the most
frequently used modulation schemes?
Contents
Microwave Equipment Category
System Digital microwave Analog microwave
MUX/DEMU
X Mode PDH SDH
Small and medium capacity Large capacity

Capacity (2–16E1, 34M) (STM-0, STM-1, 2xSTM-1)
(Discontinued)
Trunk radio
Structure
Split-mount radio
All outdoor radio
Trunk Microwave Equipment
BRU: Branch RF Unit
• High cost, large

transmission capacity, MSTU: Main Signal Tran
more stable performance, smission Unit
applicable to long haul ( transceiver, modem, SDH
and trunk transmission P electrical interface, h
itless switching)
• RF, IF, signal processing, M1
and MUX/DEMUX units SCSU: Supervision, Co
M2 ntrol and Switching Un
are all indoor. Only the
it
…
antenna system is outdoor.

BBIU: Baseband Interf
ace Unit (option)
(STM-1 optical interf
ace, C4 PDH interface
)
SDH microwave equipment
All Outdoor Microwave Equipment
• All the units are RF processing unit

outdoor.
IF cable
• Installation is easy.
IF and baseband
processing unit
• The equipment room
can be saved.
Service and power cable
All outdoor microwave equipment
Split-Mount Microwave Equipment (1)
 The RF unit is an outdoor unit (ODU).
Antenna
The IF, signal processing, and
MUX/DEMUX units are integrated in the
indoor unit (IDU). The ODU and IDU are IF cable
connected through an IF cable.
ODU
 The ODU can either be directly mounted (Outdoor Unit)
onto the antenna or connected to the
antenna through a short soft waveguide.
IDU
 Although the capacity is smaller than the (Indoor Unit)
trunk, due to the easy installation and
maintenance, fast network construction,
it’s the most widely used microwave
equipment. Split-mount microwave
equipment
Split-Mount Microwave Equipment (2)
 Unit Functions
 Antenna: Focuses the RF signals transmitted by ODUs and increases the sig
nal gain.
 ODU: RF processing, conversion of IF/RF signals.
 IF cable: Transmitting of IF signal, management signal and power supply o
f ODU.
 IDU: Performs access, dispatch, multiplex/demultiplex, and modulation/dem
odulation for services.
Split-Mount Microwave Equipment
– Installation
Separate Mount Direct Mount
antenna
(direct mount)
antenna (separate
mount)
ODU
Soft waveguide
ODU IF cable IF cable
中频口
IDU IF port
IDU IF port
Microwave Antenna (1)
Parabolic antenna
 Antennas are used to send and receive microwave signals.

Parabolic antennas is common type of microwave antennas.
Microwave antenna diameters includes: 0.3m, 0.6m, 1.2m, 1.8m,2.0m, 2.4m, 3.0m, 3.2metc.
Microwave Antenna (2)
 Different frequency channels in same frequency band can share one antenna.
Channel Channel
1 1
T
x 1 1
Rx
n n
T
x n n
Rx
Antenna Adjustment (1)
Side lobe
Side view
Half-power angle Main lobe Tail lobe
Side lobe
Top view
Half-power angle Main lobe Tail lobe
Antenna
AntennaAdjustment
Adjustment(2)
(2)
 During antenna adjustment, change the direction ve
rtically or horizontally. Meanwhile, use a multimete
r to test the RSSI at the receiving end. Usually, th
e voltage wave will be displayed as shown in the low
er right corner. The peak point of the voltage wave
indicates the main lobe position in the vertical or
horizontal direction. Large-scope adjustment is unne
cessary. Perform fine adjustment on the antenna to t
he peak voltage point.
AGC
Voltage detection
 When antennas are poorly aligned, a small voltag point
e may be detected in one direction. In this case, pe VAGC
rform coarse adjustment on the antennas at both ends
, so that the antennas are roughly aligned.
Angle
Side lobe position
 The antennas at both ends that are well aligned Main lobe position
face a little bit upward. Though 1–2 dB is lost, r
eflection interference will be avoided.
Antenna
AntennaAdjustment
Adjustment(3)
(3)
 During antenna adjustment, the two wrong
adjustment cases are show here. One antenna
is aligned to another antenna through the side
lobe. As a result, the RSSI cannot meet the
requirements.
Wrong Wrong Correct
– Antenna (1)
 Antenna gain
 Definition: Ratio of the input power of an isotropic antenna Pio to the input power of a parabolic
antenna Pi when the electric field at a point is the same for the isotropic antenna and the parabolic
antenna.
2
P  D 
 Calculating formula of antenna gain: G  io    
Pi   
 Half-power angle
 Usually, the given antenna specifications contain the gain in the largest radiation (main lobe)
direction, denoted by dBi. The half-power point, or the –3 dB point is the point which is deviated
from the central line of the main lobe and where the power is decreased by half. The angle between
the two half-power points is called the half-power angle.

 Calculating formula of half-power angle:  0.5  (650 ~ 700 )
D
Half-power angle
– Antenna (2)
　 Cross polarization discrimination
Suppression ratio of the antenna receiving heteropolarizing waves, usually, larg

er than 30 dB.
 XdB ＝ 10lgPo/Px
 Po: Receiving power of normal polarized wave
 Px: Receiving power of abnormal polarized wave

　 Antenna protection ratio
 Attenuation degree of the receiving capability in a direction of an antenna com

pared with that in the main lobe direction. An antenna protection ratio of 180°
is called front-to-back ratio.
– ODU (1)
ODU system architecture
Uplink IF/RF conversion
IF
Frequency Sideband Power RF
amplificat
mixing filtering amplification attenuation
ion
Local
oscillation Power
ATPC
(Tx) detection
Local
oscillation RF loop
(Rx)
IF Frequency Low-noise Bandpass

Filtering
amplification mixing amplification filtering
Supervi
sion and
control Downlink RF/IF conversion
signal
Alarm and control
– ODU (2)
 Specifications of Transmitter
 Working frequency band
Generally, trunk radios use 6, 7, and 8 GHz frequency bands. 11, 13 GHz and
higher frequency bands are used in the access layer (e.g. BTS access).
 Output power
The power at the output port of a transmitter. Generally, the output power is 15 to
30 dBm.
– ODU (3)
 Local frequency stability
If the working frequency of the transmitter is unstable, the demodulated eff
ectived
signal ratio will be decreased and the bit error ratio will be increased. Th
e value
range of the local frequency stability is 3 to 10 ppm.
 Transmit Frequency Spectrum Frame

The frequency spectrum of the transmitted signal must meet specified
requirements, to avoid occupying too much bandwidth and thus causing too much
interference to adjacent channels. The limitations to frequency spectrum is
called transmit frequency spectrum frame.
– ODU (4)
 Specifications of Receiver
 Working frequency band
Receivers work together with transmitters. The receiving frequency on the local
station is the transmitting frequency of the same channel on the opposite station.
 Local frequency stability

The same as that of transmitters: 3 to 10 ppm
 Noise figure
The noise figure of digital microwave receivers is 2.5 dB to 5 dB.
– ODU (5)
 Passband
To effectively suppress interference and achieve the best transmission quality, the
passband and amplitude frequency characteristics should be properly chosen. The
receiver passband characteristics depend on the IF filter.
 Selectivity
Ability of receivers of suppressing the various interferences outside the passband,
especially the interference from adjacent channels, image interference and the
interference between transmitted and received signals.
 Automatic gain control (AGC) range
Automatic control of receiver gain. With this function, input RF signals change with
in a
certain range and the IF signal level remains unchanges.
– ODU (6)
Frequency range (7425M–7725M)
f0(7575M)
T/R spacing: 154M ODUs are of rich
types and small
volume. Usually,
ODUs are produced
Subband A Subband B Subband C Subband A Subband B Subband C by small
manufacturers and
integrated by big
manufacturers.
7442 7498
Non-primary station Primary station
 ODU specifications are related to radio frequencies.

As one ODU cannot cover an entire frequency band,
Types of ODUs = Number of
usually, a frequency band will be divided into several
frequency bands x Number of
subbands and each subband corresponds to one ODU. T/R spacing x Number of
 Different T/R spacing corresponds to different subbands x 2
ODUs. (ODUs of some
 Primary and non-primary stations have different
manufacturers are also
classified by capacity.
ODUs.
– IDU
Service
channel
IF unit
Tributary
unit
Microwave Tx IF
Modulat
frame
ion
multiplexing
Cross-
connect
ion From/to ODU
Cable interface
Microwave Rx IF
frame Demodu
demultiplexing lation
Line unit
Service
O&M channel
interface
Supervision and control
Power
interface
DC/DC conversion
Questions
 What types are microwave equipment classified into?
 What units do the split-mount microwave equipment have? And what are
their functions??
 How to adjust antennas?
 What are the key specifications of antennas?
 What are the key specifications of ODU transmitters and receivers?
 Can you describe the entire signal flow of microwave transmission?
Summary
 Classification of digital microwave equipment
 Components of split-mount microwave equipment and their
functions
 Antenna installation and key specifications of antennas
 Functional modules and key performance indexes of ODU
 Functional modules of IDU
 Signal flow of microwave transmission
Contents
Common Networking Modes of
Digital Microwave
Ring network Chain network
Add/Drop
network
Hub network
Types of Digital Microwave Stations
• Digital microwave stations are classified into Pivotal stations, add/drop relay stations, relay
stations and terminal stations.
Relay Add/Drop
station relay station
Terminal station
Pivotal station Terminal

station
Terminal
station
Types of Relay Stations
• Back-to-back antenna
Passive
• Plane reflector
Relay station
• Regenerative repeater
Active • IF repeater
• RF repeater
Active Relay Station
　 Radio Frequency relay station
　 An active, bi-directional radio repeater system without frequency s
hift. The RF relay station directly amplifies the signal over radio fre
quency.
　 Regenerator relay station

　 A high-frequency repeater of high performance. The regenerator rela
y station is used to extend the transmission distance of microwave comm

unication systems, or to deflect the transmission direction of the sign
al to avoid obstructions and ensure the signal quality is not degraded.
After complete regeneration and amplification, the received signal is f
orwarded.
Passive Relay Station
　 Parabolic reflector passive relay station

 The parabolic reflector passive relay station is composed of two parabo
lic antennas connected by a soft waveguide back to back.
 The two-parabolic passive relay station often uses large-diameter ant
ennas. Meters are necessary to adjust antennas, which is time consu
ming.
 The near end is less than 5 km away.
Plane Reflector Passive Relay Station
 Plane reflector passive relay station: A metal board which has smooth
surface, proper effective area, proper angle and distance with the two
communication points. It is also a passive relay microwave station.
 Full-distance free space loss:

d1(km)
Ls  142.1  20 log d1d 2  20 log a 
d 2(km)
a  A cos 2
“a” is the effective area (m2) of the flat reflector.
Passive Relay Station (Photos)
Passive relay station Passive relay station

(plane reflector) (parabolic reflectors)
Application of Digital Microwave
Complementary
networks to optical
networks (access the
services from the last 1
km)
Special transmission
BTS backhaul conditions (rivers, lakes,
transmission islands, etc.)
Microwave
application
Emergency
communications
Redundancy backup of (conventions, activities,
important links danger elimination,
disaster relief, etc.)
VIP customer access
Questions
 What are the networking modes frequently used for digital microwave?
 What are the types of digital microwave stations?
 What are the types of relay stations?
 What is the major application of digital microwave?
Contents
Contents

 4.1 Factors Affecting Electric Wave Propagation
 4.2 Various Fading in Microwave Propagation
 4.3 Anti-fading Technologies for Digital Microwave
Key Parameters in
Microwave Propagation (1)
　 Fresnel Zone and Fresnel Zone Radius
　 Fresnel zone: The sum of the distance from P to T and the distance from
P to R complies with the formula, TP+PR-TR= n/2 (n=1,2,3, …). The ellip
tical region encircled by the trail of P is called the Fresnel zone.
T O R
F1
P
d1 d2
　 Fresnel zone radius: The vertical distance from P to the TR line in the F
resnel zone. The first Fresnel zone radius is represented by F1 (n=1).
Key Parameters in
d1 (km)  d 2 (km)
F1  17.32
　 Formula of the first Fresnel zone radius:
f (GHz )  d (km)
　 The first Fresnel zone is the region where the microwave transmission en
ergy is the most concentrated. The obstruction in the Fresnel zone should be
as little as possible. With the increase of the Fresnel zone serial numbers,
the field strength of the receiving point reduces as per arithmetic series.
Key Parameters in
　 A
Clearance F
M
h3
hc B
h1 hp
hs
h5
h2
h4 h6
d1 d2
d
　 Along the microwave propagation trail, the obstruction from buildings, trees
, and mountain peaks is sometimes inevitable. If the height of the obstacle ente
rs the first Fresnel zone, additional loss might be caused. As a result, the rec
eived level is decreased and the transmission quality is affected. Clearance is
used to avoid the case described previously.
 The vertical distance from the obstacle to AB line segment is called the clea
rance of the obstacle on the trail. For convenience, the vertical distance hc fr
om the obstacle to the ground surface is used to represent the clearance. In pra
ctice, the error is not big because the line segment AB is approximately paralle
l to the ground surface. If the first Fresnel zone radius of the obstacle is F 1,
then hc/
Copyright F is
© 2006 theTechnologies
Huawei relative Co.,
clearance.
Ltd. All rights reserved. Page 56
1
Factors Affecting Electric Wave Propagation
– Terrain
 The reflected wave from the ground surface is the major factor that affects the received level.
Straight line
Straight line
Reflection Reflection
 Smooth ground or water surface can reflect the part of the signal energy transmitted by the antenna to the
receiving antenna and cause interference to the main wave (direct wave). The vector sum of the reflected
wave and main wave increases or decreases the composite wave. As a result, the transmission becomes
unstable. Therefore, when doing microwave link design, avoid reflected waves as much as possible. If
reflection is inevitable, make use of the terrain ups and downs to block the reflected waves.
Factors Affecting Electric Wave Propagation
– Terrain
 Different reflection conditions of different terrains have different effe
cts on electric wave propagation. Terrains are classified into the following
four types:
　 Type A: mountains (or cities with dense buildings)
　 Type B: hills (gently wavy ground surface)
　 Type C: plain
　 Type D: large-area water surface
 　 The reflection coefficient of mountains is the smallest, and thus the moun
tain terrain is most suitable for microwave transmission. The hill terrain is
less suitable. When designing circuits, try to avoid smooth plane such as wat
er surface.
Factors Affecting Electric Wave Propa
gation – Atmosphere
 　 Troposphere indicates the low altitude atmosphere within 10 km from th
e ground. Microwave antennas will not be higher than troposphere, so the el
ectric wave propagation in aerosphere can be narrowed down to that in tropo
sphere. Main effects of troposphere on electric wave propagation are listed
below:
 Absorption caused by gas resonance. This type of absorption can aff

ect the microwave at 12 GHz or higher.
 Absorption and scattering caused by rain, fog, and snow. This type
of absorption can affect the microwave at 10 GHz or higher.
 Refraction, absorption, reflection and scattering caused by
inhomogeneity of atmosphere. Refraction is the most significant impact t
o the microwave propagation.
Contents

Fading in Microwave Propagation
　 Fading: Random variation of the received level. The variation is irregula

r and the reasons for this are various.
Fading Received Influence of

Fading time
mechanism level fading on signal
Frequency selective fading

Down fading
K-type fading
Slow fading
Fast fading
Absorption fading
Scintillation
Flat fading
Free space propagation
Rain fading
Up fading
fading
Duct type fading

fading
Free Space Transmission Loss
　 Free space loss: A = 92.4 + 20 log d + 20 log f

(d: km, f: GHz). If d or f is doubled, the loss will increase by 6 dB.
d PTX = Transmit power

GTX GRX
PRX = Receive power
G = Antenna gain
Power level
f A0 = Free space loss
M = Fading margin
G
PTX A0
PRX
G
M
Receiving threshold
Distance
Absorption Fading
　 Molecules of all substances are composed of charged particles. These parti
cles have their own electromagnetic resonant frequencies. When the microwave
frequencies of these substances are close to their resonance frequencies, res
onance absorption occurs to the microwave.
　 Statistic shows that absorption to the microwave frequency lower than 12 G
Hz is smaller than 0.1 dB/km. Compared with free space loss, the absorption l
oss can be ignored.
10dB
1dB
0.1dB
0.01dB
60GHz 23GHz 12GHz 7.5GHz 1GHz
Atmosphere absorption curve (dB/km)
Rain Fading
　 For frequencies lower than 10 GHz, rain loss can be ignored. Only a few
db may be added to a relay section.
　 For frequencies higher than 10 GHz, repeater spacing is mainly affected

by rain loss. For example, for the 13 GHz frequency or higher, 100 mm/h
rainfall causes a loss of 5 dB/km. Hence, for the 13 GHz and 15 GHz frequencies, the
maximum relay distance is about 10 km. For the 20 GHz frequency and higher, the relay
distance is limited in few kilometres due to rain loss.
 High frequency bands can be used for user-level transmission. The high
er the frequency band is, the more severe the rain fading.
K-Type Fading (1)
 Atmosphere refraction
 As a result of atmosphere refraction, the microwave propagation trail is bent. It is
considered that the electromagnetic wave is propagated along a straight line above the earth
with an equivalent earth radius of , = KR (R: Re earth radius.)
Re actual
 The average measured K value is about 4/3. However, the K value of a specific section is
related to the meteorological phenomena of the section. The K value may change within a
comparatively large range. This can affect line-of-sight propagation.
Re
R
K-Type Fading (2)
 Microwave propagation
k > 1: Positive refraction
k = 1: No refraction
k < 1: Negative refraction
K-Type Fading (3)
 Equivalent earth radius
 In temperate zones, the refraction when the K value is 4/3 is regarded as the
standard refraction, where the atmosphere is the standard atmosphere and R e which
is 4R/3 is the standard equivalent earth radius.
k=∞
4/3
1
2/3
Ground surface
Actual earth radius (r)
2/3 Ground surface

1
4/3
k=∞
Equivalent earth radius (r·k)
Multipath Fading (1)
 Multipath fading: Due to multipath propagation of refracted waves, reflected waves,
and scattered waves, multiple electric waves are received at the receiving end. The
composition of these electric waves will result in severe interference fading.
 Reasons for multipath fading: reflections due to non-uniform atmosphere, water
surface and smooth ground surface.
 Down fading: fading where the composite wave level is lower than the free space
received level. Up fading: fading where the composite wave level is higher than the free
space received level.
 　 Non-uniform atmosphere
 Water surface
 Smooth ground surface. Ground surface
Multipath Fading (2)
 Multipath fading is a type of interference fading caused by multipath transmission.

Multipath fading is caused by mutual interference between the direct wave and reflected wave
(or diffracted wave on some conditions) with different phases.
 Multipath fading grows more severe when the wave passes water surface or smooth ground
surface. Therefore, when designing the route, try to avoid smooth water and ground surface.
When these terrains are inevitable, use the high and low antenna technologies to bring the
reflection point closer to one end so as to reduce the impact of the reflected wave, or use the
high and low antennas and space diversity technologies or the antennas that are against
reflected waves to overcome multipath fading.
Multipath Fading
– Frequency Selective Fading
Flat Selective fading

Received power (dBm)
Normal
Frequency (MHz)
Multipath Fading – Flat Fading
Up fading
Received lev
el in free s
pace
Threshold level
(-30 dB)
1h
Signal
interruption
Duct Type Fading
Due to the effects of the meteorological conditions such as ground cooling in the night, burnt
warm by the sun in the morning, smooth sea surface, and anticyclone, a non-uniform structure
is formed in atmosphere. This phenomenon is called atmospheric duct.
If microwave beams pass through the atmospheric duct while the receiving point is outside
the duct layer, the field strength at the receiving point is from not only the direct wave and
ground reflected wave, but also the reflected wave from the edge of the duct layer. As a result,
severe interference fading occurs and causes interruption to the communications.
Duct type fading
Scintillation Fading
When the dielectric constant of local atmosphere is different from the ambient due to the particle
clusters formed under different pressure, temperature, and humidity conditions, scattering occurs
to the electric wave. This is called scintillation fading. The amplitude and phase of different
scattered waves vary with the atmosphere. As a result, the composite field strength at the
receiving point changes randomly.
Scintillation fading is a type of fast fading which lasts a short time. The level changes little and
the main wave is barely affected. Scintillation fading will not cause communications interruption.
Scintillation fading
　 Summary
 The higher the frequency is and the longer the hop distance is, the more severe the fading is.
 Fading is more severe at night than in the daylight, in summer than in winter. In the daylight,
sunshine is good for air convection. In summer, weather changes frequently.
 In sunny days without wind, atmosphere is non-uniform and atmosphere subdivision easily
forms and hardly clears. Multipath transmission often occurs in such conditions.
 Fading is more severe along water route than land route, because both the reflection coefficient
of water surface and the atmosphere refraction coefficient above water surface are bigger.
 Fading is more severe along plain route than mountain route, because atmosphere subdivision
often occurs over plain and the ground reflection factor of the plain is bigger.
 Rain and fog weather causes much influence on high-frequency microwave.
Contents

Anti-fading Technologies
for Digital Microwave System (1)
Category Effect
Adaptive equalization Waveform distortion
Equipment level Automatic transmit power

Power reduction
countermeasure control (ATPC)
Forward error correction (FEC) Power reduction
System level Power reduction and

Diversity receiving technology
countermeasure waveform distortion
　 Frequency domain equalization
Multipath fading
Slope equalization
Signal frequency Frequency spectrum after
spectrum equalization
　 The frequency domain equalization only equalizes the amplitude frequen

cy response characteristics of the signal instead of the phase frequency
spectrum characteristics.
 The circuit is simple.
　 Time domain equalization
 Time domain equalization directly counteracts the intersy

mbol interference.
T … T … T
C-n C0 Cn
After
Before
-2Ts -Ts Ts Ts
-2Ts -Ts
 Automatic transmit power control (ATPC)
Under normal propagation conditions, the output power of the transmitter is always at a
lower level, for example, 10 to 15 dB lower than the normal level. When propagation fading
occurs and the receiver detects that the propagation fading is lower than the minimum
received level specified by ATPC, the RFCOH is used to let the transmitter to raise the
transmit power.
 Working principle of ATPC
Modulator Transmitter Receiver Demodulator
ATPC ATPC
Demodulator Receiver Transmitter Modulator
 ATPC: The output power of the transmitter automatically traces and changes with the
received level of the receiver within the control range of ATPC.
 The time rate of severe propagation fading is usually small (<1%). After ATPC is configured,
the transmitter works at a power 10 to 15 dB lower than the nominal power for over 99% of
the time. In this way, adjacent channel interference and power consumption can be reduced.
 Effects of ATPC:
 Reduces the interference to adjacent  Reduces up fading

systems and over-reach interference
 Improves residual BER
 Reduces DC power consumption
 ATPC adjustment process (gradual change)
Received level (dBm)
Transmitter output level (dBm)

-25
High level
-35 31
-45 Low level

21
-55
ATPC dynamic range

-72
45 75 85 102
Link loss (dB)
 Cross-polarization interference 680MHz
cancellation (XPIC) 30MHz 340 MHz
80MHz 60MHz
 In microwave transmission, XPIC is
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1’ 2’ 3’ 4’ 5’ 6’ 7’ 8’
used to transmit two different signals over
V (H)
one frequency. The utilization ratio of the
frequency spectrum is doubled. To avoid H (V)
severe interference between two different
polarized signals, the interference 680 MHz
340MHz
compensation technology must be used. 30MHz 80MHz 60MHz
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 1’ 2’ 3’ 4’ 5’ 6’ 7’ 8’
Electric field direction
V
(H)
Horizontal polarization
H
(V)
1X 2X 3X 4X 5X 6X 7X 8X 1X’ 2X’ 3X' 4X’ 5X’ 6X’ 7X’ 8X’
Vertical polarization
Frequency configuration of U6 GHz frequency band (ITU-R F.384-5)
Shape of waveguide interface
 Diversity technologies
 For diversity, two or multiple transmission paths are used to transmit the same information and the
receiver output signals are selected or composed, to reduce the effect of fading.
 Diversity has the following types, space diversity, frequency diversity, polarization diversity, and angle
diversity.
 Space diversity and frequency diversity are more frequently used. Space diversity is economical and
has a good effect. Frequency diversity is often applied to multi-channel systems as it requires a wide
bandwidth. Usually, the system that has one standby channel is configured with frequency diversity.
f1
H
f2
Space diversity (SD) Frequency diversity (FD)
　 Frequency diversity
 Signals at different frequencies have different fading characteristic

s. Accordingly, two or more microwave frequencies with certain frequency
spacing to transmit and receive the same information which is then selec
ted or composed, to reduce the influence of fading. This work mode is ca
lled frequency diversity.
 Advantages: The effect is obvious. Only one antenna is required.
 Disadvantages: The utilization ratio of frequency bands is low.
f1
f2
 Space diversity
 Signals have different multipath effect over different paths and thus have different fading
characteristics. Accordingly, two or more suites of antennas at different altitude levels to receive
the signals at the same frequency which are composed or selected. This work mode is called space
diversity. If there are n pairs of antennas, it is called n-fold diversity.
 Advantages: The frequency resources are saved.
 Disadvantages: The equipment is complicated, as two or more suites of antennas are required.
 Antenna distance: As per experience, the distance between the diversity antennas is 100 to 200
times the wavelength in frequently used frequency bands.
f1
f1
Dh calculation in space diversity Rx

l
l ＋
Tx n
/2
Dh
h1
d
 Approximately, Dh can be calculated according to this formula:
(nl ＋
Dh = l/2) d
l: wavelength 2h 1
d: path distance
h1: height of the antenna at the transmit end
　 Apart from the anti-fading technologies introduced previously, here are t
wo frequently used tips:
 Method I: Make use of some terrain and ground objects to block reflecte
d waves.
　 Method II: high and low antennas
Protection Modes of
Digital Microwave Equipment (1)
Hybrid coupler
 With one hybrid coupler added between two ODUs  The 1+1 HSB can also be realized in the
and the antenna, the 1+1 HSB can be realized in the configuration of two antennas. In this case,
configuration of one antenna. Moreover, the FD the FD and SD technologies can both be
technology can also be adopted. adopted, which improves the system
availability.
Protection Modes of
 N+1 (N≤3, 7, 11) Protection
 In the following figure, Mn stands for the active channel and P stands for the standby channel.
The active channel and the standby channel have their independent modulation/demodulation
unit and signal transmitting /receiving unit.
 When the fault or fading occurs in the active channel, the signal is switched to the standby
channel. The channel backup is an inter-frequency backup. This protection mode (FD) is mainly
used in the all indoor microwave equipment.
 Products of different vendors support different specifications.
ch1 M1 M1 ch1
ch2 M2 M2 ch2
ch3 M3 M3 ch3
chP P P chP
Switching Switching
control unit RFSOH control unit
Protection Modes of
Configuration Protection Mode Remarks Application
1+0 NP Non-protection Terminal of the network
1+1 FD Channel protection Inter-

frequency Select the proper mode
depending on the
1+1 SD Equipment protection and geographical condition
Intra-
channel protection and requirements of the
frequency
customer
1+1 FD+SD Equipment protection and Inter-

channel protection frequency
N+1 FD Equipment protection and Inter- Large-capacity backbone

channel protection frequency network
Questions
 What factors can affect the microwave propagation?
 What types of fading exists in the microwave propagation?
 What are the two categories is the anti-fading technology?
 What protection modes are available for the microwave?
Summary
 Importance parameters affecting microwave propagation
 Various factors affecting microwave propagation
 Various fading types in the microwave propagation (free space propagation fading,
atmospheric absorption fading, rain or fog scattering fading, K type fading, multipath
fading, duct type fading, and scintillation type fading)
 Anti-fading technologies
 Anti-fading measures adopted on the equipment: adaptive equalization, ATPC, and XPIC
 Anti-fading measures adopted in the system: FD and SD
 Protection modes of the microwave equipment
Contents
Contents

 5.1 Basis of Designing a Microwave Transmission Line
 5.2 Procedures for Designing a Microwave Transmission Line
Basis of Designing a Microwave Transmission
Line
 Requirement on the point-to-point line-of-sight communication
 Objective of designing a microwave transmission line
 Transmission clearance
 Meanings of K value in the microwave transmission planning
Requirement on a Microwave Transmission
Line
　 Because the microwave is a short wave and has weak ability of diffraction,
the normal communication can be realized in the line-of-sight transmission with
out obstacles.
Line propagation Irradiated wave

Antenna
Requirement on a Microwave Transmission
Line
 In the microwave transmission, the transmit power is very small, only the antenna in the
accurate direction can realize the communication. For the communication of long distance,
use the antenna of greater diameter or increase the transmit power.
Direction demonstration of the microwave antenna
Microwave antenna
Half power angle of the

microwave antenna 3 dB
Objective of Designing a Microwave Transmission Line
 In common geographical conditions, it is recommended that there be

no obstacles within the first Fresnel zone if K is equal to 4/3.
 When the microwave transmission line passes the water surface or t
he desert area, it is recommended that there are no obstacles with
in the first Fresnel zone if K is equal to 1.
The first Fresnel zone
k = 4/3
Transmission Clearance (1)
　 The knife-edged obstacle blocks partial of the Fresnel zone. This als
o causes the diffraction of the microwave. Influenced by the two reasons,
the level at the actual receive point must be lower than the free space l
evel. The loss caused by the knife-edged obstacle is called additional lo
ss.
Dif
fra ctio
n
 When the peak of the obstacle is in the line connecting

the transmit end and the receive end, that is, the HC is 8
6
equal to 0, the additional loss is equal to 6 dB. 4
2
 When the peak of the obstacle is above the line
0
connecting the transmit end and the receive end, the -2
Additional loss (dB)

-4
additional loss is increased greatly.
-6
 When the peak of the obstacle is below the line -8
-10
connecting the transmit end the receive end, the additional -12
-14
loss fluctuates around 0 dB. The transmission loss in the
-16
path and the signal receiving level approach the values in -18
-20
the free space transmission. -22
-24
-26
-28
-2.5 -2.0-1.5-1.0-0.5 0 0.51.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 HC/F1
Loss caused by block of knife-edged obstacle
　 Clearance calculation
 Calculation formula for path clearance
h1d 2  h2 d1
hc   hb  hs
d
hc
The value of clearance is
required greater than that of h2
the first Fresnel Zone’s
hs
radius.
h1
 hb stands for the projecting d1 hb d2
height of the earth. d
d1d 2
hb  0.0785
K
 K stands for the atmosphere refraction factor.
　 To present the influence of various factors on microwave transmission, the
field strength fading factor V is introduced. The field strength fading facto
r V is defined as the ratio of the combined field strength when the irradiate
d wave and the reflected wave arrive at the receive point to the field streng
th when the irradiated wave arrives at the receive point in the free space t
ransmission.  h 2

E 2 
V   1    2  cos  ce  
E0   F1  
E : Combined field strength when the irradiated wave and reflected wave
arrive at the receive point
E 0 : Field strength when the irradiated wave arrives at the received point in
the free space transmission
 : Equivalent ground reflection factor
　 The relation of the V and  can be
represented by the curve in the figure on
the right. V （ dB ）
10
 In the case that Φ is equal to 1, wit
5
h the influence of the earth considered,
0
HC/F1 is equal to 0.577 when the signal r -5
φ＝0.2
eceiving level is equal to the free space -10
φ＝0.5
level the first time. -15
φ＝0.8
 In the case that Φ is smaller than 1, -20
φ＝1
HC/F1 is approximately equal to 0.6 when -25
the signal receiving level is equal to th -30
e free space level the first time. -35
-40
 When the HC/F1 is equal to 0.577, the c
learance is called the free space clearan HC/F1=N
ce, represented by H0 and expressed in t

Relation curve of V and Hc/F1
he following formula:
H0 = 0.577F 1 = (λd1d2/d)1/2
Meaning of K Value in Microwave
Transmission Planning (1)
 To make the clearance cost-effective and reasonable in the engineering, the height of the
antenna should be adjusted according to the following requirements.
 In the case that Φ is not greater than 0.5, that is, for the circuit that passes the area of
small ground reflection factor like the mountainous area, city, and hilly area, to avoid
over great diffraction, the height of the antenna should be adjusted according to the
following requirements:
When K = 2/3, HC ≥ 0.3F1 (for common obstacles)
HC ≥ 0 (for knife-shaped obstacles)

 The diffraction fading should not be greater than 8 dB in this case.
Meaning of K Value in Microwave
Transmission Planning (2)
 In the case that Φ is greater than 0.7, that is, for the circuit that p
asses the area of great ground reflection factor like the plain area and wate
r reticulation area, to avoid over great reflection fading, the height of the
antenna should be adjusted according to the following requirements 　　　　
When K = 2/3, HC ≥ 0.3F1 (for common obstacles) 　　　　
HC ≥ 0 (for knife-edged obstacles)
　　 When K = 4/3, HC ≈ F1
　　 When K = ∞, HC ≤ 1.35F1 (The deep fading occurs when H C = 21/2 F1.

)
 If these requirements cannot be met, change the height of the antenna or
the route.
Procedure for Designing a Microwave
Transmission Line
 Step 1 Determine the route according to the engineering map.
 Step 2 Select the site of the microwave station.
 Step 3 Draw the cross-sectional chart of the terrain.
 Step 4 Calculate the parameters for site construction.
Transmission Line (1)
Step 1 Determine the route according to engineering map.
 We should select the area that rolls as much as possible, such as the hilly area. We
should avoid passing the water surface and the flat and wide area that is not
suitable for the transmission of the electric wave. In this way, the strong reflection
signal and the accordingly caused deep fading can be avoided.
 The line should avoid crossing through or penetrating into the mountainous area.
 The line should go along with the railway, road and other areas with the
convenient transportation.
Step 2 Select the site of the microwave station.
 The distance between two sites should not be too long. The distance between two relay
stations should be equal, and each relay section should have the proper clearance.
 Select the Z route to avoid the over-reach interference.
 Avoid the interference from other radio services, such as the satellite communication
system, radar site, TV station, and broadcast station.
f1 f1 f1
f2 f2 f2
The signal from the first
microwave station
Over-reach interferes with the signal
of the same frequency
interference
from the third microwave
station.
Step 3 Draw the cross-sectional chart of the terrain.
 Draw the cross-sectional chart of the terrain based on the data of each site.
 Calculate the antenna height and transmission situation of each site
. For the line that has strong reflection, adjust the mounting heigh
t of the antenna to block the reflected wave, or have the reflection
point fall on the earth surface with small reflection factor.
 Consider the path clearance. The clearance in the plain area should not be over
great, and that in the mountainous area should not be over small.
Step 4 Calculate the parameters for site construction.
 Calculate the terrain parameters when the route and the site are already
determined.
 Calculate the azimuth and the elevation angles of the antenna, distance between
sites, free space transmission loss and receive level, rain fading index, line
interruption probability, and allocated values and margin of the line index.
 When the margin of the line index is eligible, plan the equipment and
frequencies, make the approximate budget, and deliver the construction chart.
There is special network

planning software, and the
Input
commonly used is CTE
Pathloss.
Input
Questions
 What are the requirements for microwave communication?
 What is the goal of microwave design?
 What extra factors should be taken into consideration for microwave planning?
 Can you tell the procedure for designing a microwave transmission line?
Thank You
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Digital Microwave

Copyright © 2006 Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. All rights reserved.

 This course is developed to meet the requirement of Huawei Optical Network

 This course informs engineers of the basics on digital microwave

1. Digital Microwave Communication Overview

2. Digital Microwave Communication Equipment

3. Digital Microwave Networking and Application

4. Microwave Propagation and Anti-fading Technologies

5. Designing Microwave Transmission Links

Microwave TE Optical fiber communication

Small investment, short construction

Limited frequency resources (frequency Not limited by frequency, license not

Transmission quality greatly affected by Stable and reliable transmission quality

Limited transmission capacity Large transmission capacity

34/140M PDH digital microwave

2/4/6/8M Small and medium

1.5 GHz 2.5 GHz

3.3 GHz Long haul trunk 11 GHz

Channel Adjacent channel Channel

f1=7442 f2=7470 f5 f1’=7596 f2 ’ f5 ’

Baseband signal rate

Digital baseband signal IF signal

A*COS(Wc*t+φ) PSK and QAM are

15.552 Mbit/s STM-1 155.52 Mbit/s

RFCOH SOH Payload

MLCM DMY XPIC ATPC WS RSC INI ID FA

RFCOH: Radio Frame Complementary Overhead

Multiframe 3564 bits

12 bits (the 1st word) 12 bits (the 148th word)

 What is digital microwave communication?

 What are the frequently used digital microwave frequency bands?

 What concepts are involved in microwave frequency setting?

1. Digital Microwave Communication Overview

2. Digital Microwave Communication Equipment

3. Digital Microwave Networking and Application

4. Microwave Propagation and Anti-fading Technologies

5. Designing Microwave Transmission Links

System Digital microwave Analog microwave

Small and medium capacity Large capacity

All outdoor radio

BRU: Branch RF Unit

• High cost, large

antenna system is outdoor.

• All the units are RF processing unit

All outdoor microwave equipment

 ODU: RF processing, conversion of IF/RF signals.

 IF cable: Transmitting of IF signal, management signal and power supply o

 IDU: Performs access, dispatch, multiplex/demultiplex, and modulation/dem

odulation for services.

ODU IF cable IF cable

 Antennas are used to send and receive microwave signals.

Half-power angle Main lobe Tail lobe

adjustment cases are show here. One antenna

is aligned to another antenna through the side

lobe. As a result, the RSSI cannot meet the

Wrong Wrong Correct

Suppression ratio of the antenna receiving heteropolarizing waves, usually, larg

 Attenuation degree of the receiving capability in a direction of an antenna com

IF Frequency Low-noise Bandpass

ACOS(Wct+φ) PSK and QAM are

　 Regenerator relay station

　 Parabolic reflector passive relay station

　 Fading: Random variation of the received level. The variation is irregula

　 Free space loss: A = 92.4 + 20 log d + 20 log f

　 For frequencies higher than 10 GHz, repeater spacing is mainly affected

　 The frequency domain equalization only equalizes the amplitude frequen