Wireless Communication

Channels: Large-Scale Pathloss

Diffraction
 Diffraction

Diffraction allows radio signals to propagate behind

obstacles between a transmitter and a receiver

ht
hr

© Tallal Elshabrawy 3
 Huygen’s Principle & Diffraction

All points on a wavefront

can be considered as point
sources for the production
of secondary wavelets.
These wavelets combine to
produce a new wavefront in
the direction of propagation.

© Tallal Elshabrawy 4
 Knife-Edge Diffraction Geometry
α

h
Tx β γ Rx

d1 d2

hobs
ht hr

2 2
 h   h 
  d 12  h 2  d 2 2  h 2  d1  d 2  d1 1     d2 1     d1  d2
 d1   d2 
h 2  d1  d 2  x
   h  d1 , d 2 where 1  x  1  for x 
<<1
2  d1d 2  2
Δ: Excess Path Length (Difference between Diffracted Path and Direct Path)
© Tallal Elshabrawy 5
 Fresnel Zone Diffraction Parameter (ν)
Ф: Phase Difference between
Diffracted Path and Direct Path)

2 2 h 2  d1  d 2 
   
  2  d1 d 2 

Assume tan    tan   

h h h  d1  d 2 
      
d1 d 2 d1d 2

2  d1  d 2  2d 1 d 2
Fresnel Zone Diffraction  h 
Parameter (ν)  d1d 2   d1  d 2 

 ν2=2, 6, 10 … corresponds to destructive

 2
   interference between direct and diffracted paths
 ν2=4, 8, 12 … corresponds to constructive
2 interference between direct and diffracted paths

© Tallal Elshabrawy 6
 Fresnel Zones

Fresnel Zones:
Successive regions
where secondary waves
have a path length from
the transmitter to receiver
which is nλ/2 greater than
the total path length of a
line-of-sight path
From “Wireless Communications: Principles and Practice” T.S. Rappaport

n rn2  d1  d 2  n d1d 2
   rn 
2 2 d1d 2  d1  d 2 
rn: Radius of the nth Fresnel Zone

© Tallal Elshabrawy 7
 Diffraction Loss
Diffraction Loss occurs from the blockage of secondary waves such
that only a portion of the energy is diffracted around the obstacle

Tx l1 l2 Rx

ht hr

First Fresnel Zone Points  l1+l2-d =(λ/2)

© Tallal Elshabrawy 8
 Diffraction Loss
Diffraction Loss occurs from the blockage of secondary waves such
that only a portion of the energy is diffracted around the obstacle

l2
Tx l1 Rx

ht hr

First Fresnel Zone Points  l1+l2-d =(λ/2)

© Tallal Elshabrawy 9
 Diffraction Loss
Diffraction Loss occurs from the blockage of secondary waves such
that only a portion of the energy is diffracted around the obstacle

l1
Tx l2 Rx

ht hr

First Fresnel Zone Points  l1+l2-d =(λ/2)

© Tallal Elshabrawy 10
 Diffraction Loss
Diffraction Loss occurs from the blockage of secondary waves such
that only a portion of the energy is diffracted around the obstacle

Tx Rx

d l2
l1

ht hr

First Fresnel Zone Points  l1+l2-d =(λ/2)

© Tallal Elshabrawy 11
 Diffraction Loss
Diffraction Loss occurs from the blockage of secondary waves such
that only a portion of the energy is diffracted around the obstacle

Tx Rx

l1 d
l2

ht hr

First Fresnel Zone Points  l1+l2-d =(λ/2)

© Tallal Elshabrawy 12
 Diffraction Loss
Diffraction Loss occurs from the blockage of secondary waves such
that only a portion of the energy is diffracted around the obstacle

l1 l2
Tx Rx

ht hr

Second Fresnel Zone Points  l1+l2-d = λ

© Tallal Elshabrawy 13
 Diffraction Loss
Diffraction Loss occurs from the blockage of secondary waves such
that only a portion of the energy is diffracted around the obstacle

l2
l1
Tx Rx

ht hr

Third Fresnel Zone Points  l1+l2-d = (3λ/2)

© Tallal Elshabrawy 14
 Knife-Edge Diffraction Scenarios

Tx Rx

h (-ve)
d1 d2

ht hr

 h & ν are –ve

 Relative Low Diffraction Loss
© Tallal Elshabrawy 15
 Knife-Edge Diffraction Scenarios

Tx Rx
h =0

d1 d2

ht hr

 h =0
 Diffraction Loss = 0.5
© Tallal Elshabrawy 16
 Knife-Edge Diffraction Scenarios

Tx h (+ve) Rx

d1 d2

ht hr

 h & ν are +ve

 Relatively High Diffraction Loss
© Tallal Elshabrawy 17
 Knife-Edge Diffraction Model

The field strength at

point Rx located in the
shadowed region is a
vector sum of the fields
due to all of the
secondary Huygen’s
sources in the plane
above the knife-edge

Electric Field Strength, Ed, of a Knife-Edge Diffracted Wave is given By:

E0: Free-Space Field Strength in absence of Ground Reflection and Knife-Edge Diffraction
F(ν) is called the complex Fresnel Integral

© Tallal Elshabrawy 18
 Diffraction Gain

© Tallal Elshabrawy 19
 Diffraction Gain Approximation

G d  dB   0   1
G d  dB   20 log  0.5  0.62  1   0
G d  dB   20 log  0.5 exp  0.95   0   1


G d  dB   20 log 0.4  0.1184   0.38  0.1 2   1    2.4

 0.225 
G d  dB   20 log     2.4
  

© Tallal Elshabrawy 20
 Multiple Knife-Edge Diffraction

Tx Rx

ht hr

 In the practical situations, especially in hilly terrain, the propagation

path may consist of more than one obstruction.
 Optimistic solution (by Bullington): The series of obstacles are
replaced by a single equivalent obstacle so that the path loss can be
obtained using single knife-edge diffraction models.

© Tallal Elshabrawy 21