Chapter Three

Data Communication and

Transmission Medias

Data Communication and Computer

Networks
Transmission medium
 The transmission medium is the physical path between

transmitter and receiver in a data transmission system.

 Anything that can carry information from source to

destination
 Transmission media can be classified as guided or

unguided.
 In both cases, communication is in the form of
electromagnetic waves.
 With guided media, the waves are guided along a solid

medium, such as copper twisted pair, copper coaxial

2 cable, and optical fiber.
Contd.

In considering the design of data transmission

systems, a key concern, generally, is data rate

and distance: the greater the data rate and
distance, the better.
A number of design factors relating to the
3
transmission medium and to the signal
Contd.
• Bandwidth:- All other factors remaining constant, the
greater the bandwidth of a signal, the higher the data rate that
can be achieved.
• Transmission impairments:- Impairments (losses), such
as attenuation, limit the distance. For guided media, twisted
pair generally suffer more impairment than coaxial cable, which
in turn suffers more than optical fiber.
• Interference:- Interference from competing signals in
overlapping frequency bands can distort or wipe out a signal.
Interference is of particular concern for unguided media, but it
is also a problem with guided media. For guided media,
interference can be caused by discharges from nearby cables.
For example, twisted pair are often bundled together, and often
4
carry multiple cables. Interference can also be experienced
from unguided transmissions. Proper shielding of a guided
GUIDED TRANSMSSION MEDIA
 For guided transmission media, the transmission
capacity, in terms of either data rate or bandwidth,
depends critically on the distance and on whether
the medium is point-to-point or multipoint, such as
in a local area network (LAN).
 Guided media, which are those that provide a
channel from one device to another, include twisted-
pair cable, coaxial cable, and fiber-optic cable.
 A signal traveling along any of these media is
directed and contained by the physical limits of the
medium.

5 Twisted-pair and coaxial cable use metallic (copper)
Twisted-Pair Cable
 A twisted pair consists of two conductors
(normally copper), each with its own plastic
insulation, twisted together, as shown in the
figure below

 One of the wires is used to carry signals to the

receiver, and the other is used only as a
ground reference.
 In addition to the signal sent by the sender on
one of the wires, interference (noise) and
6
crosstalk may affect both wires and create
Unshielded Versus Shielded Twisted-Pair
Cable
 The most common twisted-pair cable used in
communications is referred to as unshielded
twisted-pair (UTP).
 IBM has also produced a version of twisted-pair
cable for its use called shielded twisted-pair (STP).
 STP cable has a metal foil or braided mesh covering
that encases each pair of insulated conductors.
 Although metal casing improves the quality of cable
by preventing the penetration of noise or crosstalk,
7
it is larger and more expensive.
 STP

UTP

8
 UTP Categories

The Electronic Industries Association (EIA) has

developed standards to classify unshielded

twisted-pair cable into seven categories.

 Categories are determined by cable quality,

with 1 as the lowest and 7 as the highest.

Each EIA category is suitable for specific uses.

9
10
 Connectors
The most common UTP connector is RJ45 (RJ

stands for registered jack). The RJ45 is a

keyed connector, meaning the connector can
be inserted in only one way.

11
Twisted-pair cable Applications
 Within buildings

 Most common medium

 Twisted-pair cables are used in telephones lines to

provide voice and data channels.

 The DSL lines(Digital Subscriber Line) that are

used by the telephone companies to provide high
data rate connections also use the high-bandwidth
capability of unshielded twisted-pair cables.

 Local area networks, such as 10Base-T(rated

transfer speed of 10 Megabits per ) and

 Coaxial Cable
 Coaxial cable (or coax) carries signals of higher
frequency ranges than those in twisted pair cable, in part
because the two media are constructed quite differently.
 Instead of having two wires, coax has a central core
conductor of solid or stranded wire (usually copper)
enclosed in an insulating sheath, which is, in turn, encased
in an outer conductor of metal foil, braid, or a
combination of the two.
 The outer metallic wrapping serves both as a shield
against noise and as the second conductor, which
completes the circuit. outer jacket
 This outer conductor is also
(polyethylene)
enclosed in an insulating case,
and the whole cable is protected by a plastic cover
Outer Conductor
Shield (braided wire)
insulating material
(Insulator)

Inner copper or aluminum

13 conductor
Contd.
 Shielding protects transmitted data by
absorbing stray electronic signals, called
noise, so that they do not get onto the cable and
distort the data.
 Cable that contains one layer of foil insulation and

one layer of braided metal shielding is referred to

as dual shielded.
 For environments that are subject to higher
interference, quad shielding is available.
 Quad shielding consists of two layers of foil
14
insulation and two layers of braided metal shielding.
Types of Coaxial Cable
1. Thin (thinnet) cable
2. Thick (thicknet) cable
1. Thinnet(10Base2):- is a flexible coaxial cable about 0.64
centimeters (0.25 inches) thick.
 Because this type of coaxial cable is flexible and easy to work
with, it can be used in almost any type of network installation.
2. Thicknet(10Base5):- is a relatively rigid coaxial cable about
1.27 centimeters (0.5 inches) in diameter.
 Thicknet cable is sometimes referred to as Standard
Ethernet because it was the first type of cable used with the
popular network architecture Ethernet.
 Thicknet cable's copper core is thicker than a thinnet cable
core.
 The thicker the copper core, the farther the cable can carry
signals.
 This means that thicknet can carry signals farther than
15
thinnet cable. Thicknet cable can carry a signal for 500
Connector

16
Contd.
 The BNC connector is used to connect the

end of the cable to a device, such as a TV

set.
 The BNC T connector is used in Ethernet

networks to branch out to a connection to

a computer or other device.
 The BNC terminator is used at the end of

the cable to prevent the reflection of the

signal
 BNC barrel connector is used to join two

lengths of thinnet cable to make one

17
longer length.
ategories of coaxial cables

Category Impedance Use

RG-59 75 W Cable TV

RG-58 50 W Thin Ethernet

RG-11 50 W Thick Ethernet

 Coaxial Cable Applications
Most multipurpose medium

Television distribution

Ariel to TV

Cable TV

Long distance telephone transmission

Can carry 10,000 voice calls simultaneously

Being replaced by fiber optic

Short distance computer systems links

Local area networks

19
Fiber-Optic Cable
 A fiber-optic cable is made of glass or plastic and

transmits signals in the form of light.

 Fiber-optic cabling consists of a signal-carrying glass core

of 5 to 100 microns in diameter surrounded by a layer

of pure silica called cladding(layer), which prevents

light from escaping.

 Surrounding the cladding are protective layers of

plastic coating, Kevlar fibers for additional strength, and

a PVC (polyvinyl chloride) jacket (usually colored a

20 distinctive orange).
Contd.
 Network components use LED or laser diodes to

convert electrical signals into light pulses for

transmission on fiber-optic cables.
 An optical detector is used to convert the light

pulses back into electrical signals.

21
Contd.
 Optical fibers use reflection to guide light through
a channel.
 A glass or plastic core is surrounded by a cladding
of less dense glass or plastic.
 The difference in density of the two materials must
be such that a beam of light moving through the
core is reflected off the cladding instead of being
refracted into it (cladding)

22
 Propagation Modes

 Current technology supports two modes

(multimode and single mode) for propagating
light along optical channels, each requiring fiber
with different physical characteristics.
 Multimode can be implemented in two forms: step-

index or graded-index

23
 Single-mode fiber-optic cabling
 Has a narrow core (5 or 10 microns in diameter)

and allows only one signal to be sent or received at a

time over very long distances [about 50 kms](up to
50 times farther than multimode fiber-optic cabling).
 Single-mode fiber-optic cabling uses laser-emitting

diodes to introduce signals into the fiber and can

transmit only one signal (light beam) at a time.
 Is suitable for long-distance telephony and
multichannel television broadcast systems

24
Multimode fiber-optic cabling:
 Has a thicker core (50, 62.5, or 100 microns in diameter) and

has sufficient bandwidth to allow multiple signals to be

simultaneously transmitted or received;
 Each signal follows a different path or mode through the fiber.
 Signal transmission is clear for approximately 3000 feet
(almost 1km), but longer cable runs can distort signals
through modal dispersion.
 There are two types of multimode fiber:
1. Step-index multimode fiber
2. Graded-index multimode fiber
 is suited for use in LAN systems and video surveillance.
25
 Fiber-Optic Cable Connectors
 There are three types of connectors for fiber-optic cables.

1. Subscriber channel (SC) connector:- is used for cable TV. It uses a

push/pull locking system.

2. Straight-tip (ST) connector:- is used for connecting cable to

networking devices. It uses a bayonet locking system and is more
reliable than SC.

3. MT-RJ is a connector:- that is the same size as RJ45.

26
 Optical Fiber - Applications

Long-haul trunks

Metropolitan trunks

Rural exchange trunks

Subscriber loops

LANs

27
Advantages of Optical Fiber
 The major advantages offered by fiber-optic cable
over twisted-pair and coaxial cable are noise
resistance, less signal attenuation, and higher
bandwidth.
1. Noise Resistance: Because fiber-optic
transmission uses light rather than electricity, noise
is not a factor. External light, the only possible
interference, is blocked from the channel by the
outer jacket.
2. Less signal attenuation:- Fiber-optic
transmission distance is significantly greater than
that of other guided media. A signal can run for
Disadvantages of Optical Fiber
 The main disadvantages of fiber optics are cost,

installation/maintenance, and breakability.

1. Cost:- Fiber-optic cable is expensive. Also, a

laser light source can cost thousands of dollars,

compared to hundreds of dollars for electrical

signal generators.

2. Installation/maintenance

3. Fragility/ breakability :- Glass fiber is more

easily broken than wire, making it less useful for

 Unguided (Wireless) Media
 Unguided media transport electromagnetic waves without using

any physical conductor.

 This type of communication is often referred to as wireless

communication.
 Signals are normally broadcast through free space and thus are

available to anyone who has a device capable of receiving them.

 Unguided signals can travel from the source to destination in

several ways: ground propagation, sky propagation, and

line-of-sight propagation.

30
Contd.
1. In ground propagation, radio waves travel through the

lowest portion of the atmosphere, hugging the earth.

 These low-frequency signals emanate in all directions from the
transmitting antenna and follow the curvature of the planet.
 Distance depends on the amount of power in the signal: The
greater the power, the greater the distance.

2. In sky propagation, higher-frequency radio waves radiate

upward into the ionosphere (the layer of atmosphere where

particles exist as ions) where they are reflected back to
earth.
 This type of transmission allows for greater distances with
lower output power.
31
Contd.
3. In line-of-sight propagation, very high-frequency signals

are transmitted in straight lines directly from antenna to

antenna.
 Antennas must be directional, facing each other, and
either tall enough or close enough together not to be
affected by the curvature of the earth.
 The section of the electromagnetic spectrum defined as
radio waves and microwaves is divided into eight ranges,
called bands, each regulated by government authorities.
 These bands are rated from very low frequency (VLF) to
extremely high frequency (EHF).
32
Contd.

33
Wireless Transmission Types
 We can divide wireless transmission into three

broad groups: radio waves, microwaves, and

infrared waves.

34
 Radio Waves
 Although there is no clear-cut isolation between radio

waves and microwaves, electromagnetic waves ranging

in frequencies between 3 kHz and 1 GHz are normally

called radio waves; waves ranging in frequencies

between 1 and 300 GHz are called microwaves.

 However, the behavior of the waves, rather than the

frequencies, is a better criterion for classification.

 Radio waves, for the most part, are Omni-directional that

is, when an antenna transmits radio waves, they are

35 propagated in all directions.

 Contd.
 Radio waves, particularly those waves that propagate
in the sky mode, can travel long distances.
 This makes radio waves a good candidate for long-
distance broadcasting such as AM radio.
 Radio waves, particularly those of low and medium
frequencies, can penetrate walls.
 This characteristic can be both an advantage and a
disadvantage.
 It is an advantage because, for example, an AM
radio can receive signals inside a building.
 It is a disadvantage because we cannot isolate a
36
 Contd.
 The radio wave band is relatively narrow, just under 1
GHz, compared to the microwave band. When this
band is divided into sub bands, the sub bands are also
narrow, leading to a low data rate for digital
communications.

Omni directional Antenna

 Radio waves use omnidirectional antennas that send
out signals in all directions.
 Based on the wavelength, strength, and the purpose
of transmission, we can have several types of
37 antennas.
 Contd.

Applications

 The omnidirectional characteristics

of radio waves make them useful

for multicasting, in which there is

one sender but many receivers.

 AM and FM radio, television,

maritime radio, cordless phones,

etc are examples of multicasting.

38
Microwaves
 Electromagnetic waves having frequencies between 1

and 300 GHz are called microwaves.

 Microwaves are unidirectional. When an antenna
transmits microwave waves, they can be narrowly
focused. This means that the sending and receiving
antennas need to be aligned (see each other). The
unidirectional property has an obvious advantage. A
pair of antennas can be aligned without interfering with
another pair of aligned antennas.
 The following describes some characteristics of
39 microwave propagation:
 Contd.
 The curvature of the earth as well as other blocking

obstacles do not allow two short towers to

communicate by using microwaves.

 Repeaters are often needed for long distance

communication.

 Very high-frequency microwaves cannot penetrate

walls.

 This characteristic can be a disadvantage if receivers

40
are inside buildings.
Unidirectional Antenna
 Microwaves need unidirectional antennas that send out

signals in one direction.

 Two types of antennas are used for microwave
communications: the parabolic dish and the horn.

1. A parabolic dish antenna is based on the geometry of

a parabola:
 Every line parallel to the line of symmetry (line of sight)

reflects off the curve at angles such that all the lines
intersect in a common point called the focus.
 The parabolic dish works as a funnel, catching a wide range

of waves and directing them to a common point.

41
 Contd.
2. A horn antenna looks like a gigantic scoop.
 Outgoing transmissions are broadcast up a stem (resembling

a handle) and deflected outward in a series of narrow parallel

beams by the curved head.
 Received transmissions are collected by the scooped shape of

the horn, in a manner similar to the parabolic dish, and are

deflected down into the stem.

42
Applications

 Microwaves, due to their unidirectional

properties, are very useful when unicast (one-

to-one) communication is needed between

the sender and the receiver.

 They are used in cellular phones, satellite

networks , and wireless LANs.

43
Infrared
 Infrared waves, with frequencies from 300 GHz to 400
THz (wavelengths from 1 mm to 770 nm), can be used
for short-range communication.
 Infrared waves, having high frequencies, cannot
penetrate walls.
 This advantageous characteristic prevents interference
between one system and another; a short-range
communication system in one room cannot be affected
by another system in the next room.
 When we use our infrared remote control, we do not
interfere with the use of the remote by our
neighbors!!!
44

Applications

 The infrared band, almost 400 THz, has an excellent

potential for data transmission.
 Such a wide bandwidth can be used to transmit digital data
with a very high data rate.
 The Infrared Data Association (IrDA), an association
for sponsoring the use of infrared waves, has established
standards for using these signals for communication
between devices such as keyboards, mice, PCs, and
printers.
 For example, some manufacturers provide a special port
called the IrDA port that allows a wireless keyboard to
communicate with a PC.
 The standard originally defined a data rate of 75 kbps for
a distance up to 8 m. The recent standard defines a data
45
rate of 4 Mbps.
 Wireless Channels

 Are subject to a lot more errors than guided

media channels.

 Interference is one cause for errors, can be

avoided with high Signal -to noise-

ratio(SNR).

 The higher the SNR the less capacity is

7.46
 ! !
o u
y
nk
ha
T ! ?
nd ti o n
E es
Q u

47