Chapter 1: Introduction to Communication Systems

TRUE/FALSE 1. The first electronic communications device was the telephone. ANS: F 2. Transatlantic radio communication started in 1901. ANS: T 3. A communication system may or may not include a channel. ANS: F 4. "Baseband" refers to the basic carrier frequency band. ANS: F 5. Putting an information signal onto a carrier is called "modulation". ANS: T 6. The carrier frequency is higher than the highest baseband frequency. ANS: T 7. A modulated carrier occupies a band of frequencies. ANS: T 8. "Detection" is another term for demodulation. ANS: T 9. The amount of information per second that can be sent is independent of bandwidth. ANS: F 10. It is possible to combine FDM and TDM in the same system. ANS: T 11. For radio signals, longer wavelength means higher frequency. ANS: F 12. Noise is easily removed from an analog signal by using filters. ANS: F

13. As long as a one can be distinguished from a zero, a digital signal corrupted by noise can be restored to its original form. ANS: T 14. Audio signals are in the time-domain, but radio signals are in the frequency domain. ANS: F 15. Any periodic AC signal contains an infinite series of harmonic frequencies. ANS: T 16. Every term in a Fourier series must be used in calculations. ANS: F 17. All noise in a system can be eliminated by using good grounding and shielding. ANS: F 18. The sparking brushes of a DC motor can cause radio frequency noise. ANS: T 19. Signals with fast rise and fall times can cause radio frequency noise. ANS: T 20. Digital systems such as computers are not affected by noise. ANS: F 21. Every component in an electronic system generates noise. ANS: T 22. The hotter a component gets, the more noise it will generate. ANS: T 23. "Shot" noise creates a "noise current" in an electronic device such as a transistor. ANS: T 24. "Flicker" noise is worst at radio frequencies. ANS: F 25. Signal-to-noise ratio is more important than noise power.

ANS: T 26. With cascaded stages in a communication system, the noise from the first stage is the least important. ANS: F 27. Due to the frequency, a radio signal requires a "real-time" analyzer to look at the spectrum. ANS: F MULTIPLE CHOICE 1. The theory of radio waves was originated by: a Marconi . b Bell . c . d . Maxwell Hertz

ANS: C 2. The person who sent the first radio signal across the Atlantic ocean was: a Marconi c Maxwell . . b Bell d Hertz . .

ANS: A 3. The transmission of radio waves was first done by: a Marconi c Maxwell . . b Bell d Hertz . .

ANS: D 4. A complete communication system must include: a a transmitter and receiver . b a transmitter, a receiver, and a channel* . c a transmitter, a receiver, and a spectrum analyzer . d a multiplexer, a demultiplexer, and a channel .

ANS: B 5. Radians per second is equal to: a 2 f . b f 2 . c . d . the phase angle none of the above

ANS: A 6. The bandwidth required for a modulated carrier depends on: a the carrier frequency c the signal-plus-noise to noise ratio . . b the signal-to-noise ratio d the baseband frequency range . .

ANS: D 7. When two or more signals share a common channel, it is called: a sub-channeling c SINAD . . b signal switching d multiplexing . .

ANS: D 8. TDM stands for: a Time-Division Multiplexing . b Two-level Digital Modulation . c . d . Time Domain Measurement none of the above

ANS: A 9. FDM stands for: a Fast Digital Modulation . b Frequency Domain Measurement . c . d . Frequency-Division Multiplexing none of the above

ANS: C 10. The wavelength of a radio signal is: a equal to f c . b equal to c .

c the distance a wave travels in one period . d how far the signal can travel without distortion .

ANS: C 11. Distortion is caused by: a creation of harmonics of baseband frequencies . b baseband frequencies "mixing" with each other . c shift in phase relationships between baseband frequencies . d all of the above .

ANS: D 12. The collection of sinusoidal frequencies present in a modulated carrier is called its: a frequency-domain representation c spectrum . . b Fourier series d all of the above . .

ANS: D 13. The baseband bandwidth for a voice-grade (telephone) signal is: a approximately 3 kHz c at least 5 kHz . . b 20 Hz to 15,000 Hz d none of the above . .

ANS: A 14. Noise in a communication system originates in: a the sender c . . b the receiver d . . the channel all of the above

ANS: D 15. "Man-made" noise can come from: a equipment that sparks* . b temperature c . d static all of the above

ANS: A 16. Thermal noise is generated in: a transistors and diodes . b resistors . c . d . copper wire all of the above

ANS: D 17. Shot noise is generated in: a transistors and diodes . b resistors . c . d . copper wire none of the above

ANS: A 18. The power density of "flicker" noise is: a the same at all frequencies . b greater at high frequencies . c . d . greater at low frequencies the same as "white" noise

ANS: C 19. So called "1/f" noise is also called: a random noise . b pink noise . c . d . white noise partition noise

ANS: B 20. "Pink" noise has: a equal power per Hertz . b equal power per octave . c . d . constant power none of the above

ANS: B 21. When two noise voltages, V1 and V2, are combined, the total voltage VT is: a VT = sqrt(V1 V1 + V2 V2) c VT = sqrt(V1 V2)

. b VT = (V1 + V2)/2 .

. d .

VT = V1 + V2

ANS: A 22. Signal-to-Noise ratio is calculated as: a signal voltage divided by noise voltage . b signal power divided by noise power . c first add the signal power to the noise power, then divide by noise power . d none of the above .

ANS: B 23. SINAD is calculated as: a signal voltage divided by noise voltage . b signal power divided by noise power . c first add the signal power to the noise power, then divide by noise power . d none of the above .

ANS: D 24. Noise Figure is a measure of: a how much noise is in a communications system . b how much noise is in the channel . c how much noise an amplifier adds to a signal . d signal-to-noise ratio in dB .

ANS: C 25. The part, or parts, of a sinusoidal carrier that can be modulated are: a its amplitude c its amplitude, frequency, and direction . . b its amplitude and frequency d its amplitude, frequency, and phase angle . .

ANS: D COMPLETION 1. The telephone was invented in the year ____________________. ANS: 1863 2. Radio signals first were sent across the Atlantic in the year ____________________. ANS: 1901 3. The frequency band used to modulate the carrier is called the ____________________ band. ANS: base 4. The job of the carrier is to get the information through the ____________________. ANS: channel 5. The bandwidth of an unmodulated carrier is ____________________. ANS: zero 6. The 'B' in Hartley's Law stands for ____________________. ANS: bandwidth 7. The more information per second you send, the ____________________ the bandwidth required. ANS: greater larger wider 8. In ____________________, you split the bandwidth of a channel into sub-channels to carry multiple signals. ANS: FDM 9. In ____________________, multiple signal streams take turns using the channel. ANS: TDM 10. VHF stands for the ____________________ frequency band. ANS: very high 11. The VHF band starts at ____________________ MHz.

ANS: 30 12. The UHF band starts at ____________________ MHz. ANS: 300 13. A radio signal's ____________________ is the distance it travels in one cycle of the carrier. ANS: wavelength 14. In free space, radio signals travel at approximately ____________________ meters per second. ANS: 300 million 15. The equipment used to show signals in the frequency domain is the _________________________. ANS: spectrum analyzer 16. Mathematically, a spectrum is represented by a ____________________ series. ANS: Fourier 17. Disabling a receiver during a burst of atmospheric noise is called ____________________. ANS: noise blanking blanking 18. For satellite communications, ____________________ noise can be a serious problem. ANS: solar 19. Thermal noise is caused by the random motions of ____________________ in a conductor. ANS: electrons SHORT ANSWER 1. Name the five elements in a block diagram of a communications system. ANS: Source, Transmitter, Channel, Receiver, Destination 2. Name five types of internal noise. ANS: Thermal, Shot, Partition, 1/f, transit-time 3. Why is thermal noise called "white noise"?

ANS: White light is composed of equal amounts of light at all visible frequencies. Likewise, thermal noise has equal power density over a wide range of frequencies. 4. What is "pink noise"? ANS: Light is pink when it contains more red than it does other colors, and red is at the low end of the visible spectrum. Likewise, pink noise has higher power density at lower frequencies. 5. Suppose there is 30 V from one noise source that is combined with 40 V from another noise source. Calculate the total noise voltage. ANS: 50 V 6. If you have 100 mV of signal and 10 mV of noise, both across the same 100-ohm load, what is the signal-to-noise ratio in dB? ANS: 20 dB 7. The input to an amplifier has a signal-to-noise ratio of 100 dB and an output signal-to-noise ratio of 80 dB. Find NF, both in dB and as a ratio. ANS: 20 dB, NF = 100 8. A microwave receiver has a noise temperature of 145 K. Find its noise figure. ANS: 1.5 9. Two cascaded amplifiers each have a noise figure of 5 and a gain of 10. Find the total NF for the pair. ANS: 5.4 10. Explain why you could use a diode as a noise source with a spectrum close to that of pure thermal noise. How would you control the amount of noise generated? ANS: When current flows through a diode, it generates shot noise that can be represented as a current source, the output of which is a noise current. The equation for the noise current is very similar to the equation for thermal noise voltage. Since the power in the shot noise is proportional to the diode current, controlling the diode current controls the noise power.