MICROWAVE RADIO COMMUNICATION MICROWAVES Electromagnetic waves with frequencies that range from approximately 500 MHz to 300

0 GHz or more Classification of Microwave System Short haul -- used to carry information for relatively short distances Ex: INTRASTATE or FEEDER SERVICE microwave systems Long haul -- those used to carry information for relatively long distances Ex: interstate and backbone route applications. FM MICROWAVE RADIO SYSTEM 1. TERMINAL STATIONS are points in the system where baseband signals either originate or terminate. 2. REPEATER STATIONS are points in the system where baseband signals may be configured or where RF carriers are simply repeated or simplified. TERMINAL STATION 1. Baseband is the composite signal that modulates the FM carrier a) Frequency-division-multiplexed Voice-band Channels b) Time-division-multiplexed Voice-band Channels c) Broadcast-quality Composite Video Or Picture Phone d) Wideband Data 2. WLEL(Wireline Entrance Link) serves as the interface between the multiplex terminal equipment and the FM-IF equipment 3. IF SECTION generates a frequency-modulated IF carrier 4. RF SECTION IF and compression amplifiers help keep the IF signal power constant and at approximately the required input level to the transmod TRANSMOD (Transmit Modulator) - a balanced modulator that up-converts the IF carrier to an RF carrier and amplifies the RF to the desired output power when used with microwave generator, power amplifier, and bandpass filter. MICROWAVE GENERATOR - provides the RF carrier input to the up-converter. ISOLATOR - unidirectional device used in conjunction with a channel-combining network to prevent the output of one transmitter from interfering with the output of another DIVERSITY Suggests that there is more than one transmission path or method of transmission available between a transmitter and a receiver 1. FREQUENCY DIVERSITY modulating two different RF carrier frequencies with the same IF intelligence, then transmitting both RF signals to a given destination 2. SPACE DIVERSITY The output of a transmitter is fed to two or more antennas that are physically separated by an appreciable number of wavelengths

3. POLARIZATION DIVERSITY A single RF carrier is propagated with two different electromagnetic polarizations One transmit/receive antenna pair is vertically polarized, and the other is horizontally polarized 4. RECEIVER DIVERSITY using more than one receiver for a single radio frequency channel 5. HYBRID DIVERSITY consists of a standard frequency-diversity path where the two transmitter/receiver pairs at one end of the path are separated from each other and connected to different antennas that are vertically separated as in space diversity 6. QUAD DIVERSITY Is another form of hybrid diversity and undoubtedly the most reliable transmission It combines frequency, space, polarization, and receiver diversity into one system PROTECTION SWITCHING ARRANGEMENTS To avoid a service interruption during of deep fades failures, alternate facilities are temporarily made available in a protection switching arrangement TWO TYPES OF PROTECTION SWITCHING ARRANGEMENTS 1. Hot standby protection each working radio channel has a dedicated back up or spare channel 2. Diversity protection A single back up channel is made available to as many as 11 working channels Microwave Propagation Paths 1. Direct Wave 2. Ground-reflected Wave 3. Surface Wave 4. Sky Wave FREE-SPACE PATH LOSS Loss incurred by an electromagnetic wave as it propagates in a straight line through a vacuum with no absorption or reflection of energy from nearby objects FADING The reduction in signal strength at the input to a receiver It applies to propagation variables in the physical radio path that affect changes in the path loss between transmit and receive antennas MICROWAVE RADIO SYSTEM GAIN System Gain - the difference between the nominal output power of a transmitter(P t), and the minimum input power to a receiver(Cmin) necessary to achieve satisfactory performance It represents the gain loss of radio system, which is used to predict the reliability of a system for a given set of a system parameters FADE MARGIN Sometimes called link margin

A fudge factor included in system gain equations that considers the non-ideal and less predictable characteristics of radio wave propagation, such as multipath propagation (propagation loss) and terrain sensitivity

RECEIVER THRESHOLD The minimum wideband carrier power at the input to a receiver that will provide a usable baseband output is called the receiver threshold or, sometimes, receiver sensitivity CARRIER-TO-NOISE and SIGNAL-TO-NOISE RATIO C/N is the ratio of the wideband carrier (the carrier and its associated sidebands) to the wideband noise power (the noise bandwidth of the receiver) C/N is a predetection (before the FM demodulator) signal-to-noise ratio S/N is a postdetection (after the FM demodulator) ratio NOISE FACTOR AND NOISE FIGURE Noise Factor (F) and noise Figure (NF) are figures of merit used to indicate how much the signalto-noise ratio deteriorates as a signal passes through a circuit series of circuits Noise Factor is simply a ratio of input signal-to-noise ratio to output signal-to-noise ratio