TELECOMMUNICATIONS

What are telecommunications?

When I use electrical and electric communications systems to transmit and receive message over long distance Im talking about telecommunications. In the twenty-first century the telecommunications systems, based on devices such as telephones, computer and radios, can send and receive sound, images, text etc. around the world, in a fractions of second, either through wires and cables or by means of radio waves. There are two methods of telecommunications transmission, analogue and digital. Analogue transmission uses signals that are exact reproductions of the sound or picture being transmitted. In digital transmission, the signals are converted into a code. This consists of just two elements, 0 or 1. In most digital telecommunications systems the coded signals are transmitted by a beam of light, produced by a laser, which travels through an optical fibre cable made of glass. Digital transmission is more efficient than analogue, with less interference and distortion.

Electromagnetic waves
Electromagnetic waves are the set of electric and magnetic fields vary in time and space. They travel through space at the speed of light (300.000 kilometers per second) and they can be reflected, diffracted and refracted. An electromagnetic wave is formed by crests and troughs. The crest is the higher point in the wave instead trough is the lower point. The distance from crest to trough is called the amplitude, the distance from crest to crest is called wavelength. The number of waves produces per second is called the frequency. Electromagnetic radiation forms a spectrum that consists of gamma rays, X rays, ultraviolet rays, visible light, infrared radiation, microwaves, and radio waves. The wavelength and frequency of electromagnetic waves are important in determining their characteristics. Different types of wave can be employed for different purposes. Radio waves are used in radio and television broadcasting, telephone transmission, radar, navigational systems, and space communication. Microwaves are used for cooking food and carry information for telephone and television systems. Infrared rays are used in medical treatments of skin problems and in some industrial processes. Ultraviolet rays are used in sun lamps and fluorescent lights and also like a disinfectant. X rays are used to help locate and diagnose internal disorders in the body. Gamma rays are used to treat cancer.

Inventions in telecommunications
In telecommunications If we want to talk about the inventions of devices we need to mention same important names like Samuel Morse, Alexander Bell, James Maxwell, Guglielmo Marconi, John Baird or Theodore Maiman. All of them were very important for telecommunications. The firs, Samuel Morse developed a simple telegraph, it was able to send signals along an electric wire, to send messages which could be understood, he invented a code, known as Morse code. For the first time, news travelled with the speed of electricity. The second Alexander Bell, a Scottish teacher, patented a telephone making possible for the first time the transmission of human voice. James Maxwell, Heinrich Hertz and other several scientists developed the communication using electromagnetic waves instead of wires. Gulielmo Marconi managed to send signals through space with the firs radio, which he called the wireless telegraph. John Baird in 1926 demonstrated the possibility of television transmission. In the end there is Theodore Mainman that in 1960 built the firs laser, laser is the acronym of Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. The laser is used in optical-fiber communication systems, and for recording and playing compact discs. The instrument produces a narrow beam of light capable of travelling over vast distances without dispersion. With laser we can send more messages more quickly than could be done with electricity or radio waves.

Radio waves
We can split up radio waves in three types: sky wave, surface wave, space wave. Sky wave are transmitted and received by two aerial. Sky wave travel upwards in the directions of the sky and bounces between ionosphere and earth until they are completely attenuated. They are mainly used for navigation signals, and for AM and short wave radio transmissions. Surface waves travel along surface of earth. They have a range of frequencies 30kHz-3MHz. Their energy is gradually absorbed from the ground. Surface waves are mainly used for AM radio signals. Space wave need to travel that the transmitting and receiving aerial watch each other without obstacles between them because the obstacles like hills, buildings etc. block this radio waves type. They can also travel to the space in direction of the communication satellites that relay the radio space waves to the earth in directions of the receiving aerial. Space waves have a range of frequency 30MHz-300GHz. They are mainly used in FM radio; TV signals; cell phones; global position systems; satellites communications; radio astronomy; radar systems.

Radar Radar uses reflected radio signals to detect object more than 3.5 mega meters away. The name comes from radio detection and ranging. The first that spoke of radar just like an idea was the Italian engineer, Gulielmo Marconi in 1922; instead for the development of this we must waiting until 1930. Airliners are fitted with a radar signal to the ground and back to give the pilot the correct altitude. Radar is also used from weather forecasters to locate rain and snow clouds because the radar use radio signals which can be reflected from raindrops. Basic radar equipment consists of a transmitter to generate the radio signals, a revolving scanner, the antenna that sends out and receives the signals and a video screen on which the returning signals are displayed. The distance to the target can be calculated by measuring the time a signals takes to return knowing that the radio waves travel at the speed of light. When an object is moving cause the Doppler effect. This effect consists in a slightly shortening and stretching of the wavelength. When an object approaches there is a slightly shortening and if the object going away the opposite happens. So we use this effect also to know if an object is moving or are stationary and we can work out the direction and the speed of this. Microwave oven A microwave oven is an appliance that heats food by penetrating it with short radio waves. The heats is produces by the frictions of molecules vibrations in turn generated from the bombardment of the microwaves rays. Microwave oven is more efficient than gas or electric oven because is quicker, for the microwave that heats directly inside the food, and since microwave oven heats only the food and nothing else. Radio waves around 2.5 gigahertz are absorbed by water, fats and sugar. These waves travel through a metal chamber to the stirrer. The stirrer scatters the waves around the ovens metal interior. The waves bounce from wall to wall until they enter the food, which is placed on a revolving turntable inside the oven. There is a control panel with a timer on the front of the oven to set the cooking time. Penetration depends to the foods molecular composition and thickness. Microwaves pass through glass, paper, china and plastics. So if we want a container to hold food, it must to be made of same of these materials. If we put inside the oven any object made of metal, there should be vary effect: the first is that the microwaves are reflected from the metal and this cannot entre inside the food, the secondary instead is more dangerous because the microwave that were reflected, hit the magnetron damage it. Oven with doors that do not close securely should never used since microwaves that go out from an oven may be a danger to people near it. How telecoms can change the world In last years the role of telecommunications changed. Today its no longer only about being able to connect people. It has become an important factor in both economic and social development. Telecommunication having a radical impact in areas such as health, education and commerce. For example in medical areas the use of digital microwave links allows doctors in different part of the world to share images like x-ray or reports on patients. In education areas the arrival of interactive computer networks means that the acquisition of knowledge is no longer confined to traditional learning environments. This will bring real and immediate benefits to developing regions that have no resources. Developments that are making telecoms cheaper and more powerful are different. Satellite technologies allow global coverage at a fraction of terrestrial network costs. Mobile telecommunications networks are much cheaper and faster to install than fixed lines. Fibre optics offers many times the capacity of copper for a similar cost. And the internet is creating an all new range of services. These systems are faster and better than traditional circuitswitched services. The merger and the cross of previously separate technologies of broadcasting, computing and telecommunication its a phenomenon which ensure that innovation will continue and give benefit development around the whole world.

Transmission of signals Every telecommunications system are formed by a transmitter and a receiver. Between then, there is a physical medium, which carry information, and the most widely used are cable and radio waves. All signals are degradations target. Most important form of degradation are three: distortion, noise and attenuation. The latter is the reduction in amplitude of a signal when it pass through the transmission medium. The principal cause of attenuation is dissipation, that consists in a conversion of the electromagnetic energy to another form of energy. Attenuation is usually expressed in decibels per unit distance. Noise is the presence of random, unpredictable, and undesirable electromagnetic emission that can mask the intended information signals. Distortion is any undesired change in the amplitude or phase that causes a change in the overall waveform of the signal. Cables Generally an electric cable are formed by a single pair of insulated wires twisted together enclosed in a heavy protective sheath made up of layers of aluminum or plastic and also steel wire to provide strength. We can split up cables in two type: coaxial cables and fibre-optics. Coaxial cables consists of two separate conductors, usually made of copper: an outer conductor, which is a metal tube, surrounding ad inner conductor, a wire running through its centre and held in place by plastic insulating material. The cables is called coaxial because the tube and wire have the same axis. It is protected on the outside by a plastic insulating sheath. A typical coaxial cable is about 7mm in diameter. Coaxial function in pairs to carry telephone conversations; one pair may handle as many as 13200 telephone conversions at once. Signals are gradually weakened as they travel along a cable. To provide for this problem we use a repeaters (special amplifier), that are installed at various points throughout the system to reduce this loss. A fibre-optic cable carries messages in the form of light. The cable consists of a bundle of glass optical fibres, which look like transparent glass threads and a central support wire which strengthens the cable. Each fibre consists of an inner core which is surrounded by an outer cladding, a thin layer of glass with a lower refractive index. Light signals travel though the core and are prevented from escaping by refraction (total internal refraction) at the boundary between core and cladding. The light signals are transmitted in the form of a digital core using lasers which flash on and off at high speeds. Electronic devices at the receiving and of fibre-optic cables decode the light signals. Fibre-optic cables, measuring only 1 to 13mm in diameter, can carry hundreds of thousands of telephone conversations. Other advantages of fibre-optic are lower transmission losses and almost complete immunity from interference from outside electrical fields. Aerials An aerials is a device used to transmit or receive radio waves. Most antennae consist of metal wires or rods connected to transmitter or receiver. When an antenna is used for transmission, electric currents are made to oscillate along the wires or rods by transmitter. Energy from this oscillating change is emitted into space as electromagnetic waves. When an antenna is used for reception, these waves induce a weak electric current in the antenna wire or rods. This current is then amplified by the radio receiver. The radio wavelength determines the dimensions of the antenna. For the antenna to resonate electrically at the desired wavelength, its optimal length should be one half or one quarter of the wavelength of the radio waves it is designed to transmit or receive. A monopole consist of a single wire suspended horizontally, or of a straight metallic rod. Wire loop antennas, consist of a coil wound round a ferrite rod. Ferrite is a magnetic material which strengthens the signals in the coil. A Dipole consist of a straight metal rod that is split in the centre. A multiple element antenna, with more than one dipole, gives a better performance. One or more reflectors, which are slightly longer than the dipoles, are placed behind them and directors, which are slightly shorter, are positioned in front. Dish aerials are bowl-shaped. The antenna is a section of a parabola and a small dipole is place in its focus. A dish aerial is highly directional and can transmit or receive radio wave in a narrow beam. The design of aerials used for transmission needs to be more precise since an antenna of the wrong dimension will only transmit a small fraction of power produced by the transmitter. The location of transmitting aerials is alto important.