Introduction to Communication Systems

EE 313: COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS THEORY

Department of Electrical Engineering

Indian Institute of Technology - Indore, M.P., INDIA

Autumn Semester 2025-26

1
Contents
1 Marking Scheme 3

2 Reading Material 3

3 List of Topics to be covered upto Mid-Sem Exams 4

4 Brief Overview of Topics (Upto MSE) 4

4.1 MODULE 1: Introduction to Communication Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
4.2 MODULE 2: Signals and Signal Space . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
4.3 MODULE 3: Signal Analysis and Representation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
4.4 MODULE 4: Probability Concepts & Random Variables . . . . . . . . . . . 6

5 Communication Systems - Historical Overview 7

5.1 Source & Destination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
5.2 Transmitter (Tx), Channel & Receiver (Rx) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
5.3 Channel - Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
5.4 Noise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
5.5 Practical Communication Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

6 Analog and Digital Messages 12

6.1 Noise Immunity of Digital Signals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
6.2 Viability of Distortionless Regenerative Repeaters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
6.3 Analog-to-Digital (A/D) Conversion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
6.4 Pulse-Coded Modulation: A Digital Representation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

7 Channel Effects, Signal-to-Noise ratio, and Capacity 19

7.1 Signal Bandwidth and Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
7.2 Channel Capacity & Data Rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

8 Modulation and Detection 24

8.1 Ease of Radiation / Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
8.2 Simultaneous Transmission of Multiple Signals - Multiplexing . . . . . . . . 26
8.3 Demodulation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

9 Digital Source Coding and Error Correction Coding 27

10 A Brief Historical Review of Modern Telecommunications 28

11 Solved Examples 29

2
1 Marking Scheme
S.No. Evaluation Type Marks
1. Attendance† 5
2. Surprize Quiz(es) [Upto MSE] 5
3. Quiz-I (before MSE) 10
4. Mid-Semester Exams (MSE) 30
5. Quiz-II (before ESE) 10
6. End-Semester Exams (ESE) 40

† Regarding Attendance

Range [70%,100%] [40%,70%) [0%,40%)

Marks 5 2.5 0

Note: This is a tentative marking scheme. Suitable amendments may be made any-
time based on various factors.

2 Reading Material
• Main Reference Book

– B. P. Lathi and Zhi Ding, Modern Digital and Analog Communication

Systems [International Fourth Edition (can also refer to Third Edition)],
Oxford University Press, 2010.

• Other Reference Books

– S. Haykin, Communications Systems, John Wiley and Sons, 2001.

– J. G. Proakis, and M. Salehi, Communication Systems Engineering,

Pearson Education, 2002.

– Taub, and D. L. Schilling, Principles of Communication Systems, Tata

McGraw Hill, 2001.

3
3 List of Topics to be covered upto Mid-Sem
Exams

4 Brief Overview of Topics (Upto MSE)

4.1 MODULE 1: Introduction to Communication Sys-
tems
• Communication systems enable the exchange of information over distances using
signals.

• These systems form the backbone of modern digital and analog technologies.

• Key components include transmitters, channels, and receivers, with a focus on

reliability and efficiency.

4
 • Analog & Digital Messages: Analog signals are continuous, while digital signals
are discrete.

• Channel Effects: The medium can introduce noise, distortion, or loss.

• SNR & Capacity: Signal-to-Noise Ratio impacts data capacity, governed by

Shannon’s theory.

• Modulation & Detection: Modulation maps information onto carrier signals;

detection extracts it at the receiver.

• Source & Error Coding: Source coding reduces redundancy; error coding ensures
reliable transmission by correcting errors.

• Historical Review: From telegraphy to fiber optics and wireless 6G, communica-
tion systems have evolved to meet growing data and mobility needs.

4.2 MODULE 2: Signals and Signal Space

• Signals are fundamental to communication systems, representing information in
various forms.

• The size of a signal, characterized by its energy or power, plays a critical role in
system performance.

• Signal classification includes continuous or discrete, analog or digital, and periodic

or aperiodic signals.

• Unit Impulse Signal: A key theoretical tool used to analyze systems.

• Signals vs Vectors: Signals can be treated like vectors in a function space, en-
abling analysis using linear algebra.

• Correlation: Measures similarity between signals; essential in detection and esti-

mation.
• Orthogonal Signal Set: Enables efficient representation and transmission using
non-interfering components.

• Exponential Fourier Series: Decomposes periodic signals into harmonically re-

lated sinusoids, fundamental to signal analysis and synthesis.

5
4.3 MODULE 3: Signal Analysis and Representation
• The Fourier Integral is used to represent aperiodic signals as a continuum of
sinusoids across all frequencies.

• Useful transforms like the Fourier and Laplace Transforms allow conversion be-
tween time and frequency domains.

• These methods simplify the study of filtering, modulation, and system behavior in
communication systems.

• Properties such as linearity, time/frequency shifting, and convolution are central to

signal manipulation.

• Linear Time-Invariant (LTI) Systems preserve signal structure and are pre-
dictable via convolution and frequency response.

• Ideal Filters have perfect frequency selectivity but are non-causal and unrealiz-
able.

• Practical Filters approximate ideal behavior but may introduce phase distortion
or delay.

• Channel Distortion can occur due to non-linearity, multipath effects, or fading,

altering the transmitted signal.

• Energy Spectral Density (ESD) measures how energy is distributed across

frequencies for finite-energy signals.

• Power Spectral Density (PSD) is used for power signals and describes average
power distribution.

• The Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) enables efficient numerical analysis of

signals, forming the basis of many digital signal processing (DSP) algorithms.

• Spectral techniques are essential for bandwidth estimation and system design.

4.4 MODULE 4: Probability Concepts & Random Vari-

ables
• Communication systems deal with randomness due to noise, fading, and interfer-
ence.

• Probability theory provides tools to model and analyze uncertain events.

6
 • A random variable assigns numerical values to outcomes of random phenomena.

• Descriptive tools include:

– PDF (Probability Density Function): Likelihood of outcomes.

– CDF (Cumulative Distribution Function): Probability a variable is less

than a given value.

– MGF (Moment Generating Function): Summarizes all statistical mo-

ments.

• The Central Limit Theorem explains why many random signals approximate a
Gaussian distribution—especially useful in analyzing noise.

• A Random Process is a collection of time-indexed random variables (e.g., thermal

noise).

• Key classifications include:

– Stationary vs. Non-stationary

– Ergodic vs. Non-ergodic

– Discrete vs. Continuous

• Power Spectral Density (PSD) shows how signal power is distributed across
frequencies—essential for understanding bandwidth and filtering.

• When random processes pass through Linear Time-Invariant (LTI) Systems,

their output characteristics (e.g., mean, PSD) are modified predictably.

• This analysis helps in designing systems to handle real-world noisy and fading
environments.

5 Communication Systems - Historical Overview

• Smoke Signals: An ancient form of long-distance communication where smoke
from a fire was used to convey messages by creating specific patterns or sequences
visible from a distance.

• Carrier Pigeons: Birds trained to carry written messages over long distances,
widely used in ancient times and during wars for reliable communication.

7
• Morse Code: A system of dots and dashes used to represent letters and numbers,
enabling communication over telegraph lines, radio, and other mediums.

• Wireless Radio: A form of communication that uses radio waves to transmit audio
or data wirelessly over long distances, revolutionizing real-time communication.

• Telephone: A device that converts voice into electrical signals and transmits them
over wires, allowing for real-time voice communication between distant locations.

• Fax: A technology that scans, transmits, and reproduces documents over a tele-
phone line, enabling the sending of physical copies remotely.

• Mobile Telephone: A portable device that allows for voice communication, text
messaging, and internet access via cellular networks, providing connectivity on the
go.

• Internet: A global network of interconnected computers that enables the exchange

of information and communication across vast distances in real-time.

8
 • Email: A method of sending written messages, documents, and attachments over
the internet, providing a fast and efficient means of communication.

• Handheld Devices: Portable electronic devices like smartphones and tablets that
offer various communication methods, including voice calls, texting, email, and
internet access.

• Future Wireless Communication Systems: Advanced technologies expected

to offer faster, more reliable, and secure wireless communication, integrating AI,
6G, and beyond for enhanced connectivity

• Quantum Communications: An emerging field that uses quantum mechanics

principles to achieve ultra-secure communication, leveraging phenomena like quan-
tum entanglement and superposition.

Types of Communication Systems

• Three typical types of communication systems:

– (i) wire-line telephone-cellular phone connection,
– (ii) TV broadcasting system, and
– (iii) wireless computer network.

• Because of the numerous examples of communication systems in existence, it would

be unwise to attempt to study the details of all kinds of communication systems.

5.1 Source & Destination

Source:

• The source originates a message, such as a human voice, a television picture, an

e-mail message, or data.

9
 • If the data is nonelectric (e.g., human voice, e-mail text, television video), it must
be converted by an input transducer into an electric waveform.
• Corresponding electric waveform is referred to as the baseband signal or message
signal through physical devices such as a microphone, a computer keyboard, or a
charge-coupled device (CCD) camera.

Destination:

• The destination is the unit to which the message is communicated.

5.2 Transmitter (Tx), Channel & Receiver (Rx)

Transmitter

• The transmitter modifies the baseband signal for efficient transmission.

• The transmitter may consist of one or more subsystems:
– an A/D converter,
– an encoder, and
– a modulator.

• Similarly, the receiver may consist of:

– a demodulator,
– a decoder, and
– a D/A converter.

Channel

• The channel is a medium of choice that can convey the electric signals at the
transmitter output over a distance.

• A typical channel can be:

10
 – a pair of twisted copper wires (telephone and DSL),
– coaxial cable (television and internet),
– an optical fiber, or
– a radio link.

• Additionally, a channel can also be a point-to-point connection in a mesh of inter-

connected channels that form a communication network.
Receiver

• The receiver reprocesses the signal received from the channel by reversing the
signal modifications made at the transmitter.

• It also removes the distortions made by the channel.

• The receiver output is fed to the output transducer, which converts the electric
signal to its original form-the message.

5.3 Channel - Effects

• A channel acts as a physical medium that functions somewhat like a filter, typically
reducing the signal strength and altering the transmitted waveforms.

• Signal attenuation increases with channel length, ranging from minimal for short
distances to significant in interplanetary communications.

• Signal waveforms become distorted due to factors like frequency-dependent gains,

multipath effects, and Doppler shift.

• For instance, a frequency-selective channel causes varying levels of attenuation and

phase shift across different signal frequencies.

• A square pulse tends to become rounded or "spread out" when transmitted through
a low-pass channel.

• These distortions, known as linear distortion, can be partially corrected at the

receiver using an equalizer that has complementary gain and phase characteristics
to those of the channel.

• Nonlinear distortion may also occur, where attenuation depends on the signal’s
amplitude.

• Such distortions can also be partially corrected by an equalizer at the receiver.

• If channel distortions are known, transmitters can apply channel-specific predistor-

tions to precompensate.

11
5.4 Noise
• In real-world environments, signals traveling through communication channels are
affected not only by channel distortions but also by unwanted interferences and
disturbances collectively referred to as noise.

• This noise consists of random, unpredictable signals originating from both external
and internal sources.

• External noise includes interference from nearby channels, man-made sources like
faulty electrical equipment, automobile ignitions, fluorescent lights, natural noise
from lightning, microwave ovens, cellphone emissions, electric storms, and solar or
intergalactic radiation.

• With careful system design, external noise can often be minimized or even elimi-
nated.

• Internal noise arises from thermal motion in conductors and random events in elec-
tronic devices, such as emission, diffusion, or recombination of charged carriers.

• While internal noise can be reduced, it cannot be completely eliminated.

• Noise fundamentally limits the rate of telecommunications.

5.5 Practical Communication Systems

• In practical communication systems, the channel distorts the signal, and noise builds
up along the path.

• Additionally, while the signal weakens with distance, the noise level stays constant.

• This results in a continuous decline in signal quality along the channel.

• Amplifying the signal doesn’t help, as the noise is also amplified, leaving the quality
unchanged.

• These challenges are crucial in the design of modern communication systems.

6 Analog and Digital Messages

• Messages can be either digital or analog.

12
 • Digital messages are made up of ordered sequences of finite symbols or codewords.

• For instance, written English uses 26 letters, 10 digits, spaces, and punctuation
marks.

• A text document in English is a digital message created from the 128 symbols on
an ASCII keyboard.

• Human speech is also considered digital, as it is composed of a finite vocabulary.

• Music notes are digital, even though the actual sound is analog.

• Similarly, a Morse code message is digital, using only two symbols: dash and dot.

• This makes it a binary message, as it uses just two symbols.

• A digital message constructed with 𝑀 symbols is referred to as an 𝑀-ary message.

• Analog messages involve data that vary continuously over time and can take on a
continuous range of values.

• For instance, temperature or atmospheric pressure at a location changes continu-

ously and can have an infinite number of possible values.

• A music piece recorded by a pianist is also an analog signal.

• Likewise, a speech waveform has amplitudes that change continuously.

• Unlike digital messages, an infinite number of possible speech waveforms can occur
within a given time frame.

6.1 Noise Immunity of Digital Signals

• It’s clear to even casual observers that newer electronic communication products are
increasingly replacing old analog technologies with advanced "digital technology."

• In the past decade, cellular phones have evolved from first-generation analog AMPS
to second-generation (e.g., GSM, CDMA) and third-generation (e.g., WCDMA)
digital systems.

• Digital video technology, such as DVDs, has nearly rendered analog VHS systems
obsolete.

• Digital television is continuing to replace analog color TV, pushing out the last of
the analog systems.

13
 • The advantage of digital technologies lies in both economics and quality.

• Economically, the widespread use of versatile, powerful, and affordable high-speed

digital microprocessors supports this shift.

• In terms of quality, digital communications offer superior resistance to noise and

interference.

• Digital messages are transmitted using a finite set of electrical waveforms.

• Essentially, a digital message is created from a finite alphabet, where each character
is represented by a single waveform or a sequence of waveforms.

• For instance, in Morse code, a dash is transmitted as a pulse of amplitude 𝐴/2,

while a dot is a pulse of amplitude −𝐴/2.

• In an 𝑀-ary system, 𝑀 distinct pulses or waveforms are used, each representing

one of the 𝑀 symbols.

• At the receiver, the message must be extracted from the distorted and noisy signal
received from the channel.

• Extracting messages from digital signals is generally easier than from analog signals
due to the finite size of the digital alphabet.

• In a binary system, two symbols are represented by rectangular pulses of amplitudes

𝐴/2 and −𝐴/2.

• The receiver simply chooses between these two possible pulses, without needing to
analyze the pulse shape in detail.

• A finite alphabet provides immunity to noise and interference.

• The receiver can make decisions with reasonable accuracy even if the pulses have
some distortion and noise.

6.2 Viability of Distortionless Regenerative Repeaters

• Digital systems often outperform analog ones due to the use of regenerative re-
peaters and network nodes.

• Repeater stations are placed at intervals along the communication path to keep
noise and distortion within manageable levels.

14
• This setup allows for accurate pulse detection.

• Each repeater or network node detects incoming pulses and retransmits "clean"
pulses to the next station or node.

• This method prevents noise and distortion from accumulating by regularly cleaning
the pulses.

• Consequently, messages can be transmitted over longer distances with greater ac-
curacy.

• Distortion-free regeneration by repeaters is widely used in long-haul communica-

tions and large, diverse networks.

• In analog systems, signals and noise within the same bandwidth cannot be sepa-
rated.

• Analog repeaters function as filters and amplifiers but lack regenerative capabilities.

• Consequently, noise and distortion accumulate along the transmission path.

• This results in increasing distortion and noise interference as the signal travels
through the network.

• Additionally, the signal continuously attenuates over the transmission path.

• Thus, as distance increases, the signal weakens while distortion and noise build up.

• Eventually, the signal becomes unrecognizable due to overwhelming distortion and

noise.

15
 • Amplification is ineffective as it increases both signal and noise equally.

• Therefore, the effective range of an analog message is constrained by the power of

the initial transmitter.

• Despite these constraints, analog communication was widely used and effective for
short- to medium-range transmissions in the past.

• Today, most new communication systems are digital due to advancements in optical
fiber technology and reduced costs of high-speed digital circuitry and storage.

• However, some older analog systems, like AM and FM radio broadcasting, are still
in operation.

6.3 Analog-to-Digital (A/D) Conversion

• Despite the differences between analog and digital signals, they intersect through
analog-to-digital (A/D) conversion.

• The A/D converter is crucial in electronics, enabling digital systems to transmit

analog signals like audio and video.

• Analog signals are continuous both in time and value, meaning they have data at
every instant and can take any value within their range.

• In contrast, digital signals are discrete, existing only at specific times and taking
on a limited set of values.

• A/D conversion cannot achieve perfect accuracy.

• However, since human perception doesn’t demand infinite precision, A/D conver-
sion effectively captures the essential information from analog sources for digital
transmission.

• Two steps take place in A/D conversion: a continuous time signal is first sampled
into a discrete time signal, whose continuous amplitude is then quantized into a
discrete level signal.

• The frequency spectrum of a signal shows the relative magnitudes of its frequency
components.

• The sampling theorem asserts that if the highest frequency in a signal is 𝐵 hertz,
it can be reconstructed from discrete samples taken at a rate of at least 2𝐵 samples
per second.

16
• This allows the information in a continuous-time signal to be captured using only
its samples.

• However, these samples are not yet digital, as they exist within a continuous range
of values.

• Quantization addresses this by approximating each sample to the nearest quan-

tized level.

• Since human perception has limited accuracy, sufficient quantization granularity

maintains signal quality.

• For a message signal 𝑚(𝑡) with amplitudes in the range (−𝑚 𝑝 , 𝑚 𝑝 ), the quantizer
divides the signal range into 𝐿 intervals.

• Each sample’s amplitude is approximated to the midpoint of the interval in which

it falls.

• Each sample is then represented by one of the 𝐿 quantization levels.

• This process digitizes the information.

17
 • Thus, the analog-to-digital (A/D) conversion is completed after sampling and quan-
tizing.

• The quantized signal is an approximation of the original.

• Increasing the number of quantization levels 𝐿 can enhance the accuracy of the
quantized signal.

• For voice signals, 𝐿 = 8 or 16 levels are typically sufficient.

• For commercial purposes, a minimum of 𝐿 = 32 is used, while 𝐿 = 128 or 256 levels

are common for telephone communication.

6.4 Pulse-Coded Modulation: A Digital Representation

• After A/D conversion, the original analog message is represented by a sequence of
samples, each quantized to one of 𝐿 preset levels.

• Digital communication systems transmit this quantized sequence.

• To transmit these samples, signal waveforms are used to represent the quantized
sequence.

• Similarly, digital storage devices also represent samples as signal waveforms.

• Pulse-coded modulation (PCM) is a simple and common method for this pur-
pose.

• In PCM, one information bit corresponds to a binary digit, either 1 or 0.

• PCM represents each quantized sample as a combination of two basic pulses: 𝑝 1 (𝑡)
for 1 and 𝑝 0 (𝑡) for 0.

• Each of the 𝐿 sample values can be expressed as a bit string of length log2 𝐿, allowing
each sample to be mapped to a short pulse sequence representing the binary bit
sequence.

• For example, if 𝐿 = 16, then, each quantized level can be described uniquely by 4
bits.

• If we use two basic pulses, 𝑝 1 (𝑡) = 𝐴/2 and 𝑝 0 (𝑡) = −𝐴/2.

• A sequence of four such pulses gives 2 × 2 × 2 × 2 = 16 distinct patterns, as shown

below.

18
 • Each of the 16 quantized values can be assigned a unique pattern for transmission.

• Each quantized sample is encoded into a sequence of four binary pulses.

• This is the basis of PCM transmission, using only two basic pulses (or symbols) for
signaling.

• Binary encoding is particularly important due to its simplicity and ease of detection.

• Much of modern digital communication relies on binary encoding.

7 Channel Effects, Signal-to-Noise ratio, and

Capacity
• In designing communication systems, it is important to understand and analyze
important factors such as:

– the channel and signal characteristics,

– the relative noise strength,

19
 – the maximum number of bits that can be sent over a channel per second, and,

– ultimately, the signal quality.

7.1 Signal Bandwidth and Power

• In a digital communication system, key factors affecting rate and quality are channel
bandwidth 𝐵 and signal power 𝑃𝑠 .

• Their detailed relationships will be explained later.

• Bandwidth refers to the range of frequencies a channel can transmit with accept-
able fidelity.

• For instance, if a channel transmits signals with frequencies from 0 Hz to 5000 Hz

(5 kHz) with reasonable fidelity, its bandwidth 𝐵 is 5 kHz.

• A signal also has a bandwidth, which indicates the maximum range of its frequency
components.

• Faster-changing signals have higher maximum frequencies and larger bandwidths.

• Signals with rapid changes (e.g., battle scenes in a video) have larger bandwidths
compared to slower-changing signals (e.g., daytime soap operas or videos of sleeping
animals).

• A signal can be transmitted successfully if the channel bandwidth is greater than

the signal bandwidth.

• To grasp the importance of 𝐵, consider how compressing a signal in time can increase
transmission speed.

• Compressing a signal by a factor of 2 allows it to be transmitted in half the time,

effectively doubling the transmission rate.

• However, this time compression also causes the signal to oscillate twice as fast,
doubling its frequency components.

• This effect is familiar to many from playing audio tape at double speed, which
makes normal voices sound like high-pitched cartoon characters.

• To transmit a compressed signal without distortion, the channel bandwidth must

be doubled.

• Thus, the information transmission rate a channel can handle is directly propor-
tional to 𝐵.

20
• More generally, if a channel with bandwidth 𝐵 can transmit 𝑁 pulses per second,
then to transmit 𝐾 𝑁 pulses per second, a bandwidth of 𝐾 𝐵 is required.

• In summary, the number of pulses per second a channel can carry is directly pro-
portional to its bandwidth 𝐵.

• Signal power 𝑃𝑠 has a dual role in information transmission.

• First, 𝑃𝑠 affects transmission quality.

• Higher 𝑃𝑠 strengthens the signal and reduces the impact of noise and interference.

• The quality of both analog and digital communication systems depends on the
signal-to-noise ratio (SNR).

• A minimum SNR at the receiver is required for effective communication.

• Higher signal power 𝑃𝑠 helps the system sustain a minimum SNR over greater
distances, enabling longer-range communication.

• The second role of signal power is subtler but equally important.

• According to information theory, channel bandwidth 𝐵 and signal power 𝑃𝑠 are

somewhat interchangeable; we can balance 𝑃𝑠 and 𝐵 to maintain a desired rate and
accuracy of transmission.

• One can use less bandwidth 𝐵 if signal power 𝑃𝑠 is increased, or reduce 𝑃𝑠 if

bandwidth 𝐵 is increased.

• In summary, bandwidth and transmitted power are the two main communication
resources.

• The relative value of each resource depends on the channel, and communication
schemes should be tailored accordingly.

• For example, a typical telephone channel has limited bandwidth (3 kHz) but less
restrictive power.

• Conversely, space vehicles have large bandwidth but very limited power.

• Therefore, communication solutions vary significantly between these scenarios.

21
7.2 Channel Capacity & Data Rate
• Channel bandwidth limits the signal bandwidth that can pass through, while the
signal SNR at the receiver affects the recoverability of the transmitted signals.

• Higher SNR allows the signal pulse to use more levels, thus transmitting more bits
per pulse.

• Greater bandwidth 𝐵 enables faster pulse transmission over the channel.

• Therefore, both SNR and bandwidth 𝐵 influence the channel’s "throughput."

• The maximum reliable throughput of a channel is known as its capacity.

• The additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) channel is one of the most commonly
used models.

• It assumes the only channel impairment is additive white Gaussian noise, with no
other distortions and a finite bandwidth 𝐵.

• This model represents ideal cases with no distortion and sets a performance upper
bound for channels with general distortions.

• The band-limited AWGN channel capacity was dramatically highlighted by Shan-

non’s equation,
𝐶 = 𝐵 log2 (1 + SNR) bit/s (1)

• Here the channel capacity 𝐶 is the upper bound on the rate of information trans-
mission per second.

• In other words, 𝐶 is the maximum number of bits that can be transmitted per
second with a probability of error arbitrarily close to zero; that is, the transmission
is as accurate as one desires.

• Capacity indicates the maximum achievable rate but does not specify the method
for achieving it.

• Transmitting above this rate would result in errors.

• Shannon’s equation highlights the communication rate limits imposed by bandwidth

𝐵 and SNR.

• With no noise (SNR = ∞), the capacity 𝐶 would be infinite, allowing for arbitrarily
high communication rates.

• In such a scenario, any amount of information could be transmitted over a noiseless

channel.

22
• With zero noise, there would be no uncertainty in pulse amplitude, allowing perfect
detection of any amplitude.

• Pulse amplitude separation could be infinitesimally small, with an infinite number

of levels for each pulse.

• Each possible message could be assigned a unique level.

• Given infinite levels, any conceivable message could be assigned a distinct level.
• Cataloging such a code may be impractical, but that’s not the main issue.

• The key point is that with zero noise, communication is theoretically problem-free.

• Implementing such a system would be challenging due to the need for generating
and detecting pulses with exact amplitudes.

• These practical difficulties would impose limits on the communication rate.

• Shannon’s theoretical upper limit on communication rate is achievable only with

an impractically complex system and an infinitely long reception time.
• Real-world systems function below the Shannon capacity.

• Shannon’s capacity equation illustrates how bandwidth (𝐵) and signal-to-noise ratio
(SNR) limit communication system performance.

• These parameters set the ultimate limits on communication rate.

• The Shannon equation also shows how these basic resources can be exchanged.
• For example, if a soft-spoken person talks too quickly for us to fully understand, it
suggests that our bandwidth (𝐵) is insufficient, limiting the capacity (𝐶) to handle
the fast speech.

• If the person speaks louder, increasing the power and thus the SNR, we are more
likely to understand him better without any other changes.
• This example demonstrates the trade-off between SNR and bandwidth (𝐵).

• However, this trade-off is not linear.

• For instance, doubling the speaker’s volume may help him speak slightly faster, but
not twice as fast.

• Shannon’s equation [Eq. (1)] highlights that doubling the SNR does not necessarily
make up for a 50% reduction in bandwidth.

23
8 Modulation and Detection
• Analog signals from sources or digital signals from A/D conversion are called base-
band signals because they are usually low pass.

• Baseband signals can be transmitted directly over appropriate channels (e.g., tele-
phone, fax).

• However, due to channel characteristics and signal frequency, baseband signals are
not always suitable for direct transmission.

• When the signal and channel frequency bands do not align, channels cannot be
adjusted.

• Messages must be shifted to the appropriate channel frequency bandwidth.

• To enable transmission, message signals need further modification.

• This process, called modulation, involves using the baseband signal to alter a
parameter of a radio-frequency (RF) carrier signal.

• A carrier is a high-frequency sinusoid.

• Modulation involves varying a carrier’s sinusoidal parameter—amplitude, frequency,

or phase—in response to the baseband signal 𝑚(𝑡).

• This leads to amplitude modulation (AM), frequency modulation (FM), or phase

modulation (PM).

• In AM, the carrier’s amplitude changes with 𝑚(𝑡), while in FM, the carrier’s fre-
quency changes with 𝑚(𝑡).

• To recover the baseband signal at the receiver, the modulated signal undergoes
demodulation.

• Modulation aids in effective transmission.

8.1 Ease of Radiation / Transmission

• To efficiently radiate electromagnetic energy, an antenna should be a fraction or
more of the signal’s wavelength.

• Baseband signal wavelengths are often too large for practical antenna sizes.

24
• For instance, speech signals are concentrated in the 100 to 3000 Hz range, with
corresponding wavelengths of 100 to 3000 km.

• Such long wavelengths require excessively large antennas.

• Modulating a high-frequency carrier shifts the signal spectrum to a higher frequency,

allowing for a much smaller antenna.

• For instance, a 10 MHz carrier has a wavelength of just 30 meters, allowing its
transmission with a 3-meter antenna.

• Modulation effectively allows the baseband signal to ride on a high-frequency car-

rier.

• This is similar to a stone and a piece of paper: the paper alone can’t travel far, but
wrapped around the stone (the carrier), it can be thrown much farther.

25
8.2 Simultaneous Transmission of Multiple Signals - Mul-
tiplexing
• Modulation enables simultaneous transmission of multiple signals in the same area
without interference.

• For instance, it allows several TV stations to be transmitted over the same cable
or airwaves to receivers.

• Without modulation, multiple video signals would interfere with each other due to
their similar bandwidths.

• Consequently, cable or broadcast TV would be restricted to one station per location

without modulation, which wastes the channel bandwidth.

• Modulation solves the problem by assigning different carrier frequencies to various

TV stations, shifting each signal to a distinct frequency range.

• If carriers are spaced far enough apart, their modulated signal spectra (TV channels)
won’t overlap and cause interference.

• At the receiver, a tunable bandpass filter selects the desired channel for viewing.

• This method of simultaneous signal transmission across separate frequency bands

is called frequency division multiplexing (FDM).

• A similar technique is used in AM and FM radio broadcasting, where the channel

bandwidth is divided among multiple signals without overlap.

• Time Division Multiplexing (TDM) is another method for multiplexing signals.

• It works well with signals in pulse train form, like PCM.

• By narrowing pulses, gaps between pulses of one signal can be filled with pulses
from other signals.

• This way, transmission time is shared among multiple signals by interleaving their
pulse trains in a set sequence.

• At the receiver, the pulse trains of different signals are separated.

26
8.3 Demodulation
• After multiple modulated signals reach the receiver, the target signal must be de-
tected and restored to its original baseband form.

• Due to FDM, the demodulator’s first stage usually includes a tunable bandpass
filter to select the signal at the designated frequency band.

• Once the desired modulated signal is isolated, the demodulator converts the carrier’s
amplitude, frequency, or phase variations back into the baseband signal voltage.

• For AM, FM, and PM, demodulators are designed to produce an output voltage
proportional to the modulated signal’s amplitude, frequency, or phase.

• With these circuits in place, demodulators can convert RF signals back to baseband
signals representing the original message, whether audio, video, or data.

9 Digital Source Coding and Error Correction

Coding
• As mentioned, SNR and bandwidth are key factors in communication performance.

• Digital systems often use techniques to reduce source data rates and address channel
noise, unlike analog systems.

• Source coding minimizes the number of bits needed for a message while maintaining
detection accuracy.

• To counteract errors from noise and interference, redundancy is added at the trans-
mitter to allow receivers to correct errors caused by channel distortion and noise.

• This process is called error correction coding at the transmitter and decoding at
the receiver.

• Source coding and error correction coding are two opposing stages in digital com-
munication systems.

• Source coding seeks to eliminate redundancy to minimize the length of the message
sequence for transmission.

• It focuses on using minimal bandwidth without accounting for channel noise and
interference.

27
 • Conversely, error correction coding deliberately adds redundancy to help detect and
correct errors if they occur during transmission.

10 A Brief Historical Review of Modern Telecom-

munications

• 1900s: Introduction of wireless telegraphy, laying the groundwork for radio com-
munication; Marconi’s transatlantic radio signal in 1901 was a major milestone.

• 1920s: The rise of commercial AM radio broadcasting, bringing real-time audio

content to homes for the first time.

• 1930s-1940s: Development and widespread adoption of the telephone network,

including rotary dial phones and the expansion of long-distance calling.

28
 • 1940s: WWII accelerates advancements in radar, radio, and early computing, set-
ting the stage for post-war telecommunications innovation.

• 1950s: Emergence of television as a dominant medium for mass communication,

with the first color broadcasts beginning.

• 1960s: Launch of the first communication satellites (e.g., Telstar), enabling live
international broadcasts and global telephony.

• 1970s: Introduction of fiber optic cables, drastically improving the speed and ca-
pacity of data transmission over long distances.

• 1980s: The rise of mobile telephony with the first commercial cell phone networks
and the development of 1G analog mobile phones.

• 1990s: Widespread adoption of the internet, leading to the growth of email, digital
communication, and the World Wide Web; introduction of 2G digital mobile phones.

• 2000s: Explosion of mobile communication with the advent of smartphones, 3G

networks, and mobile internet, integrating voice, text, and data services.

• 2010s: The global rollout of 4G LTE networks, enabling high-speed mobile internet
and the proliferation of streaming services and apps.

• 2020s: Expansion of 5G networks offering faster, low-latency communication; the

rise of IoT, AI-driven communication systems, and early exploration of 6G and
quantum communication technologies.

11 Solved Examples
Example 1: [Bandwidth of a Modulated Signal] A standard AM (Amplitude Modulation)
radio station broadcasts at a carrier frequency of 1,000 kHz (1 MHz). The station uses a
maximum modulating signal frequency of 5 kHz. What is the total bandwidth required
for the AM signal?
Solution: For AM, the bandwidth 𝐵 of the modulated signal is calculated as:

𝐵 = 2 × Maximum Modulating Frequency

Given: Maximum Modulating Frequency = 5 kHz

Substitute the values:
𝐵 = 2 × 5 kHz = 10 kHz
Answer: The total bandwidth required for the AM signal is 10 kHz.

29
Example 2: [Bandwidth for Digital Transmission] A digital communication system uses
a signal with 4 levels (M = 4) to transmit data over a channel. If the channel has a data
rate of 2 Mbps (Megabits per second), calculate the minimum required bandwidth using
the Nyquist formula.
Solution: The Nyquist formula for calculating the minimum bandwidth 𝐵 is:
Data Rate
𝐵=
2 × log2 (𝑀)

Given:
o Data Rate = 2 Mbps
o Number of Levels 𝑀 = 4
First, calculate log2 (4):
log2 (4) = 2
Now, substitute the values:
2 Mbps 2 Mbps
𝐵= = = 0.5 MHz
2×2 4
Answer: The minimum required bandwidth for the digital transmission is 0.5 MHz (500
kHz).

Example 3: A communication channel has a bandwidth of 5 kHz and can transmit 2,000
pulses per second. What bandwidth is required to transmit 6,000 pulses per second using
the same channel?
Solution: Given:
o Initial bandwidth 𝐵 = 5 kHz
o Initial pulse transmission rate 𝑁 = 2, 000 pulses/second
o Desired pulse transmission rate 𝐾 𝑁 = 6, 000 pulses/second
To find the required bandwidth 𝐾 𝐵, use the relationship:
𝐾𝑁
𝐾𝐵 = 𝐵 ×
𝑁
Substitute the given values:

6, 000 pulses/second
𝐾 𝐵 = 5 kHz ×
2, 000 pulses/second

𝐾 𝐵 = 5 kHz × 3 = 15 kHz
Answer: A bandwidth of 15 kHz is required to transmit 6,000 pulses per second.

30
Example 4: If a channel with a bandwidth of 8 kHz can transmit 4,000 pulses per second,
how many pulses per second can it transmit if the bandwidth is increased to 24 kHz?
Solution: Given:
o Initial bandwidth 𝐵 = 8 kHz
o Initial pulse transmission rate 𝑁 = 4, 000 pulses/second
o New bandwidth 𝐾 𝐵 = 24 kHz
To find the new pulse transmission rate 𝐾 𝑁, use the relationship:
𝐾𝐵
𝐾𝑁 = 𝑁 ×
𝐵
Substitute the given values:
24 kHz
𝐾 𝑁 = 4, 000 pulses/second ×
8 kHz
𝐾 𝑁 = 4, 000 pulses/second × 3 = 12, 000 pulses/second
Answer: The channel can transmit 12,000 pulses per second with a bandwidth of 24 kHz.

Example 5: A communication channel has a bandwidth of 10 kHz and is transmitting

5,000 pulses per second. If the pulse transmission rate is doubled, what is the required
bandwidth?
Solution: Given:
o Initial bandwidth 𝐵 = 10 kHz
o Initial pulse transmission rate 𝑁 = 5, 000 pulses/second
o New pulse transmission rate 𝐾 𝑁 = 2 × 5, 000 pulses/second = 10, 000 pulses/second
To find the required bandwidth 𝐾 𝐵, use the relationship:
𝐾𝑁
𝐾𝐵 = 𝐵 ×
𝑁
Substitute the given values:

10, 000 pulses/second

𝐾 𝐵 = 10 kHz ×
5, 000 pulses/second

𝐾 𝐵 = 10 kHz × 2 = 20 kHz
Answer: A bandwidth of 20 kHz is required to transmit 10,000 pulses per second.

Example 6: [Calculating Channel Capacity] A communication channel has a bandwidth

of 3 kHz and a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of 30 dB. Calculate the maximum data rate
(channel capacity) that can be achieved using this channel according to Shannon’s Capac-
ity Theorem.

31
Solution: Shannon’s Capacity Theorem is given by:
𝐶 = 𝐵 log2 (1 + SNR)
where:
o 𝐶 is the channel capacity in bits per second (bps).
o 𝐵 is the bandwidth of the channel in Hz.
o SNR is the signal-to-noise ratio (as a linear value, not in dB).
First, convert the SNR from dB to a linear scale:
SNR (dB) 30
SNR (linear) = 10 10 = 10 10 = 103 = 1000
Given:
o 𝐵 = 3 kHz = 3000 Hz
o SNR (linear) = 1000
Now, substitute the values into Shannon’s formula:
𝐶 = 3000 log2 (1 + 1000)
Calculate log2 (1001):
log2 (1001) ≈ 9.97
So,
𝐶 = 3000 × 9.97 ≈ 29910 bps
Answer: The maximum data rate (channel capacity) that can be achieved is approxi-
mately 29.91 kbps.

Example 7: [Required SNR for a Given Data Rate] A channel has a bandwidth of 1
MHz. To achieve a data rate of 10 Mbps, what must be the minimum signal-to-noise ratio
(SNR) according to Shannon’s Capacity Theorem?
Solution: Shannon’s Capacity Theorem is given by:
𝐶 = 𝐵 log2 (1 + SNR)
Rearrange the formula to solve for SNR:

SNR = 2 𝐵 − 1
𝐶

Given:
o 𝐶 = 10 Mbps = 10 × 106 bps
o 𝐵 = 1 MHz = 1 × 106 Hz
Substitute the values:
10 × 106
SNR = 2 1×106 − 1 = 210 − 1 = 1024 − 1 = 1023
Answer: The minimum required signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) to achieve a data rate of 10
Mbps is 1023, which can also be expressed in dB as:
SNR (dB) = 10 log10 (1023) ≈ 30.1 dB

32