ECSE413B: COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS II

Tho Le-Ngoc, Winter 2008

BASIC RADIO PROPAGATION

& PATH ENGINEERING

Basic radio propagation

Line-of-sight (LOS) link design
LOS point-to-point communications
d i considerations.
design id ti
 PLANE WAVE AND WAVE FRONT

WAVE FRONT FROM AN ISOTROPIC SOURCE

IMPEDANCE OF FREE SPACE:
ZFS=(μo/εo)1/2 =(1.26E-6/8.85E-12)1/2 =377Ω
μo: MAGNETIC PERMEABILITY (in H/m)
εo: ELECTRIC PERMITIVITY (in F/m)
FREE-SPACE LOSS: LFREE-SPACE=(4πRf/c)2
POWER DENSITY PER UNIT AREA AT R
pR=P/ 4πR2
pR2=pR1(R1/R2)2: square-law

Propagation ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 2

 Atmospheric absorption of electromagnetic waves

Propagation ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 3

 Refraction at a plane boundary between two media

Media with different propagation

velocities v1=c/n1, v2=c/n2
n1, n2: refractive index
Snell’s law: n1 sin(a1)=n2 sin(a2)
a1=angle of incidence
a2=angle of refraction

a1
(v1, n1)

(n2>n1, v2<v1)

a2 The refractive index n(h) is a function of

h,, the height
g above the earth. Since
n(h) is too close to 1, it is more
convenient to define the refractivity
N=(n-1)1E6 in N units,
Vertical gradient of refractive index:
dn/dh
Propagation ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 4
 Wavefront refraction in a gradient medium

The rays are bent

toward the region
of higher refractive
index
Np proportional
p to
(εr)1/2 . Hence,
dn/dh=0.5(dεr/dh)
The rate of change
of the dielectric
constant (dεr/dh)
is nearly
constant for the
first few hundred
meters above the
earth’s surface

Propagation ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 5

 K: EFFECTIVE EARTH RADIUS FACTOR

If dn/dh is constant, the net effect of refraction is the same as if the radio waves
continued in a straight line but over an earth whose EFFECTIVE radius is re = K.r
where
h K is
i called
ll d the
th effective
ff ti earthth radius
di factor
f t
K={1+r(dn/dh)}-1 ={1+0.5r (dεr/dh)}-1
r is true radius of the earth, r= 6370km

K={1+ (dN/dh)/157}-1 where

(dN/dh) in
i N units
it per km.
k

( / )
(dN/dh) K
314 0.33
157 0.5
0 1
-157
157 ∞
-314 -1
Propagation ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 6
 EQUIVALENT EARTH PROFILE CURVES

K-FACTOR GUIDE:
K Propagation weather terrain
4/3 perfect standard atmosphere temperate zone
zone, no fog
1-4/3 ideal no surface layers, fog dry, mountainous, no fog
2/3-1 average substandard, light fog flat, temperate, some fog
0.5-2/3 difficult surface layers, ground fog coastal
0.4-0.5 bad fog moisture, over water coastal, water, tropical

Propagation ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 7

 reflection at a plane boundary of two media

Propagation ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 8

 Reflection from a semi
semi-rough
rough surface

RAYLEIGH CRITERION: SEMIROUGH SURFACE WILL REFLECT AS A

SMOOTH SURFACE WHENEVER cos(θi)>λ/8d
WHERE d: DEPTH OF THE SURFACE IRREGULARITY.

Propagation ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 9

 WAVE DIFFRACTION

(a) Huygens’s principle

for a plane wavefront (b) finite wavefront (c) around an edge
through a slot

Propagation ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 10

 Normal modes of wave propagation

Propagation ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 11

 Space-wave
Space wave propagation: line
line-of-sight
of sight (LOS)

LOS Propagation ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 12

 Space waves and radio horizon
RADIO HORIZON= OPTICAL HORIZON for K=1

A B

(ht+re) (H+re) (hr+re)

dt2≈(ht+re)2 - (H+re)2
≈(2re)(ht-H) For radio horizon, H=0,
dr2≈(h
(hr+rre)2 - (H
(H+rre)2 dt≈(2re ht)1/2 , dr≈(2re hr)1/2
≈(2re)(hr-H) Re=K(6370km), ht in meters
where H: distance from dt, km ≈(12.74Kht,m)1/2
LOS ray to earth surface dr, km ≈(12.74Khr,m)1/2
L
Longest t dkm= dt, km +d
dr, km
≈(12.74Kht,m)1/2+(12.74Khr,m)1/2
LOS Propagation ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 13
 Duct propagation

ATMOSPHERIC DUCTS: DIELECTRIC WAVE-GUIDE-LIKE REGION

CAN EXTEND HUNDREDS OF KM BEYOND NORMAL RADIO HORIZON

Propagation ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 14

 LOS: FREE-SPACE LOSS

Distance d
PT PC
EIRP=PTGT POWER DENSITY PER UNIT
GT
Tx POWER PT AREA AT DISTANCE d: Rx ANT POWER
Tx ANT POWER pd=(PTGT)/(4πd2) GAIN GR
GAIN GT Rx (CAPTURED)
POWER PC
pd : AMOUNT OF POWER INCIDENT ON EACH UNIT AREA OF AN IMAGINARY
SURFACE ((PERPENDICULAR TO THE DIRECTION OF PROPAGATION OF THE
ELECTROMAGNETIC WAVE).
EFFECTIVE CAPTURE AREA OF THE Rx ANTENNA: AC=(GRλ2)/(4π)
where λ=c/f: wavelength

Rx CAPTURED POWER: PC=AC pC =(GRPTGT λ2)/(4πd)2=PT( GTGR)/(4πdf/c)2

FREE-SPACE LOSS: LFREE-SPACE=(4πdf/c)2, i.,e., proportional to d2 and f2
PC,d
C,dBm =PT,dBm
,d + (GT,dB
,d +GR,dB
,d )- LFS,
S, dB
d
LFS, dB= 10log10(LFREE-SPACE) =92.44+20log10(f GHz )+20log10(dkm )

LOS Propagation ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 15

 LOS TRANSMISSION CONSIDERATION

Vr=

LOS Propagation ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 16

 FRESNEL ZONES

For near grazing paths and h1,h2 >λ,

R~ -1 and A~ 0, and
Vr = 2 sin Δ/2
(( π/2λ)) .dH2/(d
= 2 sin(( ( 1.d2))
For dH2/(d1.d2) = nλ,
Vr= 2 sin(nπ/2)
the received signal is enhanced for odd
n and reduced (cancelled) for even n

The regions in space where these reflections take place are called FRESNEL
ZONES i.e.,
ZONES, i nth Fresnel
F l zone clearance
l
Fn ={nλd1.d2/d}1/2 , Fn= F1 n1/2
It is found in practice that only signals reflected within the first Fresnel zone have
a large enough signal amplitude to produce significant interference. As much as
possible, precautions are taken to keep this zone free of any obstacles.

LOS Propagation ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 17

 TRANSMISSION LOSS VERSUS CLEARANCE

REQUIRED CLEARANCE

Heavy-route, or highest
reliability systems:
•At least 0.3 F1 @ K=2/3 or
•At least 1.0 F1 @ K=4/3
•whichever requires the
greater heights.
•In areas of very difficult
propagation, it may be
necessary also to ensure a
clearance of at least
grazing at K=1/2.
•All criteria should be
evaluated along entire path.

Light-route/ medium reliability systems: At least 0.6 F1 + 10 feet @ K=1

LOS Propagation ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 18
 PATH ENGINEERING
FOR A GIVEN LINK, USING UP-TO-DATE MAP PLOT THE TERRAIN PROFILE
AT EACH POINT x=(d1,d2) ALONG THE LINK, IDENTIFY REQUIRED CLEARANCE
PLOT
O THE CORRESPONDING
CO S O G LOS
OS RAY AND DETERMINE THE ANTENNA HEIGHTS
G S

d1 d2
x

LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 19

 ATMOSPHERIC MULTIPATH
The multipath fading is
caused by fluctuations in the
index of refraction of the
atmosphere as a function of
time and altitude.
Varying index of refraction can cause
portions of the main beam that would
normally miss the receive antenna to follow
longer curved paths to the receive antenna.
A continuum of such paths may exist with
the signal components arriving at the
receive antenna with various phase angles.
It is statistically possible for these phase
angles to be such as to cause a cancellation
of all or a large portion of the signal power.
When this happens a deep multipath fade
occurs.
LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 20
 EXAMPLE OF 2-PATH MODEL
At receiver, the received signal is
r(t)= x(t) + β x(t-τ)
where x(t) : the main path
β : relative level between the main and undesired
paths
τ : relative time delay between the main and
undesired
u des ed paths
pat s
β, τ : random variables.
In frequency domain, R( ω) = T(ω) . X(ω)
where T(ω) is the transfer function of the model
( )=1+β
T(ω) βe-jωτ
Amplitude distortion:
lT(ω)l= 1 + β2 + 2βcos ωτ
phase distortion:
Φ(ω) [βsin ωτ/(1
( ) = tan-1 [β /( + ββcos ωτ)]
)]
group delay distortion g(ω) = dΦ/dω
g(ω)=βτ(β+cos ωτ)/(1 + β2 + 2βcosωτ)
DIFFERENT ATTENUATION AT DIFFERENT
Q
FREQUENCY: FREQ-SELECTIVE
Q FADING IN
BROADBAND TRANSMISSION NEEDS
EQUALIZATION.
LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 21
 RADIO PATH WITHOUT FADING
When paths are significantly shorter than 22 km, the standard, multipath model
does not necessarily hold true.
C L.
C. L Ruthroff
R th ff developed
d l d a prediction
di ti model
d l that
th t indicates
i di t theth path
th length
l th below
b l
which no deep multipath fading will exceed 3 dB in fade depth for a given set of
refractivity data. The distance (do) for which a path shorter than this will not
produce multipath fading is:
do={2.7E9[1-0.5Δmed/Δmax]2/([1-Δmed/Δmax]4 [Δmax]2f)}1/3, f = frequency in GHz
Δmed= median refractivity gradient or median surface refractivity gradient
Δmax = maximum refractivity gradient expected for the majority of the time

Example: Washington, D.C., area, 11-GHz band.

Δmed= - 40 N-units for 50% of the time for the worst month
Δmax = -350 N-units for 99.8% of the time for tile worst month
d = 14.25 km (8.9 mi)

LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 22

 PREDICTING FADE DEPTH
Rayleigh fading equation: Pr = Pr{ fade depth ≥FdB} = 10-F/10
Empirical formula ( CCIR, Vol.V, Rep. 338-3, Geneva 1978)
F F ≥ 15 dB and
For d clear
l LOS path h with
i h negligible
li ibl earthh reflection
fl i
Pr= (K.Q.fB.dC)10-F/10
d : path length (km), f : frequency (GHz)
K : factor for climatic condition, Q : factor for terrain condition
I JJapan and
In d ffor the
h worst season: B= B 1.2
1 2 , C=3.5
C 3 5 , K=0.97E-9
K 0 97E 9
Q = 0.4 (over mountain), 1.0 (over plain), or 72/[0.5(h1 + h2)]1/2 (over sea and coast)
h1,h2 :antenna heights in meters.
Where earth reflection is not negligible, Rayleigh formula is used.
F N
For N.W.
W Europe
E and d ffor worstt month: th B=1,
B 1 C=3.5,
C 3 5 K=1.4E-8,
K 1 4E 8 Q=1Q 1
For United States and for worst month: B=1, C=3
K= 1.2E-6 (equatorial, maritime temperate, mediterranean, coastal or high humidity and
temperate climatic regions),
K 9E-7
K= 9E 7 (maritime
( iti sub b tropical
t i l climatic
li ti regions)
i )
K= 6E-7 (continental temperate climates or mid-latitude inland climatic regions)
K= 3E-7 (polar climates or high dry mountains climatic regions)
Q=(15.2/S )1.3 where S is the terrain roughness measured in meters by the standard
d i ti off terrain
deviation t i elevations
l ti att 1 km
k intervals;
i t l 3.35
3 35 (smooth
( i S ≥ 6km),
th terrain,
t 6k ) 1
(average terrain,S=15.2 km), 0.27 (rough terrain, S≤42 m)
LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 23
 PREDICTING FADE DURATION

(CCIR Vol V Rep.

Rep 338-3s
338 3s Geneva 1978 )
long-term measurements on LOS paths of 40 to 70 km in the
United States have shown that multipath median fade
durations tfade can be expressed for a non-diversity signal as
follows.
tfade = 56.6x10-F/20 [d/f]1/2 (in sec)
where
d : path length (km)
f : frequency (GHz)
F : fade depth in dB ( F≥20 dB)

LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 24

 PATH AVAILABILITY & FADE MARGIN
Fade Margin (FM): extra power budget to compensate the fade
1. Propagation reliability (path availability) during the worst month of the year is
Rm = 1 – Pr ,where Pr is the Pr {fade depth> FM} during the worst month of the year.
year
2. An annual path availability may be determined by applying an annualization factor (An)
that is a climatic measure of the duration of the fading season
Rannual = 1 – An Pr

An= 0.50 for low latitude

tropical Gulf Coast regions or
areas with high humidity and
t
temperature
t
An = 0.375 for mid-latitude
Gulf Coast regions or areas
with high humidity and
t
temperature
t
An = 0.25 for average inland
regions
An = 0.175 for high and dry
mountainous
t i regions.
i
PROPAGATION CONDITIONS: EXAMPLE OF USA
LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 25
 Path availability: an example @ 2GHz
Required path availability: 99.99%, i.e., outage Pr{fade depth>FM}≤0.0001=1E-4
From Rayleigh equation: Pr{ fade depth ≥FdB} = 10-F/10, FM=40dB
Using g Pr= ((K.Q.f
Q B.dC))10-F/10, FM=40+10log
g10((KQ)+10Blog
Q) g10((f)+10Clog
) g10((d)) with
B=1, C=3,
d : path length (km),
f : frequency (GHz)

CASE K Q 10log10(KQ)
1 12E-7 3.35 -53.95
2 6E-7 1 -62.21
3 3E-7 0.27 -70.91

CASE: FM CURVE:
1 -10.94+30log10(d) 1 2 3
2 -19.20+30log10(d)
3 -27.90+30log10(d)
ONLY VALID FOR FM=10dB OR MORE

LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 26

 LOS TRANSMISSION EQUATIONS
FOR DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS

Lb : feeder, branching loss

PT MICROWAVE CABLES CRCV=FM+Cmin
TRANSCEIVER TRANSCEIVER

System
y g
gain: Gs = PT - Cmin in dB
PT : Transmitter output power excluding antenna gains. (in dBm)
Cmin : min received power (in dBm) for required quality objective (in BER)
Fade margin: FM = Gs + GT + GR - LFS- Lb
GT , GR (in dB) :Tx and Rx antenna gains,
gains Lb : feeder,
feeder branching loss.
loss
LFS : free-space loss LFS, dB= 92.44+20log10(f GHz )+20log10(dkm )
Minimum received power: Cmin=10log10(kT)+NF+10log10(fb)+Eb/No
10log g10((kT)=
) -174 dBm/Hz; NF: noise figure
g of the receiver (dB)
( )
fb: transmission bit rate Eb/No: required for certain threshold BER.

LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 27

 CROSS POLARIZED OPERATION (XPD)
CROSS-POLARIZED

Linear orthogonal-polarized transmissions

are normally used for radio-relay systems,
so that interference between adjacent
channels can be controlled by the cross-
polar
l discrimination
di i i ti (XPD) off th the antenna
t
system.
For high spectrum efficiency, use two
channels on the same frequency
assignment in both horizontal and vertical
plan polarization of the microwave signals.
The capacity of each frequency
assignment can be doubled and hot
standby equipment protection can be
utilized.

LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 28

 XPD DEGRADATION

Typical XPD of 30 to 45 dB should be quite adequate for digital operation under

normal propagation conditions.
During conditions of multipath fading or degraded obstruction clearance the XPD
can be reduced. (The amount of XPD degradation is not predicted readily. The
XPD might drop from 35 dB to as low as 20dB in a 15dB multipath fade. .
Using the reasonable (but unproven) assumption, the worst-case XPD
degradation equal to FdB will occur 10% as often as a fade of F dB.
The XPD degradation
g can be predicted
p using
g the following
g equation:
q
XPD degradation =XPDfaded -XPDunfaded (in dB)
= 10 log(KQ.fB.dC) - 10 log[10(1-R)]
where R is the path reliability objective.
XPD degradation also can result from depolarization due to rainfall particularly at
11 GHz.

LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 29

 FCC MASK
FCC SPECTRUM EMISSION REQUIREMENTS
((DOCKET No.19311,, for frequencies
q below 12 GHz))
Relative power spectral density measured in 4 kHz
AdB(x) = 0 for 0< x <0.5
AdB(x) =35 + 80(x-0.5) +10 log B for x≥0.5
AdB(x) = 80 for large x
where 0dB is the reference for total Tx power measured by unmodulated signal
B: allowable bandwidth in MHz
x= |f-fc|/B
fc: carrier frequency
f : frequency at which the attenuation specification is being evaluated.
EXAMPLE:
Freq. Band (MHz) BW(MHz) #of 64kb/s voice channels
2,110-2,130 3.5 96
2,160-2,180 3.5 96
3,700-4,200 20.0 1152
5 925 6 425
5,925-6,425 30 0
30.0 1152
10,700-11,700 40.0 1152
LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 30
 EXAMPLE OF FCC MASK

Frequency band: 10.7-11.7GHz, Allowable bandwidth: 40 MHz FCC Mask

AdB(|f-fc|) = 0 for 0< |f-fc| <0.5B=20MHz

AdB(|f-fc|) =11.02 + 2(|f-fc|) for 20MHz≤|f-fc|≤34.49MHz

AdB(|f-fc|) = 80 for |f-fc|≥34.49MHz

LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 31

 EXAMPLE OF FCC MASK AND FILTERING
REQUIREMENT
Minimum capacity: 1152 voice
channels The min transmission
Relative power spectral density measured in 4 kHz, centered efficiency is
at carrier frequency is 10log(4kHz/30MHz) = -38.75 dB. (1152X64kb/s)/30MHz =
Frequency band: 5.925-6.425
5 925-6 425 GHz
GHz, Allowable BW: 30 MHz 2 4576 b/s/Hz We can use
2.4576
8PSK at 90 Mb/s
0 for |f-fc|≤15 MHz

9.77+2.67|f-fc|, 15 ≤ |f-fc|≤ 26.33MHz

80 for |f-fc|≥ 26.33 MHz

LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 32

 INTRASYSTEM INTERFERENCE
AND FREQUENCY PLANS
Several mechanisms can produce co-channel (same channel) or adjacent channel interference.
This intra-system interference is unavoidable, since the usable frequency spectrum in practice
is limited and,, hence,, the same frequency
q y carrier allocations have to be re-used alongg the
microwave route.
Adjacent channel interference occurs when two modulated carriers are close in frequency
so that the side bands of one signal extend over the other. This interference effect can be
reduced byy filtering
g the higher-order
g sidebands,, but this onlyy can be done at the expense
p of
causing signal distortion. It is apparent, then, that frequency spectrum separation between
carriers (and therefore maximum channel bandwidth) has an important influence on the
problem of filtering overlapping sidebands. A frequency plan shall, therefore, optimize
spectrum
p efficiencyy (maximum
( number of channels within the frequency
q y band)) keeping
p g at the
same time distortions below acceptable levels.
Co-channel interference can be caused by reflections of the microwave signal (e.g.
buildings), overreach, image channel interference, and limited discrimination of the antennas.
The harmful effects of co-channel interference can be reduced byy using g an adequate
q frequency
q y
plan and careful selection of the microwave sites.
To rationalize the use of the frequency spectrum, international organizations and national
administrations have subdivided it into frequency bands. Subsequently every frequency band is
q
subdivided into Radio Frequency y (RF)
( ) channels. A frequency
q y plan,
p , in general,
g , establishes the
center frequency of each RF channel, the polarization of the signal ( vertical and horizontal ),
and the preferred growth pattern.
LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 33
 EXAMPLE OF FREQUENCY PLAN

LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 34

 TWO-FREQUENCY
TWO FREQUENCY PLAN
Advantage: it allows for full usage of the frequency band capacity.
Disadvantage: the possibilities of intrasystem interference are higher than in the four-
f
frequency plan.
l
Both receivers facing East and West, in the repeaters operate at the same frequency.
Therefore, the receiver facing East in Repeater A, for example, will be
protected against interference from transmitter at Terminal 1 only by the
receiving
i i antenna discrimination.
di i i i The
Th actuall value
l off the
h antenna discrimination
di i i i (attenuation
( i
of the unwanted signal) will depend on the angle between the main beam of the transmitting
antenna at Terminal 1 and the main beam of the receiving antenna facing East at Repeater A

Tx1 F1 RxA1 TxA2 F2 RxB1 TxB2 F1 Rx2

Rx1 F2 TxA1 RxA2 F1 TxB1 RxB2 F2 Tx2

TERMINAL 1 REPEATER A REPEATER B TERMINAL 2

LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 35

 EXAMPLE OF 2
2-FREQUENCY
FREQUENCY PLAN

LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 36

 FOUR-FREQUENCY
FOUR FREQUENCY PLAN
The advantage of the four-frequency plan is that the receivers operating
at the same frequency are two hops apart. The transmitter at Terminal #1, for example,
could
ld interfere
i f with
i h the
h receiver
i at Terminal
i l #2.
2 This
hi is
i known
k as overreach.
h The
h
probability of this happening is low because they are 3 hops apart and terrain obstructions
(or earth bulge) would block the interfering signal. The route should be designed to ensure
that potentially interfering hops are not in a straight line. The obvious disadvantage of this
plan
l is i the
h inefficient
i ffi i use off the
h frequency
f spectrum ( the
h band
b d can be
b usedd only
l to one
half of its capacity).
Tx1 F1 RxA1 TxA2 F2 RxB1 TxB2 F1 Rx2

Rx1 F3 TxA1 RxA2 F4 TxB1 RxB2 F3 Tx2

TERMINAL 1 REPEATER A REPEATER B TERMINAL 2

A 2
F2
F1 F1
F1
1 Interference, over-reach path B
LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 37
 INTERFERENCE COORDINATION
OF PARALLEL SYSTEMS

LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 38

 EFFECTS OF INTERFERENCE ON Cmin
Interference is observed when its level, along with the noise and distortion is high
enough
g to cause bit errors. It causes an increase in the Cmin required
q for threshold
BER. Actual numbers to be used depend upon the equipment involved and the type
of modulation employed.

EXAMPLE: for BER=1E-6

With no interference,
Cmin = -82 dBm.
For I= -100 dBm
Cmin. = -79 dBm
Therefore 3 dB more
unfaded signal level is
required to maintain the
same fade margin.

References: materials from various sources

Cmin
LOS Path Considerations ‹ Tho Le-Ngoc PAGE 39