EP602 WIRELESS

COMMUNICATION
DI SEDIAKAN OLEH :
PN. SABARIAH BINTI BORHANUDIN (PSA)
PN. ROSLINA BINTI MASUD (PUO)
CIK SALMI BINTI ZAKARIA (PTSS)

UNIT 5
WAVE PROPAGATION
AND
INTERFERENCE
IN CELLULAR
COMMUNICATION
SYSTEMS
1

COURSE LEARNING
OUTCOME

CHAPTER OUTLINE

Wave propagation in
cellular systems.

OBJECTIVES
At the end of the lesson, students are able to:
Understand the concept of wave propagation in
cellular systems.
Describe the model of free space propagation.
Identify the types of free space propagation
phenomena.
a. Reflection b. Diffraction c. Scattering
Describe the phenomena of free space
propagation
Describe a microwave line-of-sight.
Describe the model of small scale fading.
6

Radio Wave Propagation

Radio waves extends from a frequency of
30 kHz to 300 GHz.
In free space, radio waves propagate in
straight line (LOS) and are reflected off
objects.
Radio waves on the earth are affected by
the terrain of the ground, the atmosphere
and the natural and artificial objects on the
terrain.

Radio Wave Propagation

CONCEPT OF RADIO WAVE

PROPAGATION IN CELLULAR
SYSTEMS

RADIO WAVE
PROPAGATION travels Ground
Wave
in contact with
earths surface
reflection, refraction and scattering by
objects on the ground
transmitter and receiver need NOT see
each other
affects all frequencies
at VHF or higher, provides more reliable
propagation means
signal dies off rapidly as distance
increases.

Radio Wave Propagation

Ground Wave

Follows contour of the earth

Can Propagate considerable distances
Frequencies up to 2 MHz
Example; AM radio

RADIO WAVE
PROPAGATION Ionospheric
orearth
Sky
Wave
Reflected back to
by ionospheric
layer of the earth atmosphere
By repeated reflection, communication
can be established over 1000s of miles
Mainly at frequencies below 30MHz
More effective at times of high sunspot
activity

RADIO WAVE
PROPAGATION Ionospheric or Sky Wave

Signal reflected from ionized layer of atmosphere back

down to earth
Signal can travel a number of hops, back and forth
between ionosphere and earths surface
Reflection effect caused by refraction
Examples; Amateur radio, CB radio

THE MODEL OF FREE

SPACE PROPAGATION Tropospheric
Wave
Bending
(refraction) of wave in the
lower atmosphere
VHF communication possible over a
long distance
bending increases with frequency so
higher frequency more chance of
propagation
More of an annoyance for VHF or UHF
(cellular)

 When electrons move, they create

electromagnetic waves that can
propagate through the space
Number of oscillations per second of an
electromagnetic wave is called its
frequency, f, measured in Hertz.
The distance between two consecutive
maxima is called the wavelength,
designated by l.
15

 By attaching an antenna of the appropriate

size to an electrical circuit, the
electromagnetic waves can be broadcast
efficiently and received by a receiver some
distance away.
In vacuum, all electromagnetic waves travel
at the speed of light: c = 3x108 m/sec.
In copper or fiber the speed slows down to
about 2/3 of this value.
Relation between f, l , c: lf = c

 The radio, microwave, infrared, and

visible light portions of the spectrum can
all be used to transmit information
By modulating the amplitude,
frequency, or phase of the waves.

17

Radio waves are;

Easy to generate
Can travel long distances
Can penetrate buildings
They are both used for indoor and
outdoor communication
They are omni-directional: can travel in
all directions
They can be narrowly focused at high
frequencies (greater than 100MHz)
using parabolic antennas (like satellite
dish)

18

 Properties of radio waves are frequency

dependent
At low frequencies, they pass through
obstacles well, but the power falls off
sharply with distance from source
At high frequencies, they tend to travel
in straight lines and bounce of
obstacles (they can also be absorbed
by rain)
They are subject to interference from
other radio wave sources

At VLF, LF, and MF bands,

radio waves follow the
ground. AM radio
broadcasting uses MF band

At HF bands, the ground

waves tend to be absorbed
by the earth. The waves that
reach ionosphere (100500km above earth surface),
are refracted and sent back
to earth.

reflection
Ionosphere

absorption

EP602-WIRELESS COMMUNICATION/CHAPTER 5

20

VHF Transmission

LOS path

Reflected Wave

-Directional antennas are used

-Waves follow more direct paths
- LOS: Line-of-Sight Communication
- Reflected wave interfere with the
original signal

21

 Waves behave more like light at higher

frequencies
Difficulty in passing obstacles
More direct paths
They behave more like radio at lower
frequencies
Can pass obstacles

22

 Transmission path between sender and

receiver could be
Line-of-Sight (LOS)
Non Line-of-Sight (NLOS)Obstructed by buildings, mountains
and foliage
Even speed of motion effects the fading
characteristics of the channel
23

 The physical mechanisms that govern

radio propagation are complex and
diverse, but generally attributed to the
following three factors.
Electromagnetic waves propagate
through environments where they are
reflected, scattered, and diffracted
by walls, terrain, buildings, and other
objects.
24

 Radio wave propagation is affected by the

following mechanisms:
reflection at large obstacles
scattering at small obstacles
diffraction at edges

reflection

scattering

diffraction

Reflection
Reflections arise when the plane
waves are incident upon a surface
with dimensions that are very large
compared to the wavelength
Example: reflections from earth and
buildings
These reflections may interfere with
the original signal constructively or
destructively

Other Types of Reflection

Corner reflector

Parabolic reflector

Diffuse Reflection

Diffraction
Diffraction occurs according to Huygens's
principle when there is an obstruction
between the transmitter and receiver
antennas, and secondary waves are
generated behind the obstructing body.
Explains how radio signals can travel
urban and rural environments without a
line-of-sight path.
30

ILLUSTRATION OF
DIFFRACTION

ILLUSTRATION OF
DIFFRACTION

Scattering
Scattering occurs when the plane waves are
incident upon an object whose dimensions are on
the order of a wavelength or less, and causes the
energy to be redirected in many directions.
They are produced by small objects, rough
surfaces and other irregularities on the channel
Follows same principles with diffraction
Causes the transmitter energy to be radiated in
many directions
Lamp posts and street signs may cause scattering

transmitter

R
Street

D
R: Reflection
D: Diffraction
S: Scattering

receiver

Building Blocks

35

Rapid fluctuation of the amplitude of a radio signal over a

short period of time or travel distance (sub-wavelength)
Cause by: multipath waves and Doppler shift

 rapid fluctuations of received signal

strength over short time intervals and/or
travel distances.
Caused by interference from multiple
copies of Tx signal arriving @ Rx at
slightly different times
37

 As a mobile moves through a coverage

area, these 3 mechanisms have an impact
on the instantaneous received signal
strength.
If a mobile does have a clear line of sight
path to the base-station, than diffraction and
scattering will not dominate the propagation.
If a mobile is at a street level without LOS,
then diffraction and scattering will probably
dominate the propagation.
39

 As the mobile moves over small distances,

the instantaneous received signal will
fluctuate rapidly giving rise to small-scale
fading;
The reason is that the signal is the sum of many
contributors coming from different directions and
since the phases of these signals are random, the
sum behave like a noise (Rayleigh fading).
In small scale fading, the received signal power may
change as much as 3 or 4 orders of magnitude
(30dB or 40dB), when the receiver is only moved a
fraction of the wavelength.

40

 As the mobile moves away from the transmitter

over larger distances, the local average received
signal will gradually decrease. This is called
large-scale path loss.
Typically the local average received power is computed by
averaging signal measurements over a measurement track of
5l to 40l. (For PCS, this means 1m-10m track)

The models that predict the mean signal strength

for an arbitrary-receiver transmitter (T-R)
separation distance are called large-scale
propagation models
Useful for estimating the coverage area of transmitters

Received Power (dBm)

-30

-40

-50

-60
This figure is just an illustration
to show the concept. It is not based on read
data.

-70
14

16

18

20
22
24
T-R Separation (meters)

26

28
42

What is Decibel (dB)

What is dB (decibel):
A logarithmic unit that is used to describe a ratio.
Let say we have two values P1 and P2. The
difference (ratio) between them can be
expressed in dB and is computed as follows:
10 log (P1/P2) dB
Example: transmit power P1 = 100 W,
received power P2 = 1 W
The difference is 10log(100/1) = 20 dB.

43

dB
dB unit can describe very big ratios with numbers of
modest size.
See some examples:
Tx power = 100W, Received power = 1W
Tx power is 100 times of received power
Difference is 20dB
Tx power = 100W, Received power = 1mW
Tx power is 100,000 times of received power
Difference is 50dB
Tx power = 1000W, Received power = 1mW
Tx power is million times of received power
Difference is 60dB
44

dBm
For power differences, dBm is used to
denote a power level with respect to 1mW
as the reference power level.
Let say Tx power of a system is 100W.
Question: What is the Tx power in unit
of dBm?
Answer:
Tx_power(dBm) =
10log(100W/1mW) =
10log(100W/0.001W) =
10log(100,0000) = 50dBm

45

dBW
For power differences, dBW is used to
denote a power level with respect to 1W
as the reference power level.
Let say Tx power of a system is 100W.
Question: What is the Tx power in unit
of dBW?
Answer:
Tx_power(dBW) = 10log(100W/1W)
= 10log(100) = 20dBW.
46

Decibel (dB) versus Power Ratio

Comparison of
two Sound Systems

47

Free-Space Propagation
Model

Free-Space Propagation
Model
Free space power received by a receiver antenna
separated from a radiating transmitter antenna by
a distance d is given by Friis free space equation:

Pr(d) = (PtGtGrl2) / ((4p)2d2L)

(5.1)

Pt is transmited power
Pr(d) is the received power
Gt is the trasmitter antenna gain (dimensionless quantity)
Gr is the receiver antenna gain (dimensionless quantity)
d is T-R separation distance in meters
L is system loss factor not related to propagation (L >= 1)
L = 1 indicates no loss in system hardware (for our purposes we
will take L = 1, so we will igonore it in our calculations).
l is wavelength in meters.

Free-Space Propagation
Model
The gain of an antenna G is related to its
affective aperture Ae by:
G = 4pAe / l2
[5.2]
The effective aperture of Ae is related to the physical size
of the antenna,

l is related to the carrier frequency by:

l = c/f = 2pc / wc
f is carrier frequency in Hertz
wc is carrier frequency in radians per second.
c is speed of light in meters/sec

[5.3]

Free-Space Propagation
Model

An isotropic radiator is an ideal antenna that

radiates power with unit gain uniformly in all
directions. It is as the reference antenna in wireless
systems.
The effective isotropic radiated power (EIRP) is
defined as:
EIRP = PtGt
[5.4]
Antenna gains are given in units of dBi (dB gain
with respect to an isotropic antenna) or units of dBd
(dB gain with respect to a half-wave dipole
antenna).
Unity gain means: G is 1 or 0dBi

Free-Space Propagation
Model
Path loss, which represents signal
attenuation as positive quantity measured
in dB, is defined as the difference (in dB)
between the effective transmitted power
and the received power.
PL(dB) = 10 log (Pt/Pr) = -10log[(GtGrl2)/(4p)2d2]
(You can drive this from equation (5.1))

[5.5]

If antennas have unity gains (exclude them)

PL(dB) = 10 log (Pt/Pr) = -10log[l2/(4p)2d2]

[5.6]

Free-Space Propagation
Model
For Friis equation to hold, distance d
should be in the far-field of the transmitting
antenna.
The far-field, or Fraunhofer region, of a
transmitting antenna is defined as the
region beyond the far-field distance df
given by:
df = 2D2/l

[5.7]

D is the largest physical dimension of the antenna.

Additionally, df >> D and df >> l

Free-Space Propagation Model

Reference Distance d0
It is clear the Equation 1 does not hold for d = 0.
For this reason, models use a close-in distance d0
as the receiver power reference point.
d0 should be >= df
d0 should be smaller than any practical distance a
mobile system uses

Received power Pr(d), at a distance d > d0 from a

transmitter, is related to Pr at d0, which is expressed
as Pr(d0).
The power received in free space at a distance
greater than d0 is given by:
Pr(d) = Pr(d0)(d0/d)2 d >= d0 >= df

[5.8]

Free-Space Propagation Model

Expressing the received power in dBm and dBW
Pr(d) (dBm) = 10 log [Pr(d0)/0.001W] + 20log(d0/d)
where d >= d0 >= df and Pr(d0) is in units of watts.

[5.9]
Pr(d) (dBW) = 10 log [Pr(d0)/1W] + 20log(d0/d)
where d >= d0 >= df and Pr(d0) is in units of watts.
[5.10]

Reference distance d0 for practical systems:

For frequncies in the range 1-2 GHz
1 m in indoor environments
100m-1km in outdoor environments

Example Question
A transmitter produces 50W of power.
A) Express the transmit power in dBm
B) Express the transmit power in dBW
C) If d0 is 100 m and the received power at
that distance is 0.0035 mW, then find the
received power level at a distance of 10 km.
Assume that the transmit and receive
antennas have unity gains.

Solution
A)
Pt(W) is 50W.
Pt(dBm) = 10log[Pt(mW)/1mW)]
Pt(dBm) = 10log(50x1000)
Pt(dBm) = 47 dBm

B)
Pt(dBW) = 10log[Pt(W)/1W)]
Pt(dBW) = 10log(50)
Pt(dBW) = 17 dBW

Solution
Pr(d) = Pr(d0)(d0/d)2
Substitute the values into the
equation:
Pr(10 km) = Pr(100 m)(100 m/10 km)2
Pr(10 km) = 0.0035 mW(10-4)
Pr(10 km) = 3.5x10-10 W
Pr(10 km) [dBm] = 10log(3.5x10-10 W/1
mW)
= 10log(3.5x10-7)
= -64.5 dBm

INTERFERENCE IN
CELLULAR
COMMUNICATION
SYSTEMS

OBJECTIVES
Understand interference in cellular communication
system.
Describe co-channel and adjacent channel.
Describe the types of interference in cellular
communication system.
a. Co-channel Interference (CCI)
b. Adjacent channel interference (ACI)
Explain the method to reduce CCI
Calculate co-channel reuse ratio by using the
formula.
List the causes of interference.

Interference In Cellular
Communication System
Interference is the limiting factor in
performance of all cellular radio systems
What are the sources of interference for a
mobile receiver?
Interference is in both
voice channels
control channels

Interference in Cellular
System

Co-channel Interference(CCI).
First we look at CCI
Frequency Reuse
Many cells in a given coverage area use
the same set of channel frequencies to
increase system capacity (C)
VC & CC traffic in co-channel cells is an
interfering source to mobiles in Several
different cells

Co-Channel Interference
Cells using the same frequency cause
interference to each other
Called co-channel interference (CCI)
CCI increases as the cluster size N
decreases
Important factor for signal quality is the
Carrier to Interference Ratio C/I
Most interference comes from the first
tier of co-channel cells
EP602-WIRELESS COMMUNICATION/CHAPTER 6
54

Co-Channel Interference
1

1
R

Second tier
First tier

1 Interfering Cell
D

1
1

1
1

1
1

1
1

Co-Channel Interference
C
C
C/I is calculated as:
KI
KI = number of interfering cells
I
Ik
k 1

The maximum number of K in the first tier is 6 and knowing that

propagatio n path loss

Interfering signal,

ID

The above equation becomes: C

R
KI

D
k
k 1

Co-Channel Interference
Rearranging:

and

1
KI

Dk

k 1

1
KI

q
k 1

Dk
qk
R

The qk is the co-channel interference

reduction factor with kth co-channel
interfering cell.

Co-Channel Interference
As N decreases the number of frequency
channels per cell increases but C/I
decreases
C/I is improved by different methods
Sectored antennas: reduces KI
Beam tilting: Reduces power to co-channel
cells
Channel assignment: minimizes activation of
co-channel frequencies, which reduces KI
68

Adjacent Channel Interference

Adjacent Channel Interference (ACI)
ACI happens because Imperfect Rx
filters allow energy from adjacent
channels to leak into the passband of
other channels

EP602-WIRELESS COMMUNICATION/CHAPTER 569

Adjacent Channel Interference

desired filter response

actual filter response

EP602-WIRELESS COMMUNICATION/CHAPTER 5

70

Adjacent Channel Interference

This affects both forward & reverse links
Forward Link base-to-mobile
interference @ mobile Rx from a ______ Tx
(another mobile or another base station that is
not the one the mobile is listening to) when
mobile Rx is ___ away from base station.
signal from base station is weak and others
are somewhat strong.
Reverse Link mobile-to-base
interference @ base station Rx from nearby
mobile Tx when desired mobile Tx is far away
from base station

Adjacent Channel Interference

Near/Far Effect
interfering source is near some Rx when desired
source is far away

ACI is primarily from mobiles in the same cell

some cell-to-cell ACI does occur as well but a
secondary source

Control of ACI
dont allocate channels within a given cell from a
contiguous band of frequencies
for example, use channels 1, 4, 7, and 10 for a cell.
no channels next to each other

Adjacent Channel Interference

maximize channel separation
separation of as many as N channel
bandwidths
some schemes also seek to minimize ACI
from neighboring cells by not assigning
adjacent channels in neighboring cells

74
EP602-WIRELESS COMMUNICATION/CHAPTER 5

Adjacent Channel Interference

Originally 666 channels, then 10 MHz of spectrum was
added
666+166 = 832 channels
395 VC plus 21 CC per service provider (providers A &
B)
395*2 = 790, plus 42 control channels
Provider A is a company that has not traditionally
provided telephone service
Provider B is a traditional wireline operator
21 VC groups with 19 channels/group
at least 21 channel separation for each group

Adjacent Channel Interference

for N = 7 3 VC groups/cell
For example, choose groups 1A, 1B, and 1C for a cell
so channels 1, 8, 15, 22, 29, 36, etc. are used.
57 channels/cell
at least 7 channel separation for each cell group
to have high quality on control channels, 21 cell reuse is
used for CCs
instead of reusing a CC every 7 cells, as for VCs,
reuse every 21 cells (after every three clusters)
greater distance between control channels, so less
CCI
76

Adjacent Channel Interference

use high quality filters in base stations
better filters are possible in base stations since they
are not constrained by physical size and power as
much as in the mobile Rx
makes reverse link ACI less of a concern than
forward link ACI
also true because of power control (discussed below)

choice of modulation schemes

different modulation schemes provide less or more
energy outside their passband.

Adjacent Channel Interference

Power Control
technique to minimize ACI
base station & MSC constantly monitor mobile
received signal strength
mobile Tx power varied (controlled) so that
smallest Tx power necessary for a quality
reverse link signal is used (lower power for
the closer the mobile is to the base station)
also helps battery life on mobile

Adjacent Channel Interference

dramatically improves adjacent
channel S / I ratio, since mobiles in
other cells only transmit at high
enough power as transmitter controls
(not at full power)
most beneficial for ACI on reverse link
will see later that this is especially
important for CDMA systems

Method To Reduce Co-channel

Interference
Possible Solutions?
1) Increase base station Tx power to improve
radio signal reception? __
this will also increase interference from
co-channel cells by the same amount
no net improvement
2) Separate co-channel cells by some
minimum distance to provide sufficient
isolation from propagation of radio signals?
if all cell sizes, transmit powers, and
coverage patterns same co-channel
interference is independent of Tx power

Method To Reduce Co-channel

Interference
co-channel interference depends on:
R : cell radius
D : distance to base station of nearest co-channel cell

if D / R then spatial separation relative to

cell coverage area
improved isolation from co-channel RF energy

Q = D / R : co-channel reuse ratio

hexagonal cells Q = D/R = 3N

CCI Reduction: Cell

Sectoring
Shown 120 sectored
antennas
Channel per cell are
divided among 3 sectors
CCI decreased. Sector 0
gets interference from
sectors 4, 5 and 6 only
60 degrees sectored also
possible

82

CCI Reduction: Beam Tilting

By tilting down the antenna beam, the

power outside the cell, causing CCI reduces
83

CCI Reduction: Channel

Assignment

Fixed Channel Assignment

Cell allocated predetermined set of channels

Any call within the cell must use one of the
unused channels assigned to cell
If all channels used, call is blocked

Channel Borrowing
If all channels are used in a cell has, it can,
temporarily, borrow from neighboring cells
MSC supervises borrowing
Should not cause high CCI to other cell
84

CCI Reduction: Channel

Assignment
Dynamic Channel Assignment
Channels not permanently assigned to cells
BSC requests channel from MSC when call made
MSC allocates channel to call based on algorithm that takes
into account
Probability of future blocking within cell
Frequency of use of candidate channel
Reuse distance of channel

MSC assigns channel that will not interfere with existing calls
Reduces probability of blocking &Increases channel utilization

85

CCI Reduction: Cell splitting

If higher capacity is needed in a spot, we need to go,
locally, to smaller cluster size N
Each cell can be split into multiple microcells with own
BS
Rescaling system to smaller cell size
Transmit power of BS reduced to obtain smaller coverage
area than original BS
Enables more spatial reuse greater system capacity
Cell splitting preserves original frequency reuse plan
Cell splitting causes increased handoff
Can use umbrella cells where fast-moving mobiles
covered by original cell and slower mobiles covered by
microcells

CCI Reduction: Cell Splitting

Example

C
D
B

E
G

D
B

F
C

F
C

E
G

D
B

E
G

B
F
E

F
C

B
C

E
G

D
B

E
G
F

CCI Reduction: Cell Splitting

Example...

88

CCI Reduction: Frequency

Reuse
Design cells to be non-overlapping and cover entire
region
Cells depicted as hexagons
Conceptual design allowing easy analysis of
system
Close to circular shape achieved by
omnidirectional antennas
Footprint: actual radio coverage of a cell
Determined from field measurements or
propagation prediction models
Amorphous in nature
Use hexagon to approximate shape

CCI Reduction: Frequency

Reuse
Due to Co-channel Interference (CCI),
cannot use same frequency in adjacent cell
Cells that use same frequencies must be
separated by distances large enough to keep
interference levels low
Frequencies assigned to different cells using
frequency reuse plan
Adjacent cells assigned different frequencies
to avoid interference or crosstalk

90

CCI Reduction: Frequency

Reuse
Objective is to reuse frequency in nearby
cells
10 to 50 frequencies assigned to each cell
Transmission power controlled to limit power
at that frequency escaping to adjacent cells
The issue is to determine how many cells
must intervene between two cells using the
same frequency
91

Frequency Reuse
Cells with same letter use the same set of
frequency channels
Using hexagonal cells, BS located at center of
cell
MS at edge of cell receives weak signal from
BS, i.e., low Carrier to Interference ratio (C/I)
G
G
F
92

B
A
E

F
C
D

B
A
E
G
F

C
D
B
A
E

C
D

CCI Reduction: Frequency

Reuse
Suppose system has S total channels & k
channels per cell (k < S)

Channels divided among N cells into

disjoint groups, S = kN, N cells which use all
S channels called cluster (N = cluster size,
typically 4, 7, 12)

Clusters replicated in system

Typically cluster size N = i2 + ij + j2
N=7 i=2, j=1
N=3 i=1, j=1
93

Move i cells in any direction

Turn 60o CCW
Move j cells in this direction

CCI Reduction: Frequency

Reuse
B

N=7
F
i=2, j=1

C
B

B
G

A
F

N=3
i=1, j=1

C
D

B
A
C

A
C
B

B
A
C

C
B

3
4

3
N=3

N=4

3
6

1
1

4
7
5
N=7

N=1

1
1

Cell Geometry

R
D
R

D
q 3N
R

Causes of interference
another mobile in the same cell
a call in progress in the neighboring
cell
other base stations operating in the
same frequency band
Non cellular system leaks energy
into the cellular frequency band

97