DEPARTMENT OF TECHNICAL EDUCATION

ANDHRA PRADESH

Name : N. Ramanjaneyulu.
Designation : Lecturer.
Branch : ECE.
Institute : G.P.W., Hindupur.
semester : Third.
Subject : Analog communication.
Code : EC-305.
Topic : Transmitters& receivers.
Sub-topic : Receivers-Choice of IF & Image Freq.
Duration : 50Mts.
Teaching aids : PPTs,diagrams.

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Recap

In the previous topic, you have leant about

• super heterodyne receiver block diagram and its

working.

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Objectives:

Upon completion of this lesson, you will be able to know:

• the choice of IF.

• the factors influencing the choice of IF.

• Image frequency calculations.

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 Choice of IF (intermediate frequency)

• The first task of the IF stage is to eliminate the sum

frequencies.

• Only the deference frequency is desired as it denotes

the IF to which the receiver is designed.

• The IF stage is a band pass filter centered around the IF.

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• The ability of the IF stage to reject the undesired sum
signal from the mixer depends on how sharply the band
pass filter rolls off from the center frequency.

• Standard AM broad cast receiver use 455KHz as the IF.

• The receiver is tuned across the entire band(550-

1600KHz).the IF stage filtering must pass the 455KHz
signal while rejecting all sum signals.

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• The B.W of the band pass filter must be slightly wider
than the B.W of the information signal.

• For standard AM broad cast ,the IF stage has to pass

10KHz signal centered on 455KHz while rejecting the
signals outside that span.

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 Factors influencing the choice of IF

The selection of a particular IF while designing a

receiving system is usually a compromise between high
image rejection ratio and good adjacent channel
selectivity.

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 The main factors influencing the
choice of IF in any particular system
are:

• If the IF is very high, selectivity becomes poor and sharp

cut off filters are to be used. otherwise, it results in poor
adjacent channel rejection.
• A high value of IF increases tracking difficulties.

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 Factors influencing the choice of IF

• As the IF is lowered ,image frequency rejection becomes

poor.

• A very low IF makes selectivity too sharp that results in

cutting of side bands.

• If the IF is very low ,the frequency stability of the local

oscillator must be made correspondingly higher.

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• The IF should not fall within the tuning range of the
receiver or else instability will occur and heterodyne
whistles will be heard.

• Poor selectivity and poor adjacent channel rejection are

the disadvantages with high intermediate value.

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 IF values for different systems

• IF should neither be too high nor too low. An optimum

value has to be selected based on the required
application.

• Standard broad cast AM receivers having the tuning

range of 540KHz to 1650KHz use as IF of 455KHz.

• AM,SSB and other receivers used for short wave or VHF

reception have a first IF in the range from 1.6MHz to
2.3MHz.

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• FM receivers using the standard 88MHz to 108MHz band
uses on IF of 10.7MHz.

• Television receivers in the VHF band(54MHz to 233MHz)

and in the UHF band (470MHz to 940MHz) use an IF
between 26MHz and 46MHz.

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• Microwave and radar receivers operating in the
frequency 1-10 GHz use IF s depending on the
application.30,60 and 70MHz are most commonly used.

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 Image frequency

• It is possible for an unwanted RF signal to get through

the RF amplifier mix with the desired signal at the IF to
be amplified.

• The unwanted signal which appears ,like a mirror

reflected image to the original signal is known as image
frequency signal.

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• An image frequency signal is one that is at the same
distance from the local oscillator frequency as the desired
signal, but in the opposite direction.

• The image signal also gets amplified by the IF stage

along with the original signal and causes interference.

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• When the oscillator operating at a frequency higher than
the designed RF signal, the image frequency is given by
fsi = fs +2fi
• In a standard broad cast receiver, the local oscillator
frequency is made higher than the incoming signal
frequency
fo= fs +fi
f s = fo – fi .

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• The image signal is greater than local oscillator frequency
by IF
fsi = fo +fi = fs +fi + fi = fs +2fi
Where fsi = image frequency
fs = signal frequency
fi = Intermediate frequency

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Summary:

After completion of this topic we have learnt about:

• Choice of IF.

• Factors influencing the choice of IF.

• Image frequency and its calculations.

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 Quiz

1)The image frequency is equal to

a) fs - 2fi
b) fs +fi
c) fs +2fi
d) 2fs +fi

Ans. c
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2)The standard IF value for FM receiver
operating 88MHz to 108MHz is
a) 10.7MHz
b) 455KHz
c) 20 MHz
d) 46MHz

Ans. a

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 Frequently asked questions

• Define the image frequency and calculate it?

• What are the factors influencing the choice of IF?

• Calculate images frequency of a carrier frequency of

620KHZ in an AM receiver

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