Module 2

Physical Layer
The
Electromagnetic
Spectrum (1)

The electromagnetic
spectrum and
its uses for communication
The Electromagnetic Spectrum (2)
Spread spectrum and ultra-wideband
(UWB) communication
Radio Transmission (1)

In the VLF, LF, and MF bands, radio waves follow the curvature
of the earth
Radio Transmission (2)

In the HF band, they bounce off the ionosphere.

The Politics of the Electromagnetic Spectrum
ISM and U-NII bands used in the
United States by wireless devices
Light Transmission

Convection currents can interfere with

laser communication systems. A
bidirectional system with two lasers is
pictured here.
Communication Satellites
Geostationary
Satellites
Medium-Earth Orbit
Satellites
Low-Earth Orbit
Satellites

Satellites Versus Fiber

Communication
Satellites

Communication satellites, some

properties, including: altitude above
earth, round-trip delay time, number of
satellites for global coverage.
Geostationary Satellites (1)
The principal satellite bands
Geostationary
Satellites (2)
VSATs using a hub.
Low-Earth Orbit
Satellites (1)

The Iridium satellites form six necklaces

around the earth.
Low-Earth Orbit Satellites (2)

Relaying in space.
Low-Earth Orbit Satellites (3)

Relaying on the ground

Digital Modulation and Multiplexing

• Baseband Transmission
• Passband Transmission
• Frequency Division Multiplexing
• Time Division Multiplexing
• Code Division Multiplexing
Baseband Transmission

Line codes: (a) Bits, (b) NRZ, (c) NRZI,

(d) Manchester, (e) Bipolar or AMI.
Passband Transmission (1)

(a) A binary signal. (b) Amplitude shift keying.

(c) Frequency shift keying. (d) Phase shift keying.
Frequency Division Multiplexing (1)

Gray-coded QAM-16.
Frequency Division Multiplexing (2)

Frequency division multiplexing. (a) The original bandwidths.

(b) The bandwidths raised in frequency.
(c) The multiplexed channel.
Frequency Division Multiplexing (3)

Orthogonal frequency division

multiplexing (OFDM).
Time Division Multiplexing

Time Division Multiplexing (TDM).

Code Division Multiplexing (1)

(a) Chip sequences for four stations.

(b) Signals the sequences represent
Code Division Multiplexing (2)

(a) Six examples of transmissions.

(b) Recovery of station C’s
Physical layer design issues
The functions of the physical layer are :
⚫Bit synchronization: The physical layer provides the
synchronization of the bits by providing a clock. This clock
controls both sender and receiver thus providing
synchronization at bit level.
⚫Bit rate control: The Physical layer also defines the
transmission rate i.e. the number of bits sent per second.
⚫Physical topologies: Physical layer specifies the way in
which the different, devices/nodes are arranged in a
network i.e. bus, star or mesh topology.
⚫Transmission mode: Physical layer also defines the way
in which the data flows between the two connected devices.
The various transmission modes possible are: Simplex,
half-duplex and full-duplex.
Transmission Media
● Media are what the message is transmitted over. In
other words communication channel is also called as
medium.
● Different media have different properties and use in
different environment.
● The purpose of the Physical layer is transport a raw bit
stream from one computer to another.
Classification of Transmission
Media
Wired Media
● The signal energy is contained and guided with solid
Medium.
●Wired media used for point to point communication.
Types of wired media
● Co-axial cable
● Twisted pair
● Optical Fiber cable
Co-axial Cable
● Coaxial cable is a group of wrapped and insulated wire
line.
● They transmit data at higher rates.
● The conductor is made of copper wire surrounded by
PVC insulation. This insulation is encased in an outer
conductor of metal foil, which is enclosed in a PVC
insulation sheath. Also, it is completely covered by a
plastic cover.
Co-axial Cable
Advantages of Coaxial Cable
● Coaxial cable is used in cable television.
● It offers much higher bandwidth.
● It is preferred for long distance telephone lines as well.
● Provides better shield when compared with Twisted
Pair cable.
● It offers data transmission without any distortion.
● Expect quite higher noise immunity from coaxial
cable.
Disadvantages of Coaxial Cable
● Costlier than Twisted pair cable
● BNC connectors are required for connection.
Types of Co-axial Cable
Baseband Coaxial Cable
● LAN generally uses Baseband Coaxial cable. It is the
50 ohm coaxial cable used for digital transmission. The
cable comes with a power of transmitting a single
signal at quite high speed. It transmits a single signal at
a time.
Broadband Coaxial Cable
● This cable transmits many simultaneous signals and
that too using different frequency. It covers more area
than the Baseband coaxial cable and can run nearly
100km.
Co-axial Cable
Applications of Coaxial Cable
● Analog telephone network
● Cable TV
● Digital telephone network
● Traditional LAN Network
Twisted Pair cable
● This is commonly use medium and it is cheaper than
co-acial cable.
● It is made up of two insulated copper wires, typically,
twisted around each other in a continuous spiral.
● The purpose of twisting the wires is to reduce electrical
interference (or noise) from similar pairs close by.
Types of Twisted pair cable.
● Unshielded twisted pair
● Shielded twisted pair
Unshielded twisted pair cable
● UTP is the type of twisted pair cable. It stands for
Unshielded twisted pair.
● Both Data and voice both are transmitted through UTP
because its frequency range is suitable.
● In UTP grounding cable is not necessary also in UTP
much more maintenance are not needed therefore it is
cost effective.
Unshielded twisted pair cable
Advantages of Unshielded Twisted Pair Cable
● Installation is easy
● Flexible
● Cheap
● It has high speed capacity,
● 100 meter limit
● Higher grades of UTP are used in LAN technologies like
Ethernet.
Disadvantages of Unshielded Twisted Pair Cable
● Bandwidth is low when compared with Coaxial Cable
● Provides less protection from interference.
Shielded twisted pair cable
● STP is also the type of twisted pair which stands for
Shielded twisted pair. In STP grounding cable is
required but in UTP grounding cable is not required.
● In Shielded Twisted Pair (STP) much more
maintenance are needed therefore it is costlier than
Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP).
Shielded twisted pair cable
Advantages of Shielded Twisted Pair Cable
● Easy to install
● Performance is adequate
● Can be used for Analog or Digital transmission
● Increases the signaling rate
● Higher capacity than unshielded twisted pair
● Eliminates crosstalk
Disadvantages of Shielded Twisted Pair Cable
● Difficult to manufacture
● Heavy
Application of Twisted pair cable
● LAN
● In ISDN
● In DSL
● Conventional telephone line
Optical Fiber cable
● It consist of an inner glass core surrounded by a glass
cladding which has lower refractive index and
protective covering.
● Digital signals are transmitted in form of intensity
modulated light signals.
● Light is launched into a fiber at end using light source
like LED and detected by other side using photo
detector.
Modes of
propagation
● Single Mode
● Multimode
Optical Fiber cable
Advantages of Optical Fiber cable
● Small size and light weight
● Easy available
● No electromagnetic interference
● Large bandwidth
● No crosstalk
Disadvantages of Optical Fiber cable
● Cost is high
● Sophisticated plants are required for manufacturing.
● Joining the cables is difficult job.
Applications of Optical Fiber cable
● LAN
● Telephone Network
● Cable television
● Defense/Government
● Medical