Average trajectory for squared eye diagrams for a binary PAM sequence of 400 symbols shaped with Raised Cosine pulse with excess bandwidths 0, 0.5 and 1

Lock Detectors for Symbol Timing Synchronization

Similar to the carrier lock detectors, timing lock detectors can also be constructed based on some property of the modulated signal. These lock detectors operate in parallel to the timing locked loop and aid the Rx state machine in executing necessary tasks according to each scenario. The expressions for two such timing lock detectors are as follows. The output of a timing lock detector should be at its peak for the correct timing. Therefore, when the matched filter output, denoted by $z(mT_M)$ with $T_M$ being the symbol time, is at its peak, the second sample in a signal oversampled by

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Bandwidth, power and DSP correspond to the traditional trio of raw materials, energy and knowledge

Why Building an SDR Requires DSP Expertise

In an introduction to signals, we discussed the idea that the any activities around us, starting from subatomic particles to massive societal networks, are generating signals all the time. Since mathematics is the language of the universe and digital signals are nothing but quantized number sequences, it is fair to say that the workings of the universe can be mapped to an infinitely large set of signals. With these number sequences in hand, an electronic computer can process the signals and either extract the information about the surrounding real world phenomena or even better influence its target environment. We saw

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Square-root Nyquist filters for three different excess bandwidths

How to Design Nyquist and Square-Root Nyquist Pulse Shaping Filters

The radio spectrum is a very precious resource like real estate and must be utilized judiciously. Pulse shaping filters control the spectral leakage of the transmitted signal in a wireless channel due to the strict restrictions to comply with a spectral mask. This is even more important for the upcoming 5G wireless systems which are based on a variety of wireless transmission protocols (such as mobile networks, Internet of Things (IoT) and machine to machine communications) combined in one comprehensive standard. Even for wired channels, there is always a natural bandwidth of the medium (copper wire, coaxial cable, optical fiber)

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Three different cases for carrier frequency offset

What is Carrier Frequency Offset (CFO) and How It Distorts the Rx Symbols

In Physics, frequency in units of Hz is defined as the number of cycles per unit time. Angular frequency is the rate of change of phase of a sinusoidal waveform with units of radians/second. \begin{equation*} 2\pi f = \frac{\Delta \theta}{\Delta t} \end{equation*} where $\Delta\theta$ and $\Delta t$ are the changes in phase and time, respectively. A Carrier Frequency Offset (CFO) usually arises due to two reasons. The video below also explains this concept. [Frequency mismatch between the Tx and Rx oscillators] No two devices are the same and there is always some difference between the manufacturer’s nominal specification and the

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OFDM slices the spectrum just like a bread

A Beginner’s Guide to OFDM

In the recent past, high data rate wireless communications is often considered synonymous to an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) system. OFDM is a special case of multi-carrier communication as opposed to a conventional single-carrier system.  The concepts on which OFDM is based are so simple that almost everyone in the wireless community is a technical expert in this subject. However, I have always felt an absence of a really simple guide on how OFDM works which can prove useful for technical persons not wanting to deal with too much technicalities, such as DSP experts outside communications, computer programmers, ham

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