Digital Communications: Course Information

Description

From mobile networks and Wi-Fi to satellite links, modern communication systems are built on digital transmission. This module develops the principles behind sending information reliably over noisy and imperfect channels, treating communication as a fundamentally discrete process. It begins with a review of analog modulation and then moves to digital baseband transmission. Students learn how real passband signals are represented and sampled, and how continuous signals are given a discrete representation. They then study digital passband transmission techniques. A central part of the module is deriving optimum receiver structures for the additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) channel and analysing their performance in terms of symbol and bit error rates (SER/BER). The module then examines how practical channels cause intersymbol interference (ISI), and how waveforms and receivers can be designed to mitigate it. Through simulation, students implement a range of digital transmission techniques and compare their performance numerically. On completion, students will be able to analyse, design and evaluate digital transmission schemes and receivers for both AWGN and ISI channels.

The main goal of the course is to teach students how information is transmitted digitally over noisy, dispersive channels, and how to design and evaluate the optimum transmitters and receivers that make reliable communication possible.

Intended Audience

MSc students in areas of communication and networking

Course Textbook

• R. G. Gallager, Principles of Digital Communications, Cambridge University Press, 2008

• S. Benedetto, E Biglieri, Principles of Digital Transmission with Wireless Applications, Kluwer Academic Publishers, 2002

• J. M. Wozencraft, I. M. Jacobs, Principles of Communication Engineering, John Wiley & Sons Inc., 1965

Lectures

3 hours/week, 14 to 15 weeks

Grading

• Standard university grading applies
  

• The course evaluation consists of

  • Assignments (30%)

  • Fnal examination: 70%

Course Learning Outcomes

After finishing the course, the student will be able to

• Identify the communication process as fundamentally a discrete process.

• Analyze various digital base-band/band-pass transmission schemes.

• Derive the optimum receiver structure for a given digital transmission scheme over AWGN channel.

• Design waveforms and receiver structures for an ISI channel.

• Simulate various digital transmission techniques and compare their performance numerically.

Working load

4h per Week 14 to 15 weeks

Credits

This is a 3 credit course.

Teaching and learning methodology

The lectures will be mainly based on blackboard and slides.

Prerequisites

Background in introduction to communication, signal and systems

Additional references

• None