Amplitude modulation - Applications in radio

A basic AM radio transmitter works by first DC-shifting the modulating signal,

then multiplying it with the carrier wave using a frequency mixer. The output of this
process is a signal with the same frequency as the carrier but with peaks and troughs that
vary in proportion to the strength of the modulating signal. This is amplified and fed to an
antenna.

Amplitude modulation - AM vs. FM

AM radio's main limitation is its susceptibility to atmospheric interference, which

is heard as static from the receiver. The narrow bandwidth traditionally used for AM
broadcasts further limits the quality of sound that can be received. Since the 1970s,
wideband FM has been preferred for musical broadcasts, due to its higher audio fidelity
and noise-suppression characteristics.

The fact that signals can be decoded using very simple equipment is one of the
primary advantages of amplitude modulation. This was especially important in the early
days of commercial radio, when electronic components were still quite expensive. This
simplicity and affordability helped make AM one of the most popular methods for
sending voice and music over radio during the 20th century.

An AM receiver consists primarily of a tunable filter and an envelope detector,

which in simpler sets is a single diode. Its output is a signal at the carrier frequency, with
peaks that trace the amplitude of the unmodulated signal. Unlike other modulation
techniques, this is all that is needed to recover the original audio. In practice, a capacitor
is used to undo the DC shift introduced by the transmitter and to eliminate the carrier
frequency by connecting the signal peaks. The output is then fed to an audio amplifier.

To make a good AM receiver an automatic gain control loop is essential; this

requires good design. To make a good FM receiver a large number of RF amps which are
driven into limiting are required to create a receiver which can take advantage of the
capture effect, one of the biggest advantages of FM. With valved (tube) systems it is
more expensive to make active stages than it is to make the same number of stages with
solid state parts, so for a valved superhet it is simpler to make an AM receiver with the
automatic gain control loop while for a solid state receiver it is simpler to make an FM
unit. Hence even while the idea of FM was known before WWII its use was rare because
of the cost of valves - in the UK the government had a valve holder tax which encouraged
radio receiver designers to use as few active stages as possible, - but when solid state
parts became available FM started to gain favour.
Frequency modulation: Encyclopedia II - Frequency
modulation - Applications in radio

Frequency modulation - Applications in radio

Edwin Armstrong presented his paper: "A Method of Reducing Disturbances in Radio
Signaling by a System of Frequency Modulation", which first described FM radio, before
the New York section of the Institute of Radio Engineers on November 6, 1935.

Frequency modulation requires a wider bandwidth than amplitude modulation by an

equivalent modulating signal, but this also makes the signal more robust against
interference. Frequency modulation is also more robust against simple signal amplitude
fading phenomena. As a result, FM was chosen as the modulation standard for high
frequency, high fidelity radio transmission: hence the term "FM radio" (although for
many years the BBC insisted on calling it "VHF radio", which is quite logical, since
commercial FM broadcasting uses a well-known part of the VHF band; in certain
countries, expressions referencing the more familiar wavelength notion are still used in
place of the somewhat mysterious modulation technique name).

FM receivers inherently exhibit a phenomenon called capture, where the tuner is able to
clearly receive the stronger of two stations being broadcast on the same frequency.
Problematically, however, frequency drift or lack of selectivity may cause one station or
signal to be suddenly overtaken by another on an adjacent channel. Frequency drift
typically constituted a problem on very old or inexpensive receivers, while inadequate
selectivity may plague any tuner.

An FM signal can also be used to carry a stereo signal: see FM stereo. However, this is
done by using multiplexing and demultiplexing before and after the FM process, and is
not part of FM proper. The rest of this article ignores the stereo multiplexing and
demultiplexing process used in "stereo FM", and concentrates on the FM modulation and
demodulation process, which is identical in stereo and mono processes.