ChapterThree:

AmplitudeModulation

Introduction
AmplitudeModulationisthesimplestandearliestform
oftransmitters
AMapplicationsincludebroadcastinginmediumand
highfrequencyapplications,CBradio,andaircraft
communications

BasicAmplitudeModulation
Theinformationsignal
variestheinstantaneous
amplitudeofthecarrier

AMCharacteristics
AMisanonlinearprocess
Sumanddifferencefrequenciesarecreatedthatcarrythe
information

FullCarrierAM:TimeDomain
ModulationIndexTheratiobetweentheamplitudes
betweentheamplitudesofthemodulatingsignaland
carrier,expressedbytheequation:

Em
m=
Ec

Overmodulation
Whenthemodulationindexisgreaterthan1,
overmodulationispresent

ModulationIndexforMultiple
ModulatingFrequencies
Twoormoresinewavesofdifferent,uncorrelated
frequenciesmodulatingasinglecarrieriscalculatedbythe
equation:
2
1

2
2

m m m

Measurement
of
Modulation
Index

FullCarrierAM:FrequencyDomain
Timedomaininformationcanbe
obtainedusinganoscilloscope
Frequencydomaininformation
canbecalculatedusingFourier
methods,buttrigonometric
methodsaresimplerandvalid
Sidebandsarecalculatedusing
theformulasattheright

f usb f c f m
f lsb f c f m
E lsb E usb

mE c

Bandwidth
Signalbandwidthisanimportantcharacteristicofany
modulationscheme
Ingeneral,anarrowbandwidthisdesirable
Bandwidthiscalculatedby:

B 2 Fm

PowerRelationships
Powerinatransmitterisimportant,
butthemostimportantpower
measurementisthatoftheportion
thattransmitstheinformation
AMcarriersremainunchanged
withmodulationandthereforeare
wasteful
PowerinanAMtransmitteris
calculatedaccordingtotheformula
attheright

m 2

Pt P c 1
2

QuadratureAMandAMStereo
Twocarriersgeneratedatthesamefrequencybut90outof
phasewitheachotherallowtransmissionoftwoseparatesignals
ThisapproachisknownasQuadratureAM(QUAMorQAM)
Recoveryofthetwosignalsisaccomplishedbysynchronous
detectionbytwobalancedmodulators

QuadratureOperation

SuppressedCarrierAM
FullcarrierAMissimplebutnotefficient
Removingthecarrierbeforepoweramplificationallows
fulltransmitterpowertobeappliedtothesidebands
RemovingthecarrierfromafullymodulatedAMsystems
resultsinadoublesidebandsuppressedcarrier
transmission

SuppressedCarrierSignal

SingleSidebandAM
ThetwosidebandsofanAMsignalaremirrorimagesof
oneanother
Asaresult,oneofthesidebandsisredundant
Usingsinglesidebandsuppressedcarriertransmission
resultsinreducedbandwidthandthereforetwiceasmany
signalsmaybetransmittedinthesamespectrumallotment
Typically,a3dBimprovementinsignaltonoiseratiois
achievedasaresultofSSBSC

DSBSCandSSB
Transmission

PowerinSuppressedCarrierSignals
Carrierpowerisuselessasameasureofpowerina
DSBSCorSSBSCsignal
Instead,thepeakenvelopepowerisused
Thepeakpowerenvelopeissimplythepowerat
modulationpeaks,calculatedthus:

PEP

Vp

2 RL