Microwave communication link Basic Design Considerations

Chap-13 (TB) Wyne Tomasi

Link Design
Path Clearance Earth Bulging K Factor Fresnel Zone Link Budget

Path Clearance
LOS Signals Curvature of the earth surface H= D1 D2 /1.5 K K is constant Depends upon Actual propagation Of Qwave energy

Effects of atmospheric Density

reflection refraction diffraction higher above earth surface , atmospheric density decreases Lower part of the signal wave front travel little slower than upper part A k value of 4/3 can be used to describe such a path

Earth Bulge
Humid coastal areas Atmospheric inversion condition Atmospheric density increase with increase in height This causes microwave signals to bend opposite to the curvature of the earth The bending may be severe enough to cause the microwave signal diverted back to the earth blocking the propagation of the signal K = 2/3

Ducting
The change in refractive index is normally linear and gradual, but under certain atmospheric conditions a layer, of warm air may be trapped above cooler air, often over the surface of water. The result is that the refractive index will decrease far more rapidly with height than is usual. This happens near the ground, often within 30 m of it.

 Rapid variation in reduction of refractive index may be caused by atmospheric condition where there is a layer of warm air trapped over a relatively cooler air Temperature Inversion Region In this region , temperature increases with height @ 6.5rC/km Duct propagation is used at microwaves to cover the distance beyond LOS M=(N-1) x 106

Conditions
Critical Angle : when angle of incidence is less than critical angle Cut off frequency: P(max) = 0.084 d3/2 d = duct height in meter

Effect of Fresnel zone

number of concentric ellipsoids which define volumes in the radiation pattern of a (usually) circular aperture. Fresnel zones result from diffraction by the circular aperture The area around the visual line-of-sight that radio waves spread out into after they leave the antenna. This area must be clear or else signal strength will weaken.

 If the propagation path is so chosen that it does not block the area represented by the first Fresnel Zone , the path is said to have first Fresnel zone clearance. Partial /significant cancellation of the desired signal if the clearance equals an even fresnel zone number

 The Fresnel zone clearance can be computed from F1 = 72.2 D1 D2 /D.f D=Total Path length in Miles F = frequency in GHz D1D2 = Distance in Miles from the point in question to each end of the path F1 = Distance in feet from the path line to the edge of the first Fresnel Zone FN =F1 N

Link Budget
Antenna Gain Antenna Gain

Free Space Loss

Wave guide losses Transmitter

Wave guide losses Receiver

Transmit Output Power

Receiver Threshold

 The received signal needs to be stronger than the minimum detectable signal by the receiver also known as receiver sensitivity. Fading : Atmospheric condition Geometry of path Fade Margin: Fudge Factor included in system gain =n Fm = 30logD + 10 log (6ABf)- 10 log (1-R)-70

 A=roughness factor 4 for very smooth terrain, including over water. 1 for average terrain, with some roughness. .25 for mountainous, very rough, or very dry areas.

 B=factor to convert a worst month probability to an annual probability 1 to convert an annual availability to a worse month basis .5 for gulf coast or similar hot, humid areas. .25 for normal interior temperate or northern areas. .125 for mountainous or very dry areas.

free space loss

The free space loss is computed based on the path length and frequency using the equation: Loss (indB)= 96.6 + 20 LOG(F) + 20 LOG(D) where: L is the attenuation in dB. F is the frequency in GHz. D is the distance in miles.

Reliability
Path availability is expressed in terms of outage time per year.

 The reliability of a system based on the computed fade margin is calculated based on the following equation U = a x b x 2.5 x 10-6 x f x D3 x 10-F/10 where: U is the non-diversity outage probability. a is the terrain factor. b is the climate factor. f is the frequency in GHz. D is the path length in miles. F is the fade margin in dB.

Diversity
When there is more than one transmission path or method of transmission available

Types of diversity
Frequency Diversity Space Diversity Polarization Diversity Hybrid Diversity Quad Diversity

Space Diversity
30-60 feet The space diversity improvement factor for vertically separated receive antennas is computed as: I = (7 x 10-5 x f x s2 x 10F/10 ) / D where: I is the space diversity improvement factor f is the frequency in GHz. s is the vertical antenna spacing in feet. D is the path length in miles. F is the lower fade margin in dB

 Usd = a x b x (3.6 x 10-2 ) (D4 )(10 -2F/10 )/S2