Chapter 3

Data and Signals

3.1 Copyright © The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display.
 Note

To be transmitted, data must be

transformed to electromagnetic signals.

3.2
 3-1 ANALOG AND DIGITAL

Data can be analog or digital. The term analog data refers

to information that is continuous; digital data refers to
information that has discrete states. Analog data take on
continuous values. Digital data take on discrete values.

Topics discussed in this section:

§ Analog and Digital Data
§ Analog and Digital Signals
§ Periodic and Nonperiodic Signals

3.3
 Analog and Digital Data
§ Data can be analog or digital.
§ Analog data are continuous and take
continuous values.
§ Digital data have discrete states and take
discrete values.

3.4
 Analog and Digital Signals

• Signals can be analog or digital.

• Analog signals can have an infinite number
of values in a range.
• Digital signals can have only a limited
number of values.

3.5
 Figure 3.1 Comparison of analog and digital signals

3.6
 3-2 PERIODIC ANALOG SIGNALS
In data communications, we commonly use periodic
analog signals and nonperiodic digital signals.
Periodic analog signals can be classified as simple or
composite. A simple periodic analog signal, a sine wave,
cannot be decomposed into simpler signals. A composite
periodic analog signal is composed of multiple sine
waves.
Topics discussed in this section:
§ Sine Wave
§ Wavelength
§ Time and Frequency Domain
§ Composite Signals
§ Bandwidth
3.7
 A sine wave
The sine wave is the most fundamental form
of a periodic analog signal. When we
visualize it as a simple oscillating curve, its
change over the course of a cycle is smooth
and consistent, a continuous, rolling flow.

3.8
 Figure 3.2 A sine wave

In a sine wave, each cycle consists of a single arc above the time axis followed by a single arc
below it
A sine wave can be represented by three parameters: the peak amplitude, the frequency, and the
phase

3.9
 A peak amplitude

The peak amplitude of a signal is the absolute value of

its highest intensity, proportional to the energy it
carries. For electric signals, peak amplitude is
normally measured in volts.

3.10
 Figure 3.3 Two signals with the same phase and frequency,
but different amplitudes

3.11
 Example 3.1

3.12
 Period and Frequency
n Period refers to the amount of time, in
seconds, a signal needs to complete 1 cycle.
n Frequency refers to the number of periods
in 1 s. Note that period and frequency are
just one characteristic defined in two ways.

3.13
 Note

Frequency and period are the inverse of

each other.

3.14
 Figure 3.4 Two signals with the same amplitude and phase,
but different frequencies

3.15
 Table 3.1 Units of period and frequency

3.16
 Example 3.2

The power we use at home has a frequency of 60 Hz.

The period of this sine wave can be determined as
follows:

3.17
 Example 3.3

The period of a signal is 100 ms. What is its frequency in

kilohertz?

Solution
First we change 100 ms to seconds, and then we
calculate the frequency from the period (1 Hz = 10−3
kHz).

3.18
 Frequency
• Frequency is the rate of change with respect
to time.
• Change in a short span of time means high
frequency.
• Change over a long span of time means low
frequency.

3.19
 Note

If a signal does not change at all, its

frequency is zero.
If a signal changes instantaneously, its
frequency is infinite.

3.20
 Phase
The term phase describes the position of the
waveform relative to time 0. If we think of the
wave as something that can be shifted backward
or forward along the time axis, phase describes
the amount of that shift. It indicates the status of
the first cycle.

3.21
 Note

Phase describes the position of the

waveform relative to time 0.

3.22
 Figure 3.5 Three sine waves with the same amplitude and frequency,
but different phases

3.23
 Example 3.4

A sine wave is offset 1/6 cycle with respect to time 0.

What is its phase in degrees and radians?

Solution
We know that 1 complete cycle is 360°. Therefore, 1/6
cycle is

3.24
 Wavelength
n Wavelength is another characteristic of a signal
traveling through a transmission medium.
n Wavelength binds the period or the frequency of a
simple sine wave to the propagation speed of the
medium
n In data communications, we often use wavelength to
describe the transmission of light in an optical fiber.
n The wavelength is the distance of a simple signal that
can travel in one period.

3.25
 Figure 3.6 Wavelength and period

3.26
 Time and Frequency Domains
A sine wave is comprehensively defined by its
amplitude, frequency, and phase. We have been showing
a sine wave by using what is called a time-domain plot.
The time-domain plot shows changes in signal amplitude
with respect to time (it is an amplitude-versus-time plot).
Phase is not explicitly shown on a time-domain plot.

3.27
 Figure 3.7 The time-domain and frequency-domain plots of a sine wave

3.28
 Note

A complete sine wave in the time

domain can be represented by one
single spike in the frequency domain.

3.29
 Example 3.5

The frequency domain is more compact and

useful when we are dealing with more than one
sine wave. For example, Figure 3.8 shows three
sine waves, each with different amplitude and
frequency. All can be represented by three
spikes in the frequency domain.

3.30
 Figure 3.8 The time domain and frequency domain of three sine waves

3.31
 Signals and Communication
n A single-frequency sine wave is not useful in
data communications
n We need to send a composite signal, a signal
made of many simple sine waves.
n According to Fourier analysis, any composite
signal is a combination of simple sine waves
with different frequencies, amplitudes, and
phases.

3.32
 Composite Signals and
Periodicity
n If the composite signal is periodic, the
decomposition gives a series of signals with
discrete frequencies.
n If the composite signal is nonperiodic, the
decomposition gives a combination of sine
waves with continuous frequencies.

3.33
 Example 3.6

Figure 3.9 shows a periodic composite signal with

frequency f. This type of signal is not typical of those
found in data communications. We can consider it to be
three alarm systems, each with a different frequency.
The analysis of this signal can give us a good
understanding of how to decompose signals.

3.34
 Figure 3.9 A composite periodic signal

3.35
 Figure 3.10 Decomposition of a composite periodic signal in the time and
frequency domains

3.36
 Example 3.7

Figure 3.11 shows a nonperiodic composite signal. It

can be the signal created by a microphone or a telephone
set when a word or two is pronounced. In this case, the
composite signal cannot be periodic, because that
implies that we are repeating the same word or words
with exactly the same tone.

3.37
 Figure 3.11 The time and frequency domains of a nonperiodic signal

3.38
 Bandwidth and Signal
Frequency
n The bandwidth of a composite signal is
the difference between the highest and
the lowest frequencies contained in that
signal.

3.39
 Figure 3.12 The bandwidth of periodic and nonperiodic composite signals

3.40
 Example 3.6

If a periodic signal is decomposed into five sine waves

with frequencies of 100, 300, 500, 700, and 900 Hz, what
is its bandwidth? Draw the spectrum, assuming all
components have a maximum amplitude of 10 V.
Solution
Let fh be the highest frequency, fl the lowest frequency,
and B the bandwidth. Then

The spectrum has only five spikes, at 100, 300, 500, 700,
and 900 Hz (see Figure 3.13).
3.41
 Figure 3.13 The bandwidth for Example 3.6

3.42
 Example 3.7

A periodic signal has a bandwidth of 20 Hz. The highest

frequency is 60 Hz. What is the lowest frequency? Draw
the spectrum if the signal contains all frequencies of the
same amplitude.
Solution
Let fh be the highest frequency, fl the lowest frequency,
and B the bandwidth. Then

The spectrum contains all integer frequencies. We show

this by a series of spikes (see Figure 3.14).
3.43
 Figure 3.14 The bandwidth for Example 3.7

3.44
 Example 3.8

A nonperiodic composite signal has a bandwidth of 200

kHz, with a middle frequency of 140 kHz and peak
amplitude of 20 V. The two extreme frequencies have an
amplitude of 0. Draw the frequency domain of the
signal.

Solution
The lowest frequency must be at 40 kHz and the highest
at 240 kHz. Figure 3.15 shows the frequency domain
and the bandwidth.

3.45
 Figure 3.15 The bandwidth for Example 3.8

3.46