GSM Specifications-1

RF Spectrum
GSM 900
Mobile to BTS (uplink): 890-915 Mhz
BTS to Mobile(downlink):935-960 Mhz
Bandwidth : 2* 25 Mhz

GSM 1800
Mobile to BTS (uplink): 1710-1785 Mhz
BTS to Mobile(downlink) 1805-1880 Mhz
Bandwidth : 2* 75 Mhz
 GSM Specification-II

Carrier Separation : 200 Khz

Duplex Distance : 45 Mhz
No. of RF carriers : 124
Access Method : TDMA/FDMA
Modulation Method : GMSK
Modulation data rate : 270.833 Kbps
 GSM Timeslot and Frame structure

Frequency

200KHz

BP time
15/26ms
interval
 Frequency Resource

GSM900 :
up: 890~915MHz EGSM900 :
down: 935~960MHz up: 880~890MHz
duplex interval: 45MHz down: 925~935MHz
bandwidth: 25MHz duplex interval: 45MHz
frequency interval: 200KHz bandwidth: 10MHz
frequency interval: 200KHz
GSM1800 : GSM1900MHz:
up: 1710-1785MHz up:1850~1910MHz
down: 1805-1880MHz down:1930~1990MHz
duplex interval: 95MHz duplex interval: 80MHz
working bandwidth: 75MHz working bandwidth: 60MHz
frequency interval: 200KHz frequency interval: 200KHz
 Channel Type
Traffic Channel
Transmit voice and data

Signaling Channel
Transmit the signaling and synchronous data
between BTS and MS.
 LOGICAL CHANNELS

TRAFFIC SIGNALLING

FULL RATE HALF RATE

Bm 22.8 Kb/S Lm 11.4 Kb/S
BROADCAST COMMON CONTROL DEDICATED CONTROL

FCCH SCH BCCH

RACH
PCH AGCH
FCCH -- FREQUENCY CORRECTION CHANNEL
SCH -- SYNCHRONISATION CHANNEL
BCCH -- BROADCAST CONTROL CHANNEL
PCH -- PAGING CHANNEL
RACH -- RANDOM ACCESS CHANNEL SDCCH SACCH FACCH
AGCH -- ACCESS GRANTED CHANNEL
SDCCH -- STAND ALONE DEDICATED CONTROL CHANNEL DOWN LINK ONLY
SACCH -- SLOW ASSOCIATED CONTROL CHANNEL BOTH UP &
FACCH -- FAST ASSOCIATED CONTROL CHANNEL UPLINK ONLY DOWNLINKS
 Logical Channels
Half rate 11.4kbps
Speech
TCH
(traffic) Full rate 22.8kbps
2.4 kbps
Data
4.8 kbps
9.6 kbps
BCH FCCH(Frequency correction)

SCH(Synchronization)
PCH(Paging)
CCCH
RACH(Random Access)
CCH AGCH(Access Grant)
(control)
SDCCH(Stand Alone)
Dedicated
SACCH(Slow-associated)
FACCH(Fast-associated)
 Broadcast Channel - BCH
Broadcast control channel (BCCH) is a base to
mobile channel which provides general information
about the network, the cell in which the mobile is
currently located and the adjacent cells
Frequency correction channel (FCCH) is a base to
mobile channel which provides information for
carrier synchronization
Synchronization channel (SCH) is a base to mobile
channel which carries information for frame
synchronization and identification of the base
station transceiver
Common Control Channel - CCH
Paging channel (PCH) is a base to mobile channel used
to alert a mobile to a call originating from the network
Random access channel (RACH) is a mobile to base
channel used to request for dedicated resources
Access grant channel (AGCH) is a base to mobile
which is used to assign dedicated resources (SDCCH or
TCH)
Dedicated Control Channel - DCCH
Stand-alone dedicated control channel (SDCCH)
is a bi-directional channel allocated to a specific
mobile for exchange of location update
information and call set up information
Dedicated Control Channel - DCCH
Slow associated control channel (SACCH) is a bi-directional
channel used for exchanging control information between base
and a mobile during the progress of a call set up procedure. The
SACCH is associated with a particular traffic channel or stand
alone dedicated control channel
Fast associated control channel (FACCH) is a bi-directional
channel which is used for exchange of time critical information
between mobile and base station during the progress of a call.
The FACCH transmits control information by stealing capacity
from the associated TCH
Physical Channel
GSM-Frame Structure
 Timeslot and Frame structure

1 super high frame = 2048 super frame = 2715648 TDMA frame

0 1 2 3 2044 2045 2046 2047

BCCH
1 super frame = 1326 TDMA frame6.12s CCCH
SACCH/TCH SDCH
FACCH 0 1 2 3 47 48 49 50
0 1 24 25

1 multiplex frame = 26 TDMA frames120ms 1 multiplex frame = 51 TDMA frame

0 1 24 25 0 1 49 50

1 TDMA frame = 8 timeslot120/26 = 4.615ms

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

25
 Channel Combination Type

Several logic channels combine together in some way to form some

specific types of channel to transmit user data or signaling information.
They are called combined channels. One combined channel can be
mapped to a physical channel.

There are the following combined channels:

a TCH/F + FACCH/F + SACCH/TF
b TCH/H(0,1) + FACCH/H(0,1) + SACCH/TH(0,1)
c TCH/H(0,0) + FACCH/H(0,1) + SACCH/TH(0,1) + TCH/H(1,1)
d FCCH + SCH + BCCH + CCCH
e FCCH + SCH + BCCH + CCCH + SDCCH/4(0...3) + SACCH/C4(0...3)
f BCCH + CCCH
g SDCCH/8(0 ..7) + SACCH/C8(0 .. 7)
CCCH = PCH + RACH + AGCH
 Channel Assignment inside cells

Small capacity cell with only 1 TRX

TN0: FCCH+SCH+CCCH+BCCH+SDCCH/4(0,_,3)+SACCH/C4(0,_,3);
TN1-7: TCH/F+FACCH/F+SACCH/TF

The medium-size cell with 4 TRXs

1TN0 group: FCCH+SCH+BCCH+CCCH;
2 SDCCH/8(0,_,7)+SACCH/C8(0,_,7);
29 TCH/F+FACCH/F+SACCH/TF
 Channel Assignment inside cells

Large-size cell with 12 TRXs

1 TN0 group: FCCH+SCH+BCCH+CCCH;
1 TN2 group, 1 TN4 group and 1 TN6 group: BCCH+CCCH;
5 SDCCH/8(0,_,7)+SACCH/C8(0,_,7);
87 TCH/F+FACCH/F+SACCH/TF
 Structure of 51-frame Control CH
51 Frame
BCCH+CCCH
F S B C F S C C F S C C F S C C F S C C I
(Downlink)

BCCH+CCCH
R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R
(uplink)

(a) FCCH+SCH+BCCH+CCCH

8 SDCCH/8
D0 D1 D2 D3 D4 D5 D6 D7 A0 A1 A2 A3 I I I
(Downlink)
D0 D1 D2 D3 D4 D5 D6 D7 A4 A5 A6 A7 I I I

8 SDCCH/8
A1 A2 A3 I I I D0 D1 D2 D3 D4 D5 D6 D7 A0
(uplink)
A5 A6 A7 I I I D0 D1 D2 D3 D4 D5 D6 D7 A4

(b) SDCCH/8(0,...,7)+SACCH/C8(0,...,7)

BCCH+CCCH+
F S B C F S C C F S D0 D1 F S D2 D3 F S A0 A1 I
4SDCCH/4
(Downlink) F S B C F S C C F S D0 D1 F S D2 D3 F S A2 A3 I

BCCH+CCCH+
D3 R R A2 A3 R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R D0 D1 F S D2
4SDCCH/4
(uplink) D3 R R A0 A1 R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R D0 D1 F S D2

(c) FCCH+SCH+CCCH+SDCCH/4(0,...,3)+SACCH/C4(0,...,3)

FFCCH SSCH
BBCCH CCCCH(CCCH=PCH+AGCH+RACH)
RRACH DSDCCH
ASACCH/C I idle
 Physical Channel

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23

The physical channel adopts FDMA and TDMA techs.

On the time domain, a specified channel occupies the same
timeslots in each TDMA frame, so it can be identified by the
timeslot number and frame number.