15Z502 COMPUTER

NETWORKS
Unit 6 – Physical Layer
UNIT VI-PHYSICAL LAYER

❖Signal Characteristics

❖Data Transmission

❖Physical Links and Transmission Media

❖Signal Encoding Techniques

❖Channel Access Techniques - TDM - FDM.

Physical Layer
• The basic building block of any communications facility is the
transmission line.
• Information can be communicated by transmitting signal over some
medium (transmission line) .
• The most commonly used transmission media are twisted-pair lines,
coaxial cable, optical fiber cable, and terrestrial and satellite
microwave
• The successful transmission of data depends principally on two
factors:
⮚ the quality of the signal being transmitted
⮚ the characteristics of the transmission medium.
Components of a data communication system
Data & Signal
• Data refers to information presented in whatever form is agreed upon
by the parties creating and using the data
• Signals are electric or electromagnetic representations of data.
• Signaling is the physical propagation of the signal along a suitable
medium.
• Transmission is the communication of data by the propagation and
processing of signals.
• Both Data and Signal can be
⮚ Analog
⮚ Digital
Analog & Digital Data
• The term analog data refers to • digital data refers to information
information that is continuous; that has discrete states
• Analog data are continuous and • Digital data have discrete states
take continuous values. and take discrete values.
• Eg: an analog clock that has • Eg: a digital clock that reports
hour, minute, and second hands the hours and the minutes will
gives information in a change suddenly from 8:05 to
continuous form; ie - the 8:06.
movements of the hands are
continuous.
Signal
• The signal is a function of time, but it can also be expressed as a
function of frequency; that is, the signal consists of components of
different frequencies.

• Signals can be
⮚ Analog

⮚ Digital
Analog signal
• An analog signal is one in which
the signal intensity varies in a
smooth fashion over time.
• Ie. there are no breaks or
discontinuities in the signal
• The continuous signal might
represent speech.
• Analog signals can have an
infinite number of values in a
range
Digital Signal
• A digital signal is one in which
the signal intensity maintains a
constant level for some period of
time and then abruptly changes
to another constant level.
• discrete signal might represent
binary 1s and 0s.
• digital signals can have only a
limited number of values.
Time Domain Concepts
• Both analog and digital signals can take one of two forms:
⮚ Periodic

⮚ Non-periodic/aperiodic

• In data communications, we commonly use

⮚ periodic analog signals

⮚ Non-periodic digital signals

Periodic signal
• The simplest sort of signal is a
periodic signal, in which the same
signal pattern repeats over time.

• The completion of one full pattern is

called a cycle.
Periodic Analog Signal
• Periodic analog signals can be classified as
⮚ simple
⮚ 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.
• A single frequency sine wave is not useful in data communications; we need to
send a composite signal, a signal made of many simple sine waves.
• If the composite signal is periodic, the decomposition gives a series of signals
with discrete frequencies
• If the composite signal is nonperiodic, the decomposition gives a combination
of sine waves with continuous frequencies
Simple Signal – sine wave
• The sine wave is the fundamental periodic signal.
• A general sine wave can be represented by three parameters:
• Peak amplitude (A)
• Frequency ( f )
• Phase (φ)
• Peak amplitude (A): the peak amplitude
is the maximum value or strength of the
signal over time; This value is measured
in volts
Frequency (f) and Period(T)
• The frequency is the rate at which the signal repeats.
• It is measured in in cycles per second, or Hertz (Hz)
• The period (T) of a signal, which is the amount of time it takes for one
repetition; therefore,
T= 1/ f
• Frequency and period are the inverse of
each other.
Phase
• Phase is a measure of the relative position in time within a single
period of a signal.
• The term phase describes the position of the waveform relative to
time 0.
• Phase is measured in degrees or radians.
• More formally, for a periodic signal f(t), phase is the fractional part
t/T of the period T through which t has advanced relative to an
arbitrary origin.
Two signals with the same phase and frequency,
but different amplitudes
Two signals with the same amplitude and phase,
but different frequencies
Three sine waves with the same amplitude and frequency, but
different phases
Wavelength
• The wavelength is the distance a simple signal can travel in one
period.
• Wavelength binds the period or the frequency of a simple sine wave
to the propagation speed of the medium
• In data communications, we often use wavelength to describe the
transmission of light in an optical fiber.
• if we represent wavelength by λ, propagation speed by c (speed of
light), and frequency by f, we get
Wavelength =propagation speed x period
= propagation speed/frequency
Wavelength and period
Time domain plots of a sine wave
• The time-domain plot shows changes in signal amplitude with respect
to time
• Phase is not explicitly shown on a time-domain plot.
Frequency-domain plots of a sine wave
• To show the relationship between amplitude and frequency, we can use what is
called a frequency-domain plot.
• A frequency-domain plot is concerned with only the peak value and the frequency
Changes of amplitude during one period are not shown
• A complete sine wave in the time domain can be represented by one single spike
in the frequency domain.
Frequency domain
• The frequency domain is more compact and useful when we are
dealing with more than one sine wave.
Composite Signals
• If we had only one single sine wave to convey a conversation over the
phone, it would make no sense and carry no information. We would just
hear a buzz.
• A single frequency sine wave is not useful in data communications; we
need to send a composite signal, a signal made of many simple sine waves.
• any composite signal is a combination of simple sine waves with different
frequencies, amplitudes, and phases
• Composite signals can be periodic and non periodic
• If the composite signal is periodic, the decomposition gives a series of
signals with discrete frequencies;
• if the composite signal is nonperiodic, the decomposition gives a
combination of sine waves with continuous frequencies.
A composite periodic signal
Decomposition of a composite periodic signal
in the time and frequency domains
The time and frequency domains of a
nonperiodic signal
Bandwidth
• The bandwidth of a composite
signal is the difference between
the highest and the lowest
frequencies contained in that
signal.
DIGITAL SIGNALS
• Two digital signals:
one with two signal
levels and the other
with four signal levels
DIGITAL SIGNALS
• A digital signal has eight levels. How many bits are needed per level?
• We calculate the number of bits from the formula
Number of bits per level =log2 8 =3
• Each signal level is represented by 3 bits.
Bit Rate
• Most digital signals are non-periodic.
• The bit rate is the number of bits sent in one second, expressed in bits per
second (bps).
Bit Interval
The bit interval is the time required to send one single bit.

Bit Length
• The bit length is the distance one bit occupies on the transmission medium.
• Bit length =propagation speed x bit duration
Bit interval & Bit rate
The time and frequency domains of periodic
and non-periodic digital signals
Data Flow
• Data communications are the exchange of data between two devices
via some form of transmission medium such as a wire cable.
• Communication between two devices can be
⮚ simplex,
⮚ half-duplex
⮚ full-duplex
Data flow
Simplex
• communication is unidirectional(as on a one-way street)

• Only one of the two devices on a link can transmit; the other can only receive

• Examples: Keyboards and traditional monitors.

⮚ The keyboard can only introduce input;

⮚ The monitor can only accept output.

• The simplex mode can use the entire capacity of the channel to send data in
one direction.
Data flow
Half-Duplex
• Each station can both transmit and receive, but not at the same time.

• When one device is sending, the other can only receive, and vice versa.

• The half-duplex mode is like a one-lane road with traffic allowed in both
directions.
• In a half-duplex transmission, the entire capacity of a channel is taken over by
whichever of the two devices is transmitting at the time.
• Example: Walkie-talkies and CB (citizens band) radio are half-duplex systems
Data flow
• Full-Duplex
• Both stations can transmit and receive simultaneously
• The full-duplex mode is like a two-way street with traffic flowing in both
directions at the same time.
• Signals going in one direction share the capacity of the link with signals going
in the other direction.
• This sharing can occur in two ways:
⮚ Either the link must contain two physically separate transmission paths, one for sending
and the other for receiving;
⮚ the capacity of the channel is divided between signals traveling in both directions.
• Example: communication is the telephone network.
• The capacity of the channel must be divided between the two directions.
Data Transmission
• Transmission of Digital Signals
• Transmission of a digital signal is done by using one of two different
approaches:
• baseband transmission
• broadband transmission (using modulation).
Transmission of Digital Signals
• Baseband Transmission
• Baseband transmission means
sending a digital signal over a
channel without changing the digital
signal to an analog signal.
• A digital signal is a composite analog
signal with an infinite bandwidth.
• Baseband transmission of a digital
signal that preserves the shape of
the digital signal is possible only if
we have a low-pass channel with anIn baseband transmission, the required bandwidth is
infinite or very wide bandwidth.. proportional to the bit rate;
if we need to send bits faster, we need more bandwidth.
Bandwidths of two low-pass channels
Baseband transmission using a dedicated
medium
Transmission of Digital Signals
• Broadband Transmission (Using
Modulation)
• Broadband transmission or
modulation means changing the
digital signal to an analog signal
for transmission.
• Modulation allows us to use a
bandpass channel-a channel with
a bandwidth that does not start If the available channel is a bandpass channel, we cannot send the
from zero. digital signal directly to the channel; we need to convert the digital
• This type of channel is more signal to an analog signal before transmission.
available than a low-pass channel.
Modulation of a digital signal for
transmission on a bandpass channel
TRANSMISSION IMPAIRMENT
• Signals travel through transmission
media, which are not perfect.
• The imperfection causes signal
impairment.
• Ie. the signal at the beginning of the
medium is not the same as the
signal at the end of the medium
• Three causes of impairment are
⮚ Attenuation
⮚ Distortion
⮚ Noise
Attenuation
• Attenuation means a loss of energy.
• When a signal, simple or composite, travels through a medium, it loses
some of its energy in overcoming the resistance of the medium.
• To compensate for this loss, amplifiers are used to amplify the signal.
• Decibel
• To show that a signal has lost or gained strength, engineers use the unit of the
decibel.
• The decibel (dB) measures the relative strengths of two signals or one signal at
two different points.
• Note that the decibel is negative if a signal is attenuated and positive if a signal
is amplified.
Attenuation
Distortion
• Distortion means that the signal changes its form or shape.
• Distortion can occur in a composite signal made of different
frequencies.
• Each signal component has its own propagation speed through a
medium and, therefore, its own delay in arriving at the final
destination.
• Signal components at the receiver have phases different from what
they had at the sender.
• The shape of the composite signal is therefore not the same.
Distortion
Noise
• Noise is another cause of impairment.
• Several types of noise, such as thermal noise, induced noise, crosstalk, and impulse
noise, may corrupt the signal.
• Thermal noise is the random motion of electrons in a wire which creates an extra
signal not originally sent by the transmitter.
• Induced noise comes from sources such as motors and appliances. These devices
act as a sending antenna, and the transmission medium acts as the receiving
antenna.
• Crosstalk is the effect of one wire on the other. One wire acts as a sending antenna
and the other as the receiving antenna.
• Impulse noise is a spike (a signal with high energy in a very short time) that comes
from power lines, lightning, and so on.
Noise
Data Transmission
• Data transmission refers to the movement of data in form of bits
between two or more digital devices.
• This transfer of data takes place via some form of transmission media
(for example, coaxial cable, fiber optics, radio, etc.)
Types of Data Transmission
 Parallel Transmission
• In parallel transmission, all the bits of data are transmitted simultaneously on separate

communication lines.

• Within communication device, the distances between different subunits are too short. To

transfer data between subunits using a separate wire to carry each bit of data.

• There are multiple wires connecting each sub-unit and data is exchanged using a parallel

transfer mode.

• This mode of operation results in minimal delays in transferring each word.

 Parallel Transmission
• It is speedy way of transmitting data as multiple bits are transmitted simultaneously with a single clock

pulse.

• In order to transmit n bits, n wires or lines are used. Thus each bit has its own line.
Serial Transmission
• Data is transmitted as a single bit at a time using a fixed time interval for each bit.
• When transferring data between two physically separate devices, especially if the separation
is more than a few kilometers, for reasons of cost, it is more economical to use a single line.
• In serial transmission, the various bits of data are transmitted serially one after the other.
• It requires only one communication line rather than n lines to transmit data from sender to
receiver.
• All the bits of data are transmitted on single line in serial fashion.
• In serial transmission, only single bit is sent with each clock pulse.
Types of Serial Transmission

1. synchronous

2. Asynchronous

• Both these transmissions use 'Bit synchronization'

• Bit synchronization helps the receiving computer to know when data

begin and end during a transmission.

• Therefore bit synchronization provides timing control.

Asynchronous Transmission

• Asynchronous transmission sends only one character at a time where a character is

either a letter of the alphabet or number or control character i.e. it sends one byte of
data at a time.

• Bit synchronization between two devices is made possible using start bit and stop bit.

• Start bit indicates the beginning of data i.e. alerts the receiver to the arrival of new
group of bits. A start bit usually 0 is added to the beginning of each byte.

• Stop bit indicates the end of data i.e. to let the receiver know that byte is finished,
one or more additional bits are appended to the end of the byte. These bits, usually
1s are called stop bits.
 Asynchronous Transmission
• idle time between the transmissions of different data bytes. This idle time is also known as Gap
• Asynchronous transmission is well suited for keyboard type-terminals and paper tape devices.
• Tansmission does not require any local storage at the terminal the computer devices.
• Asynchronous transmission is best suited to Internet traffic , modems etc.
 Synchronous Transmission

• Bit stream is combined into longer frames that may contain multiple
bytes.
• Synchronous transmission does not use start and stop bits. There is no
gap between the various bytes in the data stream.
• In the absence of start & stop bits, bit synchronization is established
between sender & receiver by 'timing' the transmission of each bit.
• In order to receive the data error free, the receiver and sender operates
at the same clock frequency.
Synchronous Transmission

•Transmission is used for high speed communication between computers

•This method is faster as compared to asynchronous as there are no extra bits
•It is costly as compared to asynchronous method. It requires local buffer storage at the two ends of
line to assemble blocks and it also requires accurately synchronized clocks at both ends.