Chapter 3: Amplitude

Modulation Reception

EET-223: RF Communication Circuits

Walter Lara
 Tuned Radio Frequency (TRF) Receivers

• Simplest/Oldest AM receiver (see Fig 3-1)

• Consists of:
– RF Amplifier:
• Amplifies weak signal from antenna
• Low noise characteristics
• Tuned to carrier and sideband frequencies
– Detector: extracts the intelligence from the AM
signal
– Audio Amplifier: provides sufficient power to
drive loudspeaker
Figure 3-1 Simple radio receiver block diagram.
 Receiver Characteristics

• Sensitivity: minimum input signal (voltage) required to

produce a specified output signal
– The lower, the better
– Must be greater than noise floor (input noise)
– Range from mV (cheap ) to µV (expensive)
• Selectivity: extend to which a receiver can differentiate
between desired signal and other undesired signals or
noise
– Optimum value equals bandwidth needed for carrier and
sidebands (e.g., for AM, 30-KHz)
– TRF receivers suffer from variable-selectivity problem (because
of tuned circuits)
 AM Detection (Demodulation)

• Non-linear device (e.g., BJT or Op Amp) used for

detection which results on components at:
– Carrier frequency (fc)
– Lower-side frequency (fc - fi)
– Upper-side frequency (fc + fi)
– DC Component
– Intelligence frequency (fi)
• LPF used to suppress RF components leaving only
intelligence and DC components
Figure 3-2 Nonlinear device used as a detector.
 Diode Detector
• Simple and effective
• Nearly perfect nonlinear resistance characteristic
• Advantages:
– Can handle high power
– Acceptable distortion levels
– Highly efficient (~90% achievable)
– Support Automatic Gain Control (AGC) circuits
• Disadvantages:
– Tuned circuit power absorbed by diode (reduces
selectivity)
– Doesn’t provide amplification
Figure 3-3 Diode detector.
 Superheterodyne Receivers
• Developed in the early 1930, still dominant
• Advantages:
– Constant selectivity over wide range of received
frequencies (unlike TRF’s)
– Better sensitivity
– Lower distortion (better linearity)
– Provide amplification
• Disadvantages:
– More complex, costly
– Image frequency problem (more later)
• Block Diagram shown at Fig 3-6 (see next side)
Figure 3-6 Superheterodyne receiver block diagram.
 Superheterodyne Receiver Components
• Main components are:
– RF Amplifier: pre-amplifies RF signal (if required)
– Local Oscillator (LO): provides steady sine wave
– Mixer (aka first detector): mixes RF signal with LO sine
wave to produce an RF signal at fixed/known frequency
– Intermediate Frequency (IF) Amplifier: provides bulk of
RF amplification at fixed frequency (constant BW,
avoiding variable-selectivity problem)
– Detector: extracts intelligence from RF signal
– Audio/Power Amplifier: amplify as need by speaker
 Superhereodyne Receiver Frequency
Conversion
• The Mixer, being a nonlinear device, produces the
following components:
– Frequencies at all original inputs: fLO, fc , fc + fi , fc - fi ,
– Sum and difference components of all original inputs:
fLO ± fc , fLO ± (fc + fi ), fLO ± (fc – fi )
– Harmonics of all above frequencies
– A DC component
• The IF Amplifier is tuned to only accept components
around 455 KHz: fLO – fc , fLO – (fc + fi) fLO – (fc - fi)
• The IF Amplifier output is a replica of original AM
signal, except that carrier frequency is now 455 KHz
Figure 3-7 Frequency conversion process.
Figure 3-8 Frequency conversion.
 Superhereodyne Tuning
• Center frequency of tuned circuit at front end of IF
Amplifier is always constant (455 KHz)
• Center frequency of tuned circuit at front end of
Mixer is adjusted to select incoming radio station
• LO frequency tracks tuned frequency to keep a
constant difference of 455 KHz
• Front-end circuits are made track together by using
variable ganged capacitors (see Fig 3-9)
• Alternatively, varactor diodes can be used. These
have small capacitance that varies as function of
their reverse bias voltage (see Figs 3-11 & 3-12)
Figure 3-9 Variable ganged capacitor.
Figure 3-11 Varactor diode symbols and C/V characteristic.
Figure 3-12 Broadcast-band AM receiver front end with electronic tuning.
 Superhereodyne Image Frequency Problem
• Frequency conversion performed by mixer-oscillator
sometimes allows undesired station to be fed into
IF Amplifier
– See Fig 3-13 for problem illustration
• Designing receivers with high image frequency
rejection is an important design consideration
• Not a major problem on standard broadcast since
stations properly spaced to allow good selectivity
– See Fig 3-14 for illustration
• If needed, double conversion technique can be used
to solve problem (details on Chapter 7)
Figure 3-13 Image frequency illustration.
Figure 3-14 Image frequency not a problem.
 Automatic Gain Control (AGC)
• Lowers amplifier gain when strong signal amplitude
is present to keep transducer output constant
• Avoids having to adjust the volume control for weak
vs strong signals
• Needed because signal strength can vary due to
many factors such as:
– Channel-to-channel variance on signal strength
– Changes on weather and ionosphere conditions
– Changes on receiver location (e.g., AM car radio)
• Recall Diode Detector has built-in support for AGC
(see how at Figs 3-18 & 3-19)
Figure 3-18 Development of AGC voltage.
Figure 3-19 AGC circuit illustration.
 AM Receiver Analysis
• Typically, power gain or attenuation of receiver
stages is specified in dBm or dBW. Recall:
– dBm = 10 log P / 1 mW
– dBW = 10 log P / 1 W
• Dynamic Range is a measure of how well a receiver
can handle large and small signals at the same time
– Computed as dB difference between largest tolerable
input level and its sensitivity level (minimum level)
– State-of-the-art receivers perform at ~100 dB
Figure 3-26 Receiver block diagram.