This document discusses transmission impairment, which refers to degradation of signals as they travel through transmission media. There are three main causes of transmission impairment: 1) attenuation, which is the loss of signal energy as it passes through a medium, 2) distortion, which is a change in the signal's form or shape, such as different frequency components arriving at different times, and 3) noise, which adds unwanted signals from sources like thermal effects, interference, or crosstalk between wires. Attenuation is measured in decibels and can be compensated for using amplifiers, while signal to noise ratio (SNR) measures the quality of a transmission system by comparing the signal strength to the noise power.
3. TRANSMISSION IMPAIRMENT
Signals travel through transmission media, which are
not perfect. The imperfection causes signal impairment.
This means that the signal at the beginning of the
medium is not the same as the signal at the end of the
medium. What is sent is not what is received. Three
causes of impairment are
1. Attenuation
2. Distortion
3. Noise
4. ATTENUATION
Means loss of energy => weaker signal
When a signal travels through a medium it
loses energy overcoming the resistance of
the medium
Amplifiers are used to compensate for this
loss of energy by amplifying the signal.
5. MEASUREMENT OF
ATTENUATION
To show the loss or gain of energy the unit
decibel is used.
dB = 10log10P2/P1
P1 = input signal
P2 = output signal
6. DISTORTION
Means that the signal changes its form or
shape
Distortion occurs in composite signals
Each frequency component has its own
propagation speed traveling through a
medium.
The different components therefore arrive
with different delays at the receiver.
That means that the signals have different
phases at the receiver than they did at the
source.
8. NOISE
There are different types of noise
Thermal - random noise of electrons in the wire creates an
extra signal
Induced - from motors and appliances, devices act are
transmitter antenna and medium as receiving antenna.
Crosstalk - same as above but between two wires.
Impulse - Spikes that result from power lines, lightning, etc.
10. SIGNAL TO NOISE RATIO (SNR)
To measure the quality of a system the SNR
is often used. It indicates the strength of the
signal wrt the noise power in the system.
It is the ratio between two powers.
It is usually given in dB and referred to as
SNRdB.