Adama Science & Technology University

School of Electrical Engineering and Computing

Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering

Introduction to Communication systems

(ECE- 3202)

Chapter 2
Amplitude Modulation (AM)
Introduction
The process of imposing low frequency information signal onto a high frequency
carrier signal is known as modulation.
Modulation is simply a process of changing some property of the carrier in
accordance with an information signal.
Modulation is important for the following reasons:
To radiate from an antenna of reasonable size.
To enable more than one user to communicate over a channel at one time
by selecting different carrier frequency (FDM).
For Effective radiation.
 Cont.
There are three different types of modulation:
1. Analog Modulation: - AM, FM, PM.
2. Pulse Modulation: PAM, PPM, PWM and PCM.
3. Digital Modulation: ASK, FSK, PSK.
Analog modulation is a process of changing amplitude, frequency or phase
of an analog carrier in accordance with analog message signal. It has three
different forms: AM, FM, and PM.
Pulse modulation is a process or method of converting message signal in to
pulse forms for transferring pulses from a source to a destination. The
predominant methods are PAM, PPM, PWM and PCM.
Digital Modulation is the same as analog modulations but the modulating
signals are digital signals and thus the modulation type is different. The three
predominant methods in digital modulation are ASK, FSK, and PSK.
 Amplitude Modulation (AM) –Linear modulation
Amplitude Modulation is analog modulation, which is the process of
changing the amplitude of a relatively high frequency carrier signal in
accordance with the amplitude of the modulating message signal.
AM is a relatively inexpensive, low quality form of modulation that is
used for broadcasting of both audio and video signals.
There are four types of AM:
1. DSB-with carrier
2. DSB-SC
3. SSB
4. Vestigial AM
 DSB-with Carrier Amplitude Modulation (Standard AM)
This is the form of modulation used for commercial AM broadcasting.
It has the advantage that the receiver is extremely simple (good for
commercial applications, since radio receivers can be made very
cheaply).
However, we will see the power efficiency at the transmitter is very
poor.
 Cont.
Let the carrier be and message signal be .
 Then the block diagram of an AM modulated wave is shown as:

Mathematically, standard AM wave s(t) is described by

Where Ac is un-modulated carrier amplitude, ka is modulation sensitivity,

m(t) is the message signal (voice, music, data, etc), fc is carrier frequency
 Cont.

The amplitude of the envelope, a(t) is given as a(t) = Ac [1 + kam(t)]
Which as we see varies in accordance with the message signal m(t).


Here, we assume
for all t.

Note the envelope (amplitude)of the

wave varies in accordance with m(t),
hence, m(t) can be recovered from the
envelope a(t) of s(t).
 Cont.
where equation |𝑘𝑎𝑚(𝑡)|≤1 is violated; i.e. |𝑘𝑎𝑚(𝑡)| > 1, when m(t)< 0.
This causes the amplitude of s(t) to go negative during this interval,
which results in a phase reversal in the carrier waveform.
Note that this condition results in distortion of the envelope of s(t).
 Cont.
The envelop of the modulated wave has the same shape as the
baseband signal m(t) provided two requirements are satisfied:
i. for all t. This assure that, avoiding phase reversal of c(t).
ii. , where w is the highest frequency component of m(t). Otherwise, the
envelope cannot be visualized and hence, cannot be detected
satisfactorily.
 Modulation Index and Percentage of Modulation
The maximum absolute value of the quantity kam(t) is called
modulation index.
If it is multiplied by 100, the result is referred to as the percentage
modulation.
Modulation index is a factor that shows the degree of modulation.
 If modulation index is greater than 1, the message signal is said to
be over-modulated and the process is called over-modulation.
 Frequency Domain Description
Let s(t) & S(f) and m(t) & M(f) be Fourier transform pairs and also m(t) be
a band limited signal, what does the spectrum S(f) look like for a specific
message spectrum M(f)?
Rewriting the definition of s(t), we have

The frequency domain representation of the first term is a set of -functions of

amplitude at frequencies ±fc.
Using the frequency-shifting property of the Fourier transform for the second
term, we have
This is an important result: multiplication of m(t) in the time domain by shifts
M(f) upwards and downwards by fc Hz
 Cont.
Combining these two terms together, we have:

This spectrum contains the message spectrum shifted upwards and

downwards by fc, weighted by the factor .
It also contains two delta-functions of weight at frequencies ±fc.
 These -functions are the most predominant components present, yet
they carry no information.
Thus, we see that an AM modulation is wasteful in terms of the
power of the overall modulated signal to power in the message
component
Cont.
 Cont.
the portion of the spectrum of an AM wave above fc for positive
frequency and below -fc for negative frequencies is referred to as upper
side band (USB)
and the portion of the spectrum of an AM wave below fc for positive
frequency and above -fc for negative frequencies is referred to as lower
side band (LSB).
For positive frequencies, the highest frequency component of the AM
wave is and the lowest frequency component is
 The difference between these two frequencies define the transmission
bandwidth of the AM wave and it is exactly equal to twice the highest
frequency of the message signal i.e.,
 Single Tone Modulation
To visualize the AM process further, we examine the time and
frequency domain representations of s(t) when the message signal m(t)
is a sinusoidal
Let where .
The resulting AM waveform is then,

Using the standard trigonometric expansion for the cos (.) cos(.) term, we
have
 Cont.
Thus, we see that an AM waveform, modulated by a single-tone
message m(t), consists of three components:
i. The carrier component (sinusoidal in time domain) at fc of weight (or two 𝛿-
functions in frequency domain at ± fc each with weight ).
ii. A message component at with weight (lower side band).
iii. A message component at with weight (upper side band).
Cont.
 Cont.
For single-tone modulation, the modulation index can be obtained as
follow:
By definition, .
It is possible to compute the modulation index from measurements taken
on the modulated wave itself.
Whenever the message signal is displayed on an oscilloscope, the
modulation can be computed from Vmax and Vmin of the modulated wave.
 and
m
 Cont.
Two-sided frequency spectrum of a single tone modulated wave is
shown with corresponding weight for each delta-function.
 AM Power Distribution of a carrier modulated by a
single-tone message signal
The total power in the amplitude-modulated wave consists of the sum of
three components i.e the power in the carrier, in the USB and in the LSB.

The power in the side bands depends upon the value of the modulation
index. The greater the modulation index, the higher the sideband power.
AM current Relations
In many cases the power output from an AM transmitter is not measured
directly.
Instead the output current in the antenna is measured and the power is
calculated.
The total modulated current It is determined by the un-modulated carrier
current Ic, and the modulation index m.

Pt I t2 R I t2  m2 
 2  2   1  
  I t  I c 1  m 2
/2
Pc Ic R Ic  2 
 Efficiency of AM Transmitter
The carrier doesn’t contain message. The message is in the side
bands. Each side band contains the same information.
Therefore, the efficiency of an AM signal is power in sidebands divided
by the total power.

This has a maximum value of 1/3 = 33.3%.

Therefore, DSB-with carrier modulation has a very low efficiency.
This is one of the disadvantages of DSB-with carrier AM.
Another disadvantage is that it requires wide bandwidth .
However, it is inherently easy to modulate and demodulate.
Generation of AM waves
There are two basic ways to produce amplitude modulation.
The first is to multiply the carrier by a gain or attenuation factor that varies with
the modulating signal.
The second is to linearly mix or add the carrier and the modulating signals and
then apply the composite signal to a nonlinear device or circuit.
1. Switching modulation – Diode Modulator
The circuit diagram for switching modulation device is shown.
 It works on the second method of generating AM wave mentioned above.
Cont.
The carrier c(t) is given as c(t) = Ac cos 2fc t
We assume Ac >> m(t) for all t, and that the diode acts as an ideal switch. Thus, the
output voltage v2(t) can be expressed as
v1 (t ) c(t )  0
v 2 (t )  
0 c(t )  0

We see from the diagram that v1(t) = m(t) + Ac cos 2fct.
By substituting this into in the above equation, we get
v 2 (t )  [m(t )  Ac cos 2f c t ]g p (t )

where gp(t) is a periodic waveform [even signal] with period To = 1/fc, as shown in
next slide
Cont.

A periodic pulse train

Cont.
But gp(t) can be expressed in a Fourier series as

g p (t )  C 0  2 C n cos 2f 0 t
n 1

For duty cycle = ½,

1 n 1 sin(n / 2)
Cn  sin c( ) 
2 2 2 (n / 2)
 1 (1) k 1
 n  2k  1 (k  1,2,3,...)
   2k  1
0 otherwise


1 2  (1) n 1
 g p (t )    cos[2f c t (2n  1)]
2  n 1 2n  1
Cont.
1 2 2
 v 2 (t )  [m(t )  Ac cos 2f c t ][  cos 2f c t  cos 6f c t  ...]
2  3
m(t ) 1 2m(t ) 2A
  Ac cos 2f c t  cos 2f c t  c cos 2 (2f c t )  higher order terms
2 2  
A  4 
 c 1  m(t ) cos 2f c t  unwanted terms
2  Ac 

 The unwanted terms have out-of-band frequency components (DC and ≥ 2f c).
 These components can be eliminated by band-pass filtering.
 Comparing the above equation with the expression for s(t) we see that the
4
modulation index ka = A and the above equation describes an AM waveform.
c
Cont.
Another AM generating circuit which is also the type of switching modulator and
the resulting waveforms are given in the figure.
Cont.
Cont.
The diode current is clipped. The clipped half cycle will be generated by the LC
tuned circuit.
Each pulse of diode current, if it were the only one, would initiate a damped
oscillation in the tuned circuit.
 The oscillation would have an initial amplitude proportional to the size of the
current pulse and a decay rate dependent on the time constant of the circuit.
Since series of diode current pulses are applied to the tuned circuit, each pulse
will cause a complete sine wave proportional in amplitude to the size of the pulse,
generating signal waveform shown in fig. (e) which is good approximation of AM
wave.
Low- and high-level Modulators
The location of modulator in a transmitter determines whether the circuit is a
low level or high-level transmitter.
In low-level modulation, the modulation takes place prior to the output element
of the final stage of the transmitter.
In high-level modulators, the modulation takes place in the final element of the
final stage.
Demodulation of AM wave
The function of AM detector or demodulator is to recover or reproduce
modulating signal or the original source information/message signal from the
modulated wave at the receiver.
 Envelope Detector (Peak detector or Diode Detector)
A circuit diagram for an envelope detector is shown.
 It consists of a diode and an RC circuit, which is basically a simple lowpass filter.
Cont.
During the positive half-cycle of the input signal, the diode is conducting and the
capacitor charges up to the peak value of the input signal.
When the input falls below the voltage on the capacitor, the diode becomes
reverse-biased and the input becomes disconnected from the output.
During this period, the capacitor discharges slowly through the load resistor R.
On the next cycle of the carrier, the
diode conducts again when the input
signal exceeds the voltage across the
capacitor.
The capacitor charges up, to the
peak value of the input signal and the
process is repeated again.
Cont.
The time constant RC must be selected so as to follow the variations in the
envelope of the carrier-modulated signal.
1 1
In effect,  R1C1 
fc w
In such a case, the capacitor discharges slowly through the resistor and, thus, the
output of the envelope detector closely follows the message signal.
DSB-SC Modulation and Demodulation
Conventional AM have an inherent disadvantage that carrier power
constitutes two-third or more power of the total power.
This is a major draw back because the carrier contains no
information.
To overcome this shortcoming of AM we may suppress the carrier
component from the modulated wave resulting in DSB-SC modulation.
Thus by suppressing the carrier one will get a DSB-SC wave, which is
given by
S DSB  SC (t )  mVc Cos (2f c t )Cos (2f m t )
mVc mVc
S DSB  SC (t )  cos2 ( f c  f m )t   cos2 ( f c  f m )t 
2 2
Cont.
This modulated wave undergoes phase reversal whenever the
baseband signal m(t) crosses zero.
Therefore, unlike AM, the envelope of DSB-SC wave is different from
the base band signal.
The main advantage of DSB-SC over conventional AM is that it has a
higher efficiency.
Yet its bandwidth is the same as that of the conventional AM.
Cont.
DSB-SC Modulators
The DSB-SC consists of simply the product of the baseband and the carrier wave.
 A device performing the multiplication is called product modulator.
This can be either balanced modulator or ring modulator.
1. Balanced Modulator
The circuit diagram for balanced modulator and waveforms are shown
The carrier c(t) is considerably higher in amplitude and frequency than the
message signal m(t).
It turns on and off the diodes at
high rate.
Cont.
Assuming the +ve reference for the carrier generator is the right terminal, the
signal at the primary of T3 is given by,
m(t ) , c(t )  0

v(t )  
0 , c(t )  0


The output DSB-SC signal s(t )  m(t ) g p (t ) where gp(t) is a periodic waveform
[even signal] with period To = 1/fc, and amplitude of unity.
gp(t) can be expressed in
 a Fourier series as
g p (t )  C 0  2 C n cos 2f 0 t
n 1

For duty cycle = ½,

1 n 1 sin(n / 2)
Cn  sin c( ) 
2 2 2 (n / 2)
fc
Cont.
 1 (1) k 1
 n  2k  1 (k  1,2,3,...)
   2k  1
0 otherwise


1 2  (1) n 1
 g p (t )    cos[2f c t (2n  1)]
2  n 1 2n  1
1 2 2
s (t )  m(t )[  cos 2f c t  cos 6f c t  ...]
2  3
m(t ) 2m(t ) 2
  cos 2f c t  cos(6f c t )  higher order terms
2  3
2
 m(t ) cos 2f c t  unwanted terms


Therefore, rejecting the unwanted terms by using BPF that allows only components
centered around fc at the output of the modulator, DSB-SC signal can be obtained.
Cont.
2. Ring Modulator
The circuit for ring modulator is shown
2. Ring Modulator
We assume the signal c(t) is much larger than m(t). Thus c(t) controls the behavior
of diodes which would be acting as ON-OFF devices.
Consider the carrier cycle where the terminal 1 is positive and terminal 2 is negative.
T1 is an audio frequency transformer which is essentially an open circuit at the
frequencies of the carrier.
With the polarities assumed for c(t) , D1, D4 are forward biased, where as D2, D3 are
reverse biased.
As a consequence, the voltage at point ‘a’ gets switched to a' and voltage at point ‘b’
to b’.
During the other half cycle of c(t), D2 and D3 are forward biased where as D1 and D4
are reverse biased.
As a result, the voltage at ‘a’ gets transferred to b' and that at point ‘b’ to a’.
 Cont.
This implies, during, say the positive half cycle of c(t) , m(t) is switched to the output whereas, during the
negative half cycle, − m(t) is switched.
In other words, v(t) can be taken as
m(t ) , c(t )  0

v(t )  
 m(t ), c(t )  0

 m(t ) x p (t )
Where xp(t) is a square wave
Cont.
The Fourier series expansion

4 
(1) n 1
x p (t )   cos[2f c t (2n  1)]
 n 1 2n  1

4 4 4 
s (t )  m(t )  cos 2f c t  cos 6f c t  cos10f c t...
 3 5 

4m(t )
 cos 2f c t  unwanted out of terms terms

 The signal at the output of the BPF is
4
s DSB  SC (t )  m(t ) cos(2f c t )

Cont.
Demodulation of DSB-SC
Non-coherent detection is not possible in DSB-SC.
Therefore, Coherent detection of the one shown is used in DSB-SC demodulation
Cont.
In the absence of noise, and with the assumption of an ideal channel, the received signal is
equal to the modulated signal; i.e.,
r(t) = s(t) = Acm(t) cos(2π fct + φc)
Suppose we demodulate the received signal by first multiplying r (t ) by a locally
generated sinusoid cos(2π fct + φ), and then passing the product signal through an ideal
lowpass filter having a bandwidth W .
 The multiplication of r(t) with cos(2π fct + φ) yields
r(t) cos(2π fct + φ)
= Acm(t) cos(2π fct + φc) cos(2π fct + φ)
= 1/2 Acm(t) cos(φc − φ) + 1/2 Acm(t) cos(4π fct + φ + φc)
The lowpass filter rejects the double frequency components and passes only the lowpass
components.
Hence, its output is y(t) = 1/2 Acm(t) cos(φc − φ)
Cont.
Note that m(t) is multiplied by cos(φc − φ).
Thus, the desired signal is scaled in amplitude by a factor that depends on the phase
difference between the phase φc of the carrier in the received signal and the phase φ of the
locally generated sinusoid.
Whenφc is not equal to φ,the amplitude of the desired signal is reduced by the factor
cos(φc −φ).
If φc − φ = 45 , the amplitude of the desired signal is reduced by 2 and the signal power
is reduced by a factor of two.
If φc − φ = 90◦, the desired signal component vanishes.
the above discussion demonstrates the need for a phase-coherent or synchronous
demodulator for recovering the message signal m(t) from the received signal.
That is, the phase φ of the locally generated sinusoid should ideally be equal to the
phase φc of the received carrier signal.
SSB Modulation and Demodulation
Conventional AM and DSB-SC are wasteful of bandwidth because
they both require transmission bandwidth equal to twice the message
bandwidth.
As the transmission of information is concerned, only one sideband is
necessary.
Thus it is possible to transmit only one of the side bands because the
lower side band and upper sideband carries the same information.
 When only one sideband is transmitted, the modulation system is
referred to as single sideband system (SSB).
Cont.
SSB modulation provides the following advantages as compared to
conventional AM and DSB-SC.
1. It conserves frequency spectrum since only one of the side band is
transmitted.
2. It requires relatively low power as compared to conventional AM.
3. Noise decrease since the BW has decreased by half.
The benefit of using SSB is therefore derived from the reduced
bandwidth requirement and the elimination of the high power carrier
wave.
The principal disadvantage of the SSB system is its cost and
complexity.
Cont.
Mathematically- SSB wave is given by
^
𝑈 (𝑡 )= 𝐴 𝑐 𝑚 ( 𝑡 ) 𝑐𝑜𝑠 2 𝜋 𝑓 𝑐 ( 𝑡 ) ∓ 𝐴 𝑐 𝑚 (𝑡 ) 𝑠𝑖𝑛2 Π 𝑓 𝑐 (𝑡 )

where is the Hilbert transform of m(t).

the plus-or-minus sign determines which sideband we obtain.
SSB Modulators
The are two methods of generating SSB
1. Frequency Discrimination Method (Filter Method)
2. Phase Discrimination Method
Frequency Discrimination Method (Filter Method)
An SSB modulator based on frequency discrimination consists basically a ring
modulator and a filter, which is designed to pass the desired sideband of the DSB-
SC wave.
In designing the bandpass filter in the SSB generator system, the filter must have
a pass band at the same frequency range as the spectrum of the desired sideband.
This type of frequency discrimination can be satisfied only by using highly
selective filter, which can be realized using crystal and ceramic filters.
Phase Discriminator Method
This method involves two separate simultaneous modulation processes and
subsequent combination of the resulting modulation products.
The derivation of this system follows directly from
1  1
S SSB (t )  Ac m(t ) cos(2f c t )  Ac m(t ) sin(2f c t )
2 2

This defines the canonical representation of SSB waves for USB transmission.
Cont.
Demodulation of SSB : Coherent Detection
To demodulate an SSB wave and extract the baseband signal m(t), we have to
shift the spectrum of the sideband by ± fc so as to convert the transmitted sideband
back to the baseband signal.
This can be accomplished by using coherent detection, which involves applying
the SSB wave, together with a locally generated sinusoidal wave V ccos(2πfct) to a
product modulator and then low pass filtering the modulator output will produce
m(t).
Cont.
Thus, for the USSB signal, we have
r(t) cos 2π fct = u(t) cos(2π fct + φ)
= 1/2 Acm(t) cos φ + 1/2 Acmˆ (t) sin φ + double frequency terms
By passing the product signal through an ideal lowpass filter, the double frequency
components are eliminated, leaving us with

yl(t) = 1/2 Acm(t) cos φ + 1/2 Acmˆ (t) sin φ

Note that the effect of the phase offset is not only to reduce the amplitude of the desired
signal m(t) by cos φ, but it also results in an undesirable sideband signal due to the
presence of mˆ (t) in yl(t).
The latter component was not present in a DSB-SC signal.
However, it is an important element that contributes to the distortion of the demodulated
SSB signal.
Cont.
The transmission of a pilot tone at the carrier frequency is a very effective method for providing a
phase-coherent reference signal for performing synchronous demodulation at the receiver.
Thus, the undesirable sideband signal component is eliminated.
However, this means that a portion of the transmitted power must be allocated to the
transmission of the carrier.
The spectral efficiency of SSB AM makes this modulation method very attractive for use in voice
communications over telephone channels (wire lines and cables).
In this application, a pilot tone is transmitted for synchronous demodulation and shared among
several channels.
The filter method for selecting one of the two signal sidebands for transmission is particularly
difficult to implement when the message signal m(t) has a large power concentrated in the vicinity
of f = 0.
 In such a case, the sideband filter must have an extremely sharp cutoff in the vicinity of the
carrier in order to reject the second sideband.
Such filter characteristics are very difficult to implement in practice.
Vestigial (VSB) AM
When the information signal contains significant components at extremely low
frequencies as in TV signals, the SSB modulation is inappropriate in transmitting
such baseband signals due to the difficulty of isolating one side band.
This difficulty suggests another scheme known as VSB modulation, which is a
compromise between SSB and DSB-SC modulation.
AM vestigial sideband (VSB) is a form of amplitude modulation in which the
carrier and one complete sideband are transmitted, but only part of the second
sideband is transmitted.
Probably the most widely known VSB system is the picture portion of a
commercial TV-broadcasting signal.
 The bandwidth required by a VSB system is smaller than the DSB-SC system but
higher than the SSB system.
 Cont.
The VSB modulation can be generated by passing a DSB-SC wave through an
appropriate filter with transfer function H(f).
AC
SVSB ( f )  [ M  f c  f m   M  f c  f m ]H ( f ) , where M(f) is Fourier transform of
m(t). 2
Cont.
To generate a VSB AM signal we begin by generating a DSB-SC AM signal and
passing it through a sideband filter with frequency response H ( f ).
In the time domain the VSB signal may be expressed as
u(t) = [Acm(t) cos 2π fct] ⋆ h(t)
where h(t) is the impulse response of the VSB filter.
In the frequency domain, the corresponding expression is
U(f)= Ac[M(f − fc)+M(f + fc)]H(f)
Cont.
To determine the frequency-response characteristics of the filter, let us consider the demodulation
of the VSB signal u(t).
We multiply u(t) by the carrier component cos 2π fct and pass the result through an ideal lowpass
filter.
 Thus, the product signal is, equivalently,
v(t) = u(t) cos 2π fct

V(f)= 1/2[U(f − fc)+U(f + fc)]

If we substitute for U ( f ), we obtain
V(f)= Ac/4[M(f −2fc)+M(f)]H(f − fc) + Ac/4[M(f)+M(f +2fc)]H(f + fc )
The lowpass filter rejects the double-frequency terms and passes only the components in the
frequency range | f | ≤ W .
Cont.
Hence, the signal spectrum at the output of the ideal lowpass filter is
Vl( f ) = Ac/4 M( f )[H( f − fc) + H( f + fc)]
We require that the message signal at the output of the lowpass filter be
undistorted.
Hence, the VSB filter characteristic must satisfy the condition
H(f − fc)+H(f + fc)=constant, |f|≤W
This condition is satisfied by a filter that has the frequency-response
characteristic shown.
Cont.
Cont.
We note that H ( f ) selects the upper sideband and a vestige of the lower side band.
It has odd symmetry about the carrier frequency fc, in the frequency range fc − fa < f < fc + fa,
where fa is a conveniently selected frequency that is some small fraction of W ; i.e., fa ≪ W.
Thus, we obtain an undistorted version of the transmitted signal.
The figure illustrates the frequency response of a VSB filter that selects the lower sideband and
a vestige of the upper sideband.
To avoid distortion of the
message signal, the VSB
filter should be designed to
have linear phase over its
passband fc − fa ≤|f|≤ fc +W.
AM Transmitters
The transmitter is a part of communication system that accepts the message signal
to be transmitted and converts it into an RF signal capable of being transmitted
over long distances.
Every transmitter has three basic functions.
First, the transmitter must generate a signal of the correct frequency at a desired
point in the spectrum.
Second, it must provide some form of modulation that causes the information
signal to modify the carrier signal.
Third, it must provide sufficient power amplification to ensure that the signal
level is high enough so that it will carry over the desired distance.
Cont.
Cont.
An oscillator generates the final carrier frequency.
In most applications, this will be a crystal oscillator due to high frequency stability of the
crystal.
The carrier signal is then fed to a buffer amplifier whose primary purpose is to isolate the
oscillator from the remaining power amplifier stages.
The signal from the buffer is applied to the driver amplifier. This is class C amplifier. It is
designed to provide an intermediate level of power amplification. The purpose of this circuit is
to generate sufficient output power to drive the final power amplifier stage.
The final power amplifier, normally just referred to as the final, also operates class C at very
high power. The actual amount of power depends upon the application.
Assuming it as a voice transmitter, the voice from the microphone is amplified and processed
by the speech processor. The speech processor is used for filtering and amplitude control.
To design an AM transmitter one should know about the main blocks of the transmitter.
These include RF oscillators, Buffer amplifiers, Driver amplifiers, power amplifiers,
filters and impedance matching.
AM Receivers
A conventional AM receiver simply converts an amplitude-modulated wave back
to the original source information.
The RF section detects, select and amplify the received RF signal.
The mixer/converter section down-converts the RF frequency in to IF frequency.
The primary function of the IF section is for amplification and selectivity.
The AM detector demodulates the AM wave and the audio section simply
amplifies the recovered information.
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