Module 0 - Introduction to C programming
Introduction to the Borland C environment
Statements, Assignments and Expressions
Flow control and Looping
Arrays, Pointers and Strings
Processing, File processing and Functions
Structures and DSP applications
Module 1 - Communications Fundamentals
Time, frequency and bandwidth
Distortion, interference, and noise
Digital baseband Transmission
Bandpass digital modulation
Multi-level digital modulation
Multi-user techniques
Timing control in digital communication
Errors in digital communication
Design limitations on maximum data-rate and channel capacity communication channels
Propagation of signals
Microwave communications
Satellite communication
Mobile communications
Equalization
OFDM
Module 2: Error Protection Fundamentals and Applications
- Principles of FEC coding:
- Types of code
- Performance of coded systems
- Block Codes:
- Description of cyclic codes
- Encoding and decoding
- Low complexity decoding of block codes
- Finite fields
- BCH codes
- Reed-Solomon codes
- BCH decoding
- Convolutional Codes:
- Hard and Soft Decoding
- Performance
- Punctured codes
- Automatic repeat request systems:
- Type I
- Type II
- Interleaving
- Coded Modulation:
- Principles of Coded Modulation
- Trellis-coded modulation (TCM)
- Block Coded Modulation
- Turbo Convolutional codes
- Turbo product codes
- Low density parity check codes
- Space time coding:
- Applications
- Turbo product codes
- Low density parity check codes
Module 3 - RF Circuit Design and Propagation
- Large Scale Fading:
- Free space model
- Relating power to electric field
- Propagation over a plane surface
- Propagation in built up areas
- Small-scale fading and multipath propagation:
- Nature of multipath
- Doppler shift
- Impulse response of a multipath channel
- Parameters of mobile multipath channels
- Types of fading
- Clarke scattering model
- Fading statistics
- Outage rate
- Fading rate and average fade duration
- Antenna systems:
- Antenna fundamentals: Gain, Beam-width, Aperture, polarization
- Antenna Structures: Dipole, omni directional, Yagi, Log periodic
- Antenna Arrays: Phased array, beam forming and smart antennas
- RF Design Techniques:
- Transmission line theory
- Characterization of two port network
- Smith Charts
- Microstrip lines for microwave circuits
- Amplifier design
- Transmitter design
- Receiver design
- Microwave diode mixers
Module 4 - Real Time Systems
- DSP Devices:
- numeric representations
- data path
- memory architectures
- addressing
- instruction sets
- execution and control
- pipelines
- peripherals
- current DSP devices
- AD SHARC series devices
- FPGA Devices:
- introduction to FPGAs
- VHDL
- combinational logic in VHDL
- synchronous sequential design
Module 5 - The Space Environment and Its Influence on Satellite Systems
- Space Environment:
- Identify the various regions of the aerospace environment and describe their physical properties including ‘space weather’
- How temperature, pressure, ionized particle density, solar and cosmic radiation fluxes vary with distance from the Earth
- The physical properties of the ionosphere, magnetosphere and the trapped radiation belts and their influence on system design
- The dynamic nature (temporal and spatial) of the space environment. Eg; magnetic storms, substorms and coronal mass ejection
- Space weather effects on satellite systems:
- The problems caused by spacecraft charging and the damaging effects of solar and cosmic radiations
- Identify problems associated with space debris (natural and man-made)
- The techniques required to enable a satellite system to withstand the space environment (temperature control,
- and cooling systems, radiation hardening, new materials etc.)
- The conditions that lead to ‘Space failures’ and anomalies (e.g. coronal mass ejection)
- Calculating space craft temperature from the thermal budget, (radiation flux, material emissivity, surface geometry, etc.)
- Sub-system re-configuration techniques for overcoming space failure
Module 6 - Satellite Systems and Orbit analysis
- Orbit Analysis and launch vehicles:
- Calculate the satellite orbit parameters for geostationary and asynchronous orbits
- Orbit transfer techniques and their advantages
- Appreciate the importance of station keeping and altitude control
- The GPS navigation system
- Satellite link budgets:
- Calculate the transmission path loss from ground to satellite and vice versa
- Appreciate the importance of the noise environment in providing a satisfactory service and be able to calculate noise temperatures
- and signal-to-noise ratios for a given system
- Be familiar with the design of a typical sat-com system including up and down links
- Satellite sub-systems:
- Switching protocols and the basic elements contained within the satellite platform
- Modulation and multiplexing techniques
- Antennas and the determination of the ground footprint
- Subsystem integration and energy budget
- Satellite service provision:
- Calculate the saturation flux density and effective radiated power required for a given level of service
- The processes/protocols involved in multiuser access to the service
- The limitations imposed by data rates, link budgets, power and antenna size and gain
Research Project/Thesis:
The Generation of Artificial Aurora by High Power Radio Waves |
