Discrete-Time Signals and

Systems
EE 453 / CE 352
Saad Baig
Agenda
• Digitals Signal
• Properties
• Types of Signals
• Linear Time-Invariant Systems
• Impulse Response
• Convolution
• Digital Systems
• Representation, block diagrams, Direct Form I and II

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Signal: Analog vs Digital
• Analog Signal
− Continuous-Time
AND
− Continuous-Valued

• Digital Signal
− Discrete-Time
AND
− Discrete Valued

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Elementary Signal Transformations

• Time Shifting

• Time Reversal

• Time Scaling

• Time Scaling with Shifting

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Time Shifting (Translation)
• 𝑥[𝑛] is mapped to 𝑦[𝑛] as: 𝑦[𝑛] = 𝑥[𝑛 − 𝑛0 ]
– Where 𝑛0 is a real number.

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Time Reversal (Reflection)
• Maps the input signal 𝑥[𝑛] to the output signal 𝑦[𝑛] as given by
𝑦[𝑛] = 𝑥[−𝑛]
– Geometrically, the output signal 𝑦[𝑛] is a reflection of the input signal 𝑥[𝑛]
about the (vertical) line 𝑛 = 0.

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Time Scaling (Compression/Expansion)
• Maps the input signal 𝑥[𝑛] to the output signal 𝑦[𝑛] as given by
𝑦[𝑛] = 𝑥[𝛼𝑛]
• where 𝛼 is a non-zero real number.

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Time Scaling with Shifting
• Maps the input signal 𝑥[𝑛] to the output signal 𝑦[𝑛] as given by
𝑦[𝑛] = 𝑥[𝛼𝑛 + 𝛽]
– where 𝛼 and 𝛽 are real numbers and 𝛼 is non-zero.
– A systematic approach to doing this is to first delay or advance 𝑥[𝑛] in
accordance with the value of 𝛽, and then perform time scaling on the
resulting signal in accordance with the value of 𝛼.
– I.e., replace 𝑛 with 𝑛 + 𝛽, then replace 𝑛 with 𝛼𝑛 to get 𝛼𝑛 + 𝛽.

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Other Elementary Signal Transformations

• Amplitude Shifting

• Amplitude Scaling

• Amplitude Scaling with Shifting

• Signal Addition

• Signal Multiplication

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Amplitude Shifting
• Maps the input signal 𝑥[𝑛] to the output signal 𝑦[𝑛] as given by:
𝑦[𝑛] = 𝑥[𝑛] − 𝑛0
– where 𝑛0 is a real number.

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Amplitude Scaling
• Maps the input signal 𝑥[𝑛] to the output signal 𝑦[𝑛] as given by:
𝑦[𝑛] = 𝛼𝑥[𝑛]
• where 𝛼 is a non-zero real number.

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Amplitude Scaling with Shifting
• Maps the input signal 𝑥[𝑛] to the output signal 𝑦[𝑛] as given by
𝑦[𝑛] = 𝛼𝑥[𝑛] + 𝛽
• where 𝛼 and 𝛽 are real numbers and 𝛼 is non-zero.

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Signal Addition
• The sum of two signals and is a signal y(n) whose value at any instant
is equal to the sum of the values of these two signals at that instant,
as given by:
𝑦 𝑛 = 𝑥1 𝑛 + 𝑥2 𝑛 , −∞ < 𝑛 < ∞

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Signal Multiplication
• The product of two signals 𝑥1 [𝑛] and 𝑥2 [𝑛] is a signal 𝑦[𝑛] whose
value at any instant is equal to the product of the values of these two
signals at that instant, that is
𝑦 𝑛 = 𝑥1 𝑛 𝑥2 𝑛 , −∞ < 𝑛 < ∞

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Signal Transformation: Example

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Signal Transformation: Example

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Signal Transformation: Example

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Signal Energy
• The energy of a discrete-time signal 𝑥[𝑛] is defined as:
∞
2
𝐸 = ෍ 𝑥[𝑛]
𝑛=−∞

• Note that for some signals the above sum might not converge and thus those
signal have infinite energy.
• Practical signals have finite energy. They have finite duration and finite
amplitude.

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Signal Power
• The average power of a discrete-time signal x[n] is defined as:
𝑁
1 2
𝑃 = lim ෍ 𝑥[𝑛]
𝑁→∞ 2𝑁 + 1
𝑛=−𝑁

• Note that for some signals the above sum might not converge and thus those
signals have infinite power.
• A signal whose amplitude is constant over infinite duration is a power signal.

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Signal Characterization through “Energy”
and “Power”

• A signal with finite energy is said to be an energy signal.

• A signal with non-zero finite power is said to be a power signal.
• It‘s possible for a signal to be neither an energy nor a power signal (if
either of them is infinity).
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Energy Signal and Power Signal:
Interesting Observations

• An energy signal has zero average power (e.g. nonperiodic signal).

• If 𝐸 is infinite, the average power 𝑃 may be finite or infinite.
• A power signal has infinite energy (e.g. periodic signals).

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Signal Properties: Even Signal
• A signal 𝑥[𝑛] is said to be even (or symmetric) if it satisfies:
𝑥 𝑛 = 𝑥 −𝑛 for all n
• Geometrically, the graph of an even signal is symmetric about the origin.

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Signal Properties: Odd Signal
• A signal 𝑥[𝑛] is said to be odd (or antisymmetric) if it satisfies:
𝑥 𝑛 = −𝑥[−𝑛] for all n
• Geometrically, the graph of an odd signal is antisymmetric about the origin.

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Decomposition of a Signal
• If a signal 𝑥[𝑛] can be represented as
𝑥[𝑛] = 𝑥1 [𝑛] + 𝑥2 [𝑛]
we say that 𝑥 𝑛 can be decomposed into signals 𝑥1 𝑛 and 𝑥2 𝑛 .

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Even-Odd Decomposition of a Signal
• Every signal 𝑥 𝑛 has a unique representation of the form:
𝑥 𝑛 = 𝑥𝑒 𝑛 + 𝑥𝑜 𝑛
where the functions 𝑥𝑒 𝑛 and 𝑥𝑜 𝑛 are even and odd respectively,
given by:
1 1
𝑥𝑒 𝑛 = 𝑥 𝑛 + 𝑥 −𝑛 𝑥𝑜 𝑛 = [𝑥 𝑛 − 𝑥 −𝑛 ]
2 2
• The functions 𝑥𝑒 𝑛 and 𝑥𝑜 𝑛 are called the even part and odd part
of 𝑥 𝑛 , respectively.

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Even-Odd Decomposition of a Signal

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Signal Properties: Periodic Signal
• A signal 𝑥[𝑛] is said to be periodic with period 𝑁 if it satisfies:
𝑥 𝑛 =𝑥 𝑛+𝑁 , for all 𝑛
• The smallest value of 𝑁 for which the above equation holds is call the
fundamental period of 𝑥[𝑛].

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Signal Properties: Periodic Signal
• A periodic signal is unchanged by a time shift of T.
• If 𝑥(𝑡) is periodic then it must satisfy:
𝑥 𝑡 = 𝑥 𝑡 + 𝑚𝑇 for all 𝑡 and integers 𝑚
• Fundamental period (𝑇0 ) of 𝑥 𝑡 is the smallest positive value of 𝑇 for
which the following equation holds:
𝑥 𝑡 =𝑥 𝑡+𝑇 for all 𝑡

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Signal Properties: Aperiodic Signal
• A signal that is not periodic is said to be Aperiodic (or Nonperiodic)
signal.

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DT Unit Impulse Signal
(Unit Sample Sequence)

• The discrete-time unit impulse signal is defined as:

0, 𝑛≠0
𝛿 𝑛 =ቊ
1, 𝑛=0

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DT Unit Step Signal
• The discrete-time unit step signal is defined as:

0, 𝑛<0
𝑢 𝑛 =ቊ
1, 𝑛≥0

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DT Unit Ramp Signal
• The discrete-time unit ramp signal is defined as:

0, 𝑛<0
𝑢𝑟 𝑛 = ቊ
𝑛, 𝑛≥0

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Relationship between DT Unit Impulse
and Unit Step Signals

• The discrete-time unit impulse is the first difference of the discrete-

time unit step.
𝛿 𝑛 = 𝑢 𝑛 − 𝑢[𝑛 − 1]
• The discrete-time unit step is the running sum of the discrete-time
unit impulse.
𝑛

𝑢 𝑛 = ෍ 𝛿[𝑛 − 𝑚]
𝑚=0

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Sampling Property of the DT Unit Impulse
• The DT unit impulse signal can be used to sample the value of a signal
at n = 0.
𝑥 𝑛 𝛿 𝑛 = 𝑥 0 𝛿[𝑛]
• More generally, a DT unit impulse signal 𝛿 𝑛 − 𝑛0 can be used to
sample the value of a signal at 𝑛 = 𝑛0 :
𝑥 𝑛 𝛿 𝑛 − 𝑛0 = 𝑥 𝑛0 𝛿[𝑛 − 𝑛0 ]

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