Republic of Yemen

University of Saba Region

Faculty of IT&CS
Course: Communications Technology (1)

Communications Technology (1)

Lec.2
Dr. Abdullah Alamri
 Signals & Systems
• Because most “systems” are driven by “signals” EEs &
CoEs study what is called “Signals & Systems”
• “Signal” = a time-varying voltage (or other quantity)
that generally carries some information
• The job of the “System” is often to extract, modify,
transform, or manipulate that carried information
• So… a big part of “Signals & Systems” is using
math models to see what a system “does” to a signal
Physical System System Model
vout(t)
Input x(t) Output y(t)
vin(t) Audio
System
Amplifier
Math
Voltage Electronics Function Math “Model”
Some Application Areas From Table 32.1 in Electrical Engineering
Uncovered, 2nd Ed. by White & Doering

Application Area Specific Uses of Signals & Systems

Telecommunications Answering machines, modems, fax machines, cell phones,
speaker phones
Speech and Audio Voice mail, speaker verification, synthetic speech, audio
compression (e.g., mp3)
Automotive Engine control, antilock braking systems, active
suspension, airbag control, system diagnosis
Medical Hearing aids, remote monitoring, ultrasound imaging,
magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
Image Processing 3D animation, image enhancement, image compression
(JPEG), video compression (MPEG), high-definition TV
Control Systems Head positioning in disk drives, laser control (e.g.,
printers, CD/DVD drives), engine & motor control, robots
Military & Aerospace Radar & sonar, navigation systems (e.g., GPS), secure
communications, missile guidance, battlefield sensors

In each of these areas you can’t build the electronics until your
math models tell you what you need to build
❖ Five Common Signals & Systems Scenarios:
➢ Given a system, determine a signal that will pass through it well
▪ € e.g., Communication Transmitter
➢ Given a type of signal, design a system that will pass it well
• € e.g., Audio Amplifier
➢ Design a system that will make a desired change to a signal
• e.g., Audio Equalizer
➢ Design a system that will extract desired info from a signal
• e.g., Radar System or Communication Receiver
➢ Design a system (and maybe signal) that gives a desired output
• e.g., Control System….

Forward
System

Feedback
 Continuous-Time & Discrete-Time
• Modern systems generally…
– get a continuous-time signal from a sensor
– a cont.-time system modifies the signal
– an “analog-to-digital converter” (ADC or A-to-D) sample the signal to
create a discrete-time signal … a “stream of numbers”
– A discrete-time system to do the processing
– and then (if desired) convert back to analog (not shown here)
x(t) x(t)

t t
Sensor
Analog Digital Elec.
ADC
Electronics (Computer)
Electrical Electrical
Physical Electrical C-T Electrical Electrical D-T Electrical
C-T C-T System C-T D-T System D-T
Signal Signal Signal Signal Signal
 Types of Signals
Continuous-Time Versus Discrete-time Signals

Operation of Signals.
 Continuous-Time Versus Discrete-time Signals

Continuous Time Signal (CTS) Discrete Time Signal (DTS)

• The independent variable t is continuous. • The independent variable t is discrete.

• The signal values are defined for all t in the • It takes only a discrete values n.
interval of interest. • n is an integer.
• Notation x(t). • Notation x(nTs), Ts is the sampling time.
• It results from sampling of (CTS).

x(t) x[nTs]
Ts is the sampling time
o o o
o o o
o o o

0 t t

6Ts
2Ts
3Ts

5Ts

7Ts
-1Ts

4Ts
Ts
0

Hint: The digital signal is obtained from the discrete time signal
by quantizing the signal values at every sample.
Types of Signals
 Types of Signals
Sinusoidal Signals:
Types of Signals
Types of Signals
 Types of Signals
Square signals:
Types of Signals
 Types of Signals
Real Exponential Signals:

𝑥(𝑡) = 𝑒 𝜎𝑡 𝑥 𝑛 = 𝑒 𝜎𝑛
Step & Ramp Functions
Unit Step Function u(t)

u(t)
1 ... t

Note: A step of height A can be made from Au(t)

4/22
The unit step signal can model the act of switching on a DC source

t=0 R

+
Vs C
–

R
+
Vsu(t) C
–

R
+
Vsu(t) C

– 5/22
 Unit Ramp Function r(t)

r(t)
Unit slope
1 ... t

Note: A ramp with slope m can be made from: mr(t)

 Relationship between u(t) & r(t)
t
What is
 u()d ?
−
Depends on t value
function of t: f(t)

f (t) =  u( )d What is f(t)?

t

−
-Write unit step as a function of 
-Integrate up to  = t i.e., Find Area
-How does area change as t changes?
u()

t

1 f (t) = 
−
u()d = 1 t = t = r(t)

 t
=t  r(t) = −
u( )d

Area = f(t)

“Running Integral of step = ramp”

Also note: For
we have:

Not defined at t = 0!

Overlooking this, we can roughly say u(t) = dr(t)

dt
r(t) u(t)
1 ... t 1 ...

1
 Time Shifting Signals
Time shifting is an operation on a signal that shows up in many
areas of signals and systems:
• Time delays due to propagation of signals
─ acoustic signals propagate at the speed of sound
─ radio signals propagate at the speed of light
• Time delays can be used to “build” complicated signals

Time Shift: If you know x(t), what does x(t – t0) look like?
For example… If t0 = 2:
x(0 – 2) = x(–2) x(1 – 2) = x(–1)

At t = 0, x(t – 2) takes the At t = 1, x(t – 2) takes the

value of x(t) at t = –2 value of x(t) at t = –1
 Example of Time Shift of the Unit Step u(t):
u(t)
1 ...

-2 -1 1 2 3 4 t

u(t-2)
1 ...

-2 -1 1 2 3 4 t

u(t+0.5) General View:

1 ...
x(t ± t0) for t0 > 0
-2 -1 1 2 3 4 t “+t0” gives Left shift (Advance)
“–t0” gives Right shift (Delay)
 Other Names: Delta Function,
The Impulse Function Dirac Delta Function

• One of the most important functions for understanding systems!!

• It does not exist in practice!!

• It is a theoretical tool used to understand what is important to know

about systems!
• But… it leads to ideas that are used all the time in practice!!
• There are three views we’ll take of the delta function:

Infinite height
View: a pulse with: Zero width
Unit area

“A really narrow, really tall pulse that has unit area”

 1
p (t)
1 

1
Here we define p (t) as:
 −  t
2 2

Pulse having… height of 1/ and width of 

… which therefore has… area of 1 (1 =  1/)

So as  gets smaller the pulse gets higher and narrower but always
has area of 1…

In the limit it “becomes” the delta function

Precise Idea: (t) is not an ordinary function… It is
defined in terms of its behavior inside an integral:

The delta function (t) is defined as

something that satisfies the following two
conditions:  (t) = 0, for any t  0

 (t)dt = 1,for any   0
−

We show (t) on a plot using an arrow…

(conveys infinite height and zero width)
(t)
Caution… this is NOT the vertical
axis… it is the delta function!!!

0 t
 The Shifting Property is the most important property of (t):

f(t)
Integrating the
f(t0) product of f(t)
f(t0) and (t – to)
t0 t
returns a single
number… the
(t- t0) value of f(t) at
the “location” of
the shifted delta
t0 function
t

As long as the integral’s limits surround the

“location” of the delta… otherwise it returns zero
 Steps for applying shifting property:
Step 1: Find variable of integration
t0 +
Step 2: Find the argument of (•)
 f (t) (t − t )dt = f (t )
0 0
Step 3: Find the value of the
variable of integration that causes
t 0 −
the argument of (•) to go to zero.
Step 4: If value in Step 3 lies inside
limits of integration… Take
everything that is multiplying (•)
and evaluate it at the value found in
step 3; Otherwise… “return” zero

Step 1: t Step 2: t – 1
Step 3: t – 1 = 0  t = 1
Step 4: t = 1 lies in [–4,7] so
 (t − 1) evaluate… sin(1) = sin() = 0
sin(t)

1 2 3 t
Example #2:

Step 1: Find variable of integration: t

Step 2: Find the argument of (•): t – 2.5
Step 3: Find the value of the variable of integration that causes the
argument of (•) to go to zero: t – 2.5 = 0  t = 2.5
Step 4: If value in Step 3 lies inside limits of integration… No!
Otherwise… “return” zero…

 (t − 2.5)
sin(t)

1 2 3 t

Range of Integration Does NOT “include delta function”

Step 1: Find variable of integration: 
Step 2: Find the argument of (•):  + 4
Step 3: Find the value of the variable of integration that causes the argument of
(•) to go to zero:  = –4
Step 4: If value in Step 3 lies inside limits of integration… Yes!
Take everything that is multiplying (•): (1/3)sin(/3)(/3 – 3)2
…and evaluate it at the value found in step 3:
(1/3)sin(–4/3)(–4/3 – 3)2 = 6.26sin(–4/3)
 One Relationship Between (t) & u(t)

For t < 0: the integrand = 0  integral = 0 for t < 0

()

=t<0 0  Defines
the unit
Range of Integration step
function

For t > 0: we “integrate over” the delta  integral = 1 for t > 0

()

0 =t>0 
Range of Integration
Another Relationship Between (t) & u(t)
 (t) = d u(t)
dt
Derivative = 0
u(t)
Derivative = 0
1 ...

t
Derivative = “” (“Engineer Thinking”)

Our view of the delta function having infinite height but

zero width matches this interpretation of the values of
the derivative of the unit step function!!
Periodic Signals
Periodic signals are important because many human-made
signals are periodic. Most test signals used in testing circuits
are periodic signals (e.g., sine waves, square waves, etc.)

A Continuous-Time signal x(t) is periodic with period T

if: x(t + T) = x(t) t

x(t) T
... ...
x(t) x(t + T) t

Fundamental period = smallest such T

When we say “Period” we almost always mean “Fundamental Period”
Rectangular Pulse Function: p(t)
Subscript
p(t) specifies the
1
pulse width

-/2 /2 t

We can build a Rectangular Pulse from Unit Step Functions:

This is helpful because we
will have lots of results that
apply to the step function
1

-/2 t
u(t - /2)
1

-/2 /2 t
0–0=0 1–0=1 1–1=0
Building Signals with Pulses: shifted pulses are used to “turn other
functions on and off”. This allows us to mathematically describe
complicated functions in terms of simpler functions.
Continues up forever
2 g(t) = 0.5t + 1
This
1

Continues down 1 2 Delay by 1 t Times

forever
p2(t - 1)
1 Width of 2 This
2 t
Multiplying By One
Multiplying “Turns On” g(t)
Gives
By Zero 3
“Turns Off”
g(t) 2 f(t) = (0.5t + 1)p2(t - 1)
1 This
1 2 t
 =

=
A continuous-time signal x (t) is shown in Figure. Sketch and
label each of the following signals.

𝟏 𝒙 𝒕 𝒖 𝟏− 𝒕
𝒂 x (t - 2)
(𝒃) x(2t)
( c ) x(t/2)
(d) x ( - t )