UNIT 4 Notes

Sampling is defined as, “The process of measuring the instantaneous values of

continuous-time signal in a discrete form.”

Sample is a piece of data taken from the whole data which is

continuous in the time domain.

When a source generates an analog signal and if that has to be digitized,

having 1s and 0s i.e., High or Low, the signal has to be discretized in time. This
discretization of analog signal is called as Sampling.

The following figure indicates a continuous-time signal x t and a sampled signal xs t.

When x t is multiplied by a periodic impulse train, the sampled signal xs t is obtained.
Sampling Rate

To discretize the signals, the gap between the samples should be fixed. That gap can
be termed as a sampling period Ts.

Where,

Sampling frequency is the reciprocal of the sampling period. This sampling

frequency, can be simply called as Sampling rate. The sampling rate denotes the
number of samples taken per second, or for a finite set of values.

For an analog signal to be reconstructed from the digitized signal, the sampling rate
should be highly considered. The rate of sampling should be such that the data in the
message signal should neither be lost nor it should get over-lapped. Hence, a rate was
fixed for this, called as Nyquist rate.

Nyquist Rate

Suppose that a signal is band-limited with no frequency components higher

than W Hertz. That means, W is the highest frequency. For such a signal, for effective
reproduction of the original signal, the sampling rate should be twice the highest
frequency.
Which means,

This rate of sampling is called as Nyquist rate.

A theorem called, Sampling Theorem, was stated on the theory of this Nyquist rate.

Sampling Theorem

The sampling theorem, which is also called as Nyquist theorem, delivers the theory
of sufficient sample rate in terms of bandwidth for the class of functions that are band
limited.

The sampling theorem states that, “a signal can be exactly reproduced if it is sampled
at the rate fs which is greater than twice the maximum frequency W.”
To understand this sampling theorem, let us consider a band-limited signal, i.e., a
signal whose value is non-zero between some –W and W Hertz.

We need a sampling frequency, a frequency at which there should be no loss of

information, even after sampling. For this, we have the Nyquist rate that the sampling
frequency should be two times the maximum frequency. It is the critical rate of
sampling.

If the signal xt is sampled above the Nyquist rate, the original signal can be recovered,
and if it is sampled below the Nyquist rate, the signal cannot be recovered.

The following figure explains a signal, if sampled at a higher rate than 2w in the
frequency domain.
The above figure shows the Fourier transform of a signal xs(t). Here, the information
is reproduced without any loss. There is no mixing up and hence recovery is possible.

The Fourier Transform of the signal xs(t) is

The result will be as shown in the above figure. The information is replaced without
any loss. Hence, this is also a good sampling rate.

Now, let us look at the condition,

The resultant pattern will look like the following figure.

We can observe from the above pattern that the over-lapping of information is done,
which leads to mixing up and loss of information. This unwanted phenomenon of
over-lapping is called as Aliasing.

Aliasing

Aliasing can be referred to as “the phenomenon of a high-frequency component in the

spectrum of a signal, taking on the identity of a low-frequency component in the
spectrum of its sampled version.”

The corrective measures taken to reduce the effect of Aliasing are −

This choice of having the sampling rate higher than Nyquist rate, also helps in the
easier design of the reconstruction filter at the receiver.

Scope of Fourier Transform

It is generally observed that, we seek the help of Fourier series and Fourier transforms
in analyzing the signals and also in proving theorems. It is because

PULSE AMPLITUDE MODULATION

Pulse amplitude modulation is defined as the data transmission by altering the

amplitudes (power levels or voltage) of every pulse in a regular time sequence of
electromagnetic pulses. The possible number of amplitudes can be infinite, but
mostly it is some power of two so that the final output signal can be digital. For
example, in level-4 PAM there are 22 discrete pulse amplitudes; in level-8 PAM
there are 23 discrete pulse amplitudes.

Pulse Amplitude Modulation Circuit

The circuit diagram of PAM looks like :

Pulse Amplitude Modulation Block Diagram

The block diagram of PAM looks like:

Types of Pulse Amplitude Modulation

There are two major types of PAMs:

 Single polarity PAM: Here, an appropriate fixed DC bias is integrated with

the signal to assure that all pulses are positive.

 Double polarity PAM: Here, the pulses are both negative and positive.

In some PAMs:

 The amplitude of every pulse is directly proportional to instantaneous

modulating amplitude when the pulse occurs.
 While in other PAM, the amplitude of every pulse is inversely proportional
to instantaneous modulating amplitude when at the occurrence of a pulse.
  In some other systems, the intensity of every pulse is based on particular
characteristics of modulating signals other than strength like instantaneous
phase or frequency.

Applications:

PAM is mostly applied in non-based modulating transmission of digital

data and applications replaced by pulse-code modulation and pulse-
position modulation.

Particularly all phone modems faster than 300 bit/s use quadrature
amplitude modulation.

Advantages of Pulse Amplitude Modulation

 PAM allows data to be transmitted more effectively, efficiently and quickly

using conventional copper wires in greater volume.

 The frequency modulations available are infinite; hence PAM formulas can
be developed continually to allow increased data throughput over existing
networks.
 PAM is also the simplest form of modulation.

What does PAM stand for?

PAM is an acronym for Pulse Amplitude Modulation.

Is pulse amplitude modulation analog or digital?

PAM can be digital as well as analog.
 What are the two types of PAM?
Two types of PAM: Single polarity PAM and Double polarity PAM.

What is amplitude?
Amplitude is the maximum distance or displacement moved by a point on a
wave or a vibrating system calculated from its equilibrium location.

Give one application of PAM.

PAM is mostly applied in non-based modulating transmission of digital data
and applications replaced by pulse-code modulation and pulse position
modulation.

Types of Pulse Modulation

Lets us look at some of the different types of pulse modulation.

Pulse Amplitude Modulation (PAM)

It is the simplest form of pulse modulation. In this type of modulation, each sample
is made proportional to the amplitude of the signal at the instant of sampling. The
PAM signal follows the amplitude of the original signal, as the signal traces out the
path of the whole wave. Here, a signal which is sampled at the Nyquist rate can be
reconstructed by passing it through an efficient Low Pass Filter (LPF) with an
exact cutoff frequency. It is very easy to generate and demodulate PAM. This
technique transmits the data by encoding the amplitude of a series of signal pulses.

There are two types of PAM:

1. Single Polarity PAM: A fixed DC level is added to the signal so that the
signal is always positive.
 2. Double Polarity PAM: Here, the pulses are both positive and negative.

PAM is illustrated in the figure below:

From the figure, it is clear that the pulse amplitude modulated signal follows the
amplitude of the message signal.

Advantages of PAM

 Both modulation and demodulation are simple.

 Easy construction of transmitter and receiver circuits.

Disadvantages of PAM

 A large bandwidth is required for transmission.

 More noise.

 Here, the amplitude varies. Therefore, the power required will be more.

Applications of PAM
  Mainly used in Ethernet communication.

 Many microcontrollers use this technique in order to generate control

signals.

 It is used in photo-biology.

 It acts as an electronic driver for LED circuits.

Pulse Time Modulation (PTM)

Here, the pulses will have the same amplitude. However, one of their timing
characteristics is made proportional to the amplitude of the sampled signal. This
variable characteristic can be either frequency, position or width. This way, pulse
time modulation can be classified into three types.

Pulse Width Modulation

Pulse width modulation is also known as pulse duration modulation (PDM). Here,
as the name suggests, the width of the pulse is varied in proportion to the
amplitude of the signal. Since the width is changing, the power loss can be reduced
when compared to PAM signals.
From the figure, it is clear that the amplitude of the signal is constant. Amplitude
limiters are used for this. Since clipping of amplitude at desired levels take place,
this modulation produces less noise.

Advantages of PTM

 Low power consumption.

 It has an efficiency of about 90 per cent.

 Noise interference is less.

 High power handling capacity.

Disadvantages of PTM

 The circuit is more complex.

 Voltage spikes can be seen.

 The system is expensive as it uses semiconductor devices.

 Switching losses will be more due to high PWM frequency.
Applications of PTM

 Used for encoding purposes in the telecommunication system.

 Used to control brightness in a smart lighting system.

 It helps to prevent overheating in LEDs while maintaining their brightness.

 Used in audio and video amplifiers.

Pulse Position Modulation

In this type of modulation, both the amplitude and width of the pulse are kept
constant, but we change the position of each pulse with reference to a particular
pulse. Here, a single pulse is transmitted with the required number of phase shifts.
So, we can say that pulse position modulation is an analogue modulation scheme
where the amplitude and width of the pulse are kept constant, while the position of
the pulse with respect to the position of a reference pulse is varied according to the
instantaneous value of the message signal.

PPM can be obtained from PWM. This is done by getting rid of the leading edge
and bodies of PWM pulses. The main advantage of pulse position modulation is
that it requires constant transmitter power output, while the major disadvantage is
that it depends upon transmitter-receiver synchronisation.

The waveforms of PPM are given below:

However, the third type, pulse-frequency modulation, is not used.

Advantages of PPM

 As it has constant amplitude, noise interference is less.

 We can easily separate a signal from a noisy signal.

 Among all three types, it has the most power efficiency.

 It requires less power when compared to pulse amplitude modulation.

Disadvantages of PPM

 The system is highly complex.

 The system requires more bandwidth.
Applications of PPM

 It is used in the air traffic control system and telecommunication systems.

 Remote-controlled cars, planes, and trains use pulse code modulations.

 It is used to compress data, and hence it is used for storage.

Pulse Code Modulation (PCM)

This type of modulation is different from all modulations learnt so far. It is clear
from the block diagram given at the top that it is a type of digital modulation. That
is, the signals here are sampled and sent in pulse form. A common feature among
other techniques is that pulse code modulation also uses the sampling technique. In
this case, instead of sending a pulse train which is capable of continuously varying
parameters, this type of generator produces a series of numbers or digits. Each digit
in it represents the appropriate length of the sample at a particular instant.

A basic block diagram of its realisation is given below:

Advantages of PCM

 It is mainly used in long distant communication.

 Transmitter efficiency is more.

 It has higher noise immunity when compared to other methods.

Disadvantages of PCM

 More bandwidth is required when compared to analogue systems.

 In this method, encoding, decoding and quantisation of the circuit have to be

done. This makes it more complex.

Applications of PCM

 It is used in the satellite transmission system.

 It is also used in space communication.

 It is used in telephony.

 One of the recent applications is the compact disc.

Delta Modulation

In this type of modulation, the sampling rate is very high. Here, the step size after
quantisation is of the smaller value, and also, the quantisation design is very
simple. Here, the bit rate can be designed by the user.

A block diagram of a delta modulator is given below:

What are the 5 types of pulse modulation?
Pulse width modulation
Pulse code modulation
Pulse amplitude modulation
Pulse position modulation
Pulse duration modulation

What is the importance of pulse code modulation?

The most important form of pulse modulation is pulse code modulation. It can transmit
information over a long distance without any distortion or interference.

What is the principle of pulse code modulation?

The important principles of pulse code modulation are encoding, sampling, quantizing, pulse
shaping and decoding.

Name the different types of pulse width modulation.

Lead edge modulation
Pulse centre two-edge modulation
Trail edge modulation
Elements of Pulse Code Modulation

Modulation is a process where different parameter (amplitude, frequency, and phase) of a carrier
signal varies with the instantaneous value of the message signal. A carrier signal is a high-
frequency signal, and the message signal is the original signal transmitted from the transmitter to
the receiver. The message signal carries the information from one place to the other. The carrier
signal is used with the message signal to make it suitable for long-distance transmission.

Different modulation techniques use different parameters to transmit a signal from the
transmitter to the receiver. Here, we will discuss the PCM (Pulse Code Modulation) technique,
one of the digital modulation methods to transmit the signal.

A PCM system converts an analog input signal to the digital signal, which is a combination of
the binary sequence created from the binary digits 0 and 1. An analog signal is a continuous
wave, and the PCM signal is a wave with a series of digits. Thus, we can define PCM as the
modulation method that transmits the pulses in the form of binary digits representing a code
number.

A simple diagram of the analog waveform and the corresponding PCM waveform is shown
below:

Electrical representation of the PCM signal

The signals are transmitted in the electrical form from the transmitter to the receiver. It is due to
the dependence of electronic devices on the electric current for its operation. The binary digits
are represented in the form of electric pulses to transmit the code over a communication channel.
A simple diagram of the binary digits represented in the form of electric pulses is shown below:
A binary digit '0' indicates the absence of a pulse, and the binary digits '1' indicates the presence
of a pulse. The above diagram shows the sequence of three digits that depicts the binary number
from 0 to 5. The first sequence (a) of digital pulses is the PCM waveform transmitted to the
receiver as the sequence of the quantized samples. The second sequence (b) is the alternative
method to represent the digital pulses. The three digits sequence representing a decimal number
in the binary form specifies a sampled value called word. The space between the two adjacent
words helps in the easy multiplexing and demultiplexing of the signals.

At the receiver end, the pulse's presence and absence help us determine the binary digits of the
coded signal. The amplitude of the pulse in detecting the binary digits is not important. The wide
pulse width easily allows recognizing the pulse against the noise. A rising pulse indicates a digit'
1' and the lower level pulse indicate a digit' 0.'

PCM system

A communication system contains a transmitter, channel, and receiver. A transmitter and a

receiver have various components depending on the input signal and the output requirements. It
performs two functions, modulation and demodulation. Modulation sends the message signal
with the carrier signal, which helps in enhancing the signals' characteristics. It also removes any
noise, interference, or distortion in the signal. The demodulation process recovers the original
signal to make it suitable for the receiver.

A signal is sampled and quantized before transmission. It allows us to perform TDM (Time
Division Multiplexing) and reduce the effects of noise. The combined sampling and quantization
operation produces a digital PAM (Pulse Amplitude Modulation) signal, where the amplitude of
the pulse varies with the instantaneous value of the message signal. We can either transmit these
values directly or uses the coding method to transmit the code rather than the value. The code
number is represented in binary form before transmission. Such as, the method of transmission is
performed using the PCM system.

The block diagram of the Pulse Code Modulation system is shown below:

The components of a PCM system are a low pass filter, sampler, quantizer, encoder,
communication channel, quantizer, decoder, and a reconstruction filter. The input message
signal m(t) is the analog signal applied to the sampler. The combination of quantizer and encoder
is known as ADC (Analog to Digital Converter). The A/D converter replaces the analog signal
with the code symbols, where each symbol represents the train of pulses interpreted as the binary
digits. The first quantizer is present at the transmitting end, while the second quantizer is present
at the receiving end. The signal transmitted through the Pulse Code Modulation system is also
referred a digitally encoded signal.
Let's discuss the components of PCM system in detail.

LPF

As the name implies, a filter passes a certain range of frequencies and reject the other. A Low
Pass Filter (LPF) rejects the higher frequencies from the input signal and passes the other
frequencies, specified by the filter. It is done to avoid any aliasing or distortion in the input
signal.

Sampler

Sampling refers to the process of measuring the instantaneous value of the continuous signal is
the discrete form. The input signal of the PCM system is analog, which is a continuous time-
varying signal. The analog signal passes through the sampler, where it is sampled periodically.
The sampler measures the instantaneous value of the analog signal, converts it to the discrete
symbols and sends it to the quantizer.

Quantizer

After passing through the sampler, the samples are subjected to quantization operation. It reduces
the number of discreet symbols. The quantizer performs the process of data
compression and data redundancy. It adds some redundant bits and compresses the data to
make it suitable for storage and transmission.

Encoder

An encoder is a device that converts the analog signal to digital pulses. It responds to each
sample by generating a binary pulse or pattern. The combination of Low pass filter, quantizer,
and encoder works as an A/D or Analog to Digital Converter. It also reduces the transmission
bandwidth.
Communication channel

A communication channel is a medium between the transmitter and the receiver. It transmits a
PCM signal from the transmitter to the receiver. It also includes a repeater that can regenerate
the signal, improve signal strength, and reduce noise effects.

The PCM system, including a regenerative repeater, is shown below:

Quantizer

The quantizer decides whether the received pulse is positive or negative. According to the
decision, it regenerates the pulse train and sends it to the decoder.

The quantizer first quantizes the samples pulses at the transmitting stage. The quantization
process for the second quantizer now becomes easy. It needs only to detect the arrival of the
digital pulses. It is easy for the quantizer to detect the code in the form of binary numbers that
contains only two digits, 0 and 1. The process becomes complicated when the quantized samples
from the first quantizer are directly sent to the second quantizer. It then needs to detect a level
from the multiple levels (0 to 7).

If a repeater is used, it simply raises the level of the regenerated pulse and is sent to the other
block of the communication system.

Decoder

The digitally encoded signal arrives at the receiver. It first removes the noise from the signal.
The quantization process does not allow the easy separation of the signal and the noise. Hence, it
is essential to remove the noise from the signal at the decoding stage. It works similar to the
demodulation process and converts the binary pulses to the original form or the analog signal.

Reconstruction Filter

The reconstruction filter, decoder, and quantizer work together as a D/A (Digital to Analog
Converter). A reconstruction filter helps in the smooth conversion of the digital signal back to
the original analog signal.

Thus, we can conclude that PCM system converts the analog signal to the digital signal, removes
the noise, and converts it back to the analog signal as the output.

Function of the PCM system

We have discussed all the components of a PCM system. Let's discuss the function of a PCM
system with the help of an example of an audio signal.

The audio signal is first applied to the low-pass filter, which rejects the higher range of
frequencies from the signal. The sampler performs the sampling of the left and right channels of
the audio signal based on the sampling rate of 44100 Hz or 44.1k Hz and 16/32-bit resolution.
The quantizer and encoder set the digital value based on the specified resolution and bit rate
and send it to the receiver. The digital signal passes through the quantizer that generates the
pulse according to the received positive or negative pulse. The decoder converts the regenerated
pulse back to the analog signal. Further, it sends to the reconstruction filter, which helps in the
smooth conversion of the digital signal back to the original analog signal.

Coding process related to PCM

Various forms of PCM processes are used in coding and signal processing in communication.
Let's discuss some of the most common coding processes related to the Pulse Code Modulation.

o LPCM
PCM converts the analog signal to the digital signal for fast and efficient transmission by
converting the analog data into binary digits 0 and 1. Linear Pulse Code
Modulation uses the linear quantization method. The data during the quantization
process is generally compressed for better transmission. But, in LPCM, the data is in the
uncompressed form. Examples include blue-ray discs, Red Book compact discs, etc.
o DPCM
Differential Pulse Code Modulation requires fewer bits to encode the input pulse level.
It requires less bandwidth, an increased number of quantization levels, and decreased
quantization noise compared to the Pulse Code Modulation method.
o ADPCM
Adaptive Differential Pulse Code Modulation is a type of DPCM that allows the
reduction of bandwidth by varying the size of the quantization step.
o DM
Delta Modulation is a simplest type of DPCM that can convert both analog and digital
signals. It works similar to the A/D and D/A converters. It is generally used to transmit
voice signals because such signals do not require high quality at the output.

We will discuss all these coding processes later in this tutorial.

Advantages of PCM

The advantages of Pulse Code Modulation are as follows:

 o High noise immunity
Noise immunity refers to the system's ability to remain unaffected from the noise or
interference. PCM has high noise immunity because the information is transmitted in the
coded form (digital form) rather than varying the width or position of the pulse, which is
less affected by the noise.
o Long distance transmission
The transmission speed of digital signals is faster than analog signals. Hence, PCM can
be used for the long-distance transmission process.
o Easy encoding
The encoding process of PCM is easy due to the digital transmission of data.
o Secure transmission
The data transmission process in PCM is secure due to the presence of encoders and
decoder. We can also use various coding techniques through which only a specific user
can decode the signal at the output.

o Easy multiplexing
Multiplexing refers to the multiple transmissions of signals on the same communication
channel. The sampling and quantization in digital modulation allows the transmission of
multiple signals effectively. TDM (Time Division Multiplexing) is the common type of
multiplexing used in PCM.
o High efficiency
It has high efficiency due to the digital mode of transmission.
o Use of repeaters
We can use repeaters in PCM system, while the same cannot be used in analog
communication. The repeater regenerates the signal, improves the signal strength and
reduces the noise affects.
o Data storage
The digital data can be easily stored.

Disadvantages of PCM
The disadvantages of Pulse Code Modulation are as follows:

o Complex process
PCM is a complex process as compared to the analog modulation techniques. It is
because a signal in PCM passes through various operations in a communication system.
o Large bandwidth
It requires large bandwidth than analog communication systems. It is due to the presence
of a sampler and quantizer in the PCM system.

o Quantization noise
When an analog signal is converted to the digital signal, a time gap between the input and
the quantized value causes the quantization noise. It can be removed by using the noise
reduction system in PCM.

Applications of PCM

There are various applications of PCM. Let's discuss some of its most common applications.

o Space communication
In space communication, the signals are sent from the space or atmosphere to the earth,
which is used as a basis for communication. It requires small transmitted power with
transmission upto long distances. Hence, due to PCM's high noise immunity and long-
distance transmission ability, it is preferred in space communication.
o Satellite transmission
PCM was the first digital transmission method used commercially. The ability of the
PCM signal to effectively use TDM for multiplexing, long-distance transmission, and
high noise immunity makes it as a modulation method suitable for satellite transmission.
o Telephony
Digital signals can be transmitted upto long distance with the help of fiber optic cables.
Similarly, PCM system can effectively transmit the telephone signal upto long distances
without any noise interference. An audio signal for a single phone is encoded at around
8000 samples per second.
 o Compact discs
The audio data on the compact disc or CD is generally in the form of PCM. The samples
of the analog waveform are periodically sampled and quantized, which helps in storing
the digital data.

Quantization
Quantization is a process to convert the continuous analog signal to the series of discrete
values. A quantizer is a device known to perform the quantization process. The function of
quantizer is to represent each level to the fixed discrete finite set of values.

The signals during transmission over long distances suffer from noise and interference. To
overcome this, the quantization process creates a signal that is approximately equal to the
message signal. It selects a quantized signal mq (t) with values nearest to the original analog
signal m(t). The quantization process selects a value and rounds off these values to the nearest
stabilized value. The quantized signal mq(t) can get easily separable from the additive noise.

Let's consider an example of the analog signal confined to the range V A to VB, as shown below:
Quantization creates a series of discrete value from the analog signal. It separates the analog
signal into N number of discrete sets. Each set has an equal size of S, which refers to the step
size. It is given by:

S = (VB - VA)/N

Where,

S is the step size

VB is the upper limit of the given analog signal

VA is the lower limit of the given analog signal

N is the number of sets in which the analog signal range is divided

Here,

N=8

The quantization levels are specified at the center of each step, as shown below:
We know that the quantized signals are selected to approximate the original signals. The
amplitudes of the discrete quantized levels are known as reconstruction levels. These levels are
also named as representation levels. As discussed above, the distance between the two adjacent
reconstructions level is defined as step size. Its quality can be improved by reducing the step size
and increasing the number of quantization levels. A TV with 64 levels gives fair color quality,
while a TV with 256 levels gives good color quality.

The quantization levels are separated by 'S,' which is the step size. But, the distance of the
extreme lower and upper quantization level from their nearest level is only S/2. As long as the
instantaneous amplitude of the quantized signals is less than S/2, the noise will not appear at the
output of the quantizer. Due to different components attached with the quantizer, such as repeater
and amplifier, the quantized signal from the output of the quantizer comes with the removed
noise. There are very low chances of quantization error to occur.

Types of Quantization

There are two types of Quantization, uniform Quantization and non-uniform Quantization.

Uniform Quantization

As the name implies, the quantized levels in the uniform quantization process are equally spaced.
The uniform quantization is further categorized as mid-rise type uniform quantization and mid-
tread type uniform quantization. Both the uniform quantization processes are symmetric about
the respective axis.

Mid-rise type uniform Quantization

Rise refers to the rising part. The origin of the discrete quantized signal lies in the middle of the
rising part of the stair like graph, as shown below:
Mid-tread type uniform Quantization

Tread refers to the flat part. The origin of the discrete quantized signal lies in the middle of the
tread part of the stair like graph, as shown below:
Advantages of Uniform Quantization

The advantages of Uniform Quantization are as follows:

o High approximation
The fixed size of the quantization levels of the uniform quantization increases the accuracy of the
discrete signals. Hence, such a type of Quantization has a high approximation compared to non-
uniform Quantization.
o Easy and simple to implement
Uniform quantization process is easy and simple to implement due to the uniform gap between
the adjacent quantization levels.

Non-uniform Quantization

The quantized levels in the non-uniform quantization process are unequally spaced. The relation
between such quantization is generally logarithmic due to non-linear nature of the signal.
Advantages of non-uniform Quantization

The advantages of non-uniform Quantization are as follows:

o High Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR)

SNR of the non-uniform quantization is higher than the uniform quantization. It is because the
non-uniform level requires large number of quantized levels are more expanded.

o Low quantizer noise

The quantizer noise of the non-uniform quantization is low than the uniform quantization. It is
because the RMS value of the quantized noise power is proportional to the sampled value of the
signal.

Quantization error

The difference in the input value and the quantized value of the signal is known as
the quantization error. The quantized signal (mq(t)) is the approximation signal of the message
signal (m(t)). The difference between the message signal and the quantized signal is termed as
quantized noise. It is given by:

Qe = m(t) - mq(t)

It depicts that the output of the quantization process or the received signal is not a perfect copy of
the message signal.

A noisy quantized signal is shown below:

The same signal with removed noise is shown on the right side of the noisy signal.

The repeaters help in the data transmission over long distances by increasing the signal power.
We can decrease the attenuation suffered by the quantized signal be decreasing the space
between the repeaters in the communication channel. It also decreases the noise power and error
probability.

Let's find the mean square quantization error represented as e2, where e is the voltage difference
between the input and the quantized value. Here, the same concept of dividing the signal into M
quantization levels will be used. The difference between each level is known as step size
represent by S measured in volts.

e = m(t) - mqv

Where,

E = voltage difference

m(t) is the input message signal

mqv is the output signal of the quantizer

The greater the quantization levels, the smaller will be the step size.
The mean square quantization error is given by:

e2 = S2/12

Examples of Quantizer

The device used to perform the quantization process is known as quantizer. Let's discuss a
common example of a quantizer.

Analog to Digital Converter

A/D or Analog to Digital Converter consists of a sampler and quantizer. The function of the
sampler is to convert a continuous time-varying signal to a discrete-time signal. The conversion
process requires sampling and quantization to convert an analog signal to a digital signal. The
quantizer function is to represent each level to the fixed discrete finite set of values. There are a
number of available quantization bits, such as 8-bit, 16-bit, and 64-bit. The number of levels of
each bit can be calculated using the formula (2n), where n refers to the bits.

For the 8-bit, the number of quantization levels are 28 = 256 levels.

For the 16-bit, the number of quantization levels are 216 = 65, 536 levels.

For the 64-bit, the number of quantization levels are 264 = 16.8 million levels.

The quantization noise inversely depends on the number of quantization levels. The greater the
quantization levels, the lesser will be the quantization noise.

Advantages of Quantization

The advantages of quantization are as follows:

o It reduces the number of bits used to represent a signal. It further results in the bandwidth
reduction, which has various other advantages, such as low cost, increased reliability, and
effective transmission.
 o It enables uniform precision. Precision refers to the accuracy or exactness required in a method.
o It represents the sampled value of the signal into the finite number of levels, which helps in
converting an input analog signal to the digital signal.

Applications of Quantization

Apart from digital communication, quantization process is also used in various fields, such as
signal processing, control systems, image processing, science, and linguistics.

o Digital Signal Processing

In digital signal processing, quantization maps the large set of the input values to the small set of
the output values with a finite number of elements. The device that performs the quantization
function is known as quantizer.
o Image processing
In image processing, quantization reduces the number of discrete value in the signal. We can also
say that it compresses the input signal and produces the compressed signal at the output. For
example, reducing the number of colors required to represent a digital image.

o Physics
Quantization in science is related to the electromagnetic wave, quantum, or photons. It represents
the transitions from the classic mechanics to quantum mechanics. Quantization is used in various
theories of physics, such as nuclear physics and atomic physics.

Companding

Companding is a type of non-uniform quantization and is used to increase the strength of the
weak signals. It reduces the data rate of the input signal by varying the gap between the two
adjacent quantization levels. The unequal quantization level makes it similar to the non-uniform
quantization process.

Companding is created from the combination of two words, compression and expanding. The
signal is passed through the compressor at the transmitting end while it is passed through the
expander at the receiving end. The compressor compresses the signal and improves the quality of
transmission. But, it introduces distortion in the signal. The expander is used at the receiving end
to undo the distortion introduced by the compressor. The inverse distortions of the two processes
(compression and expanding) help in generating the output signal without distortion.

The input-output characteristics of the expander are the reverse as compared to the compressor,
as shown below:

Companding in PCM

The word Companding is a combination of Compressing and Expanding, which

means that it does both. This is a non-linear technique used in PCM which compresses
the data at the transmitter and expands the same data at the receiver. The effects of
noise and crosstalk are reduced by using this technique.

There are two types of Companding techniques.

A-law Companding Technique

µ-law Companding Technique

Quantization

The digitization of analog signals involves the rounding off of the values which are
approximately equal to the analog values. The method of sampling chooses few points
on the analog signal and then these points are joined to round off the value to a near
stabilized value. Such a process is called as Quantization.

The quantizing of an analog signal is done by discretizing the signal with a number of
quantization levels. Quantization is representing the sampled values of the amplitude
by a finite set of levels, which means converting a continuous-amplitude
sample into a discrete-time signal.

The following figure shows how an analog signal gets quantized. The blue line
represents analog signal while the red one represents the quantized signal.
Both sampling and quantization results in the loss of information. The quality of a
Quantizer output depends upon the number of

quantization levels used. The discrete amplitudes of the quantized output are called
as representation levels or reconstruction levels. The spacing between two adjacent
representation levels is called a quantum or step-size.

Quantization Error

For any system, during its functioning, there is always a difference in the values of its
input and output. The processing of the system results in an error, which is the
difference of those values.

The difference between an input value and its quantized value is called
a Quantization Error. A Quantizer is a logarithmic function that performs
quantization rounding of the value. An analog to digital converter (ADC) works as a
quantizer.

The following figure illustrates an example for a quantization error, indicating the
difference between the original signal and the quantized signal.

Quantization Noise

It is a type of quantization error, which usually occurs in analog audio signal, while
quantizing it to digital. For eg, in music, the signals keep on changing continuously,
where a regularity is not found in errors. Such errors create a wideband noise called as
quantization noise.