511451 - SIGNAL AND COMMUNICATION THEORY

courses

ID:

511451

Duration (hours):

73

CFU:

SSD:

TELECOMUNICAZIONI

Year:

2025

Date/time interval

Secondo Semestre (02/03/2026 - 12/06/2026)

Course Objectives

The course aims to provide students with the fundamental tools and knowledge to analyze and understand signal theory and the physical layer of telecommunication systems. Learning outcomes include knowledge of the frequency representation of deterministic signals; understanding of the concept of noise as a stochastic process; and knowledge of the simplest techniques for information transmission. The skills developed include the ability to analyze deterministic and random signals and calculate their fundamental properties (spectrum, bandwidth, power, or energy), as well as the ability to define the transmission parameters, design, and performance during the operation of analog and digital transmission systems in their simplest form.

Course Prerequisites

Knowledge acquired in previous courses in mathematics and circuit theory.

Teaching Methods

Lectures (hours/year in lecture theatre): 60 Practical classes (hours/year in lecture theatre): 12,5 Workshops (hours/year in the lab): 0 Lectures are delivered using slides, which are complemented by explanations written on the blackboard. Exercises primarily consist of solving past exam papers, tailored to the level of knowledge that students progressively acquire. Practical exercises are also planned, aimed at verifying the studied architectures through examples implemented in MATLAB.

Assessment Methods

The examination consists of a mandatory written test and an optional oral exam. The written test aims to assess the acquired skills, particularly the ability to solve real-world telecommunications systems problems; it includes at least two problems and an open-ended theoretical question, with a maximum score of 27/30. The oral exam, aimed at a more detailed evaluation of the acquired knowledge, is optional if the written test score is sufficient, but mandatory to pass the exam if the written test score is between 16 and 17/30. If the student, with a sufficient grade in the written exam, decides not to take the oral exam, the final grade remains that of the written exam, if the latter is not higher than 22/30; if the student does not take the oral exam and the grade in the written exam is higher than 22/30, the final grade is still limited to 22/30. In the case of an oral exam, the final grade will be determined starting from the written exam grade, applying a variation according to the preparation ascertained on the topics of the oral exam. The oral exam allows passing the exam even with a written test score between 16 and 17 if the final grade is at least 18. The maximum attainable score is 30 with honors.

Texts

(main reference book) S. Haykin, M. Moher. Introduzione alle Telecomunicazioni Analogiche e Digitali. Casa Editrice Ambrosiana. ISBN-13: ‎ 978-8840813875

(supplementary) Marco Luise, Giorgio M. Vitetta. Teoria dei segnali. McGraw-Hill Education, 2009 - EAN: 9788838665837

(supplementary) Ali Grami. Introduction to Digital Communications. Elsevier, Hardback ISBN: 9780124076822 eBook ISBN: 9780124076587

Definition of signal, types of signals and their features. Analysis of Deterministic Signals in the Frequency Domain Fourier series. Exponential form of Fourier series. Response of linear systems and properties of transfer functions. Signal power and energy. Power and energy spectral density. Fourier transform. Convolution theorem. Parseval's theorem. Waveform correlation. Autocorrelation. Power and cross-correlation. The Wiener theorem. Autocorrelation of periodic functions. Introduction to Random Variables and Processes Concept of probability, independent events; random variables. Cumulative probability distribution; probability density. Noise as a stochastic process. Stationary processes, ergodic processes. Amplitude Modulation Communication Systems Baseband signal and carrier signal. Frequency translation and baseband equivalent of the modulated signal. Brief overview of analog frequency, phase, and amplitude modulation without carrier suppression. Sampling theorem and quantization, frequency analysis of digital signals (Discrete-Time Fourier Transform). Digital communication systems: linear modulations, PAM. Linear digital modulations: baseband and passband representation and their spectrum. Performance of Telecommunication Systems in the Presence of Noise Signal-to-noise ratio. Performance of digital modulations, bit error rate (BER) and matched filter. The MATLAB software and its features rilevant to signal theory and communication. Practical examples of telecommunication systems implemented in MATLAB.