SINGLE-SIDEBAND

& SUPPRESSED
CARRIER SYTEMS

2 Major Disadvantages
of Double-Sideband
Communications systems
1.Power Inefficiency
carrier power constitutes 2/3 of total power
2. Bandwidth Inefficiency
information in upper and lower sidebands are identical
redundancy

AM Single-Sideband Full Carrier (SSBFC)

carrier is transmitted at full power
only one of the sidebands
(either the upper or lower) is transmitted
Requires less bandwidth than DSBFC
but also produces a demodulated signal
with a lower amplitude

fc-fm

fc

fc+fm

Bandwidth=fm(max)
Total Power=Pcarrier +Pusb

 as SSB only has one sideband, the peak change in the

envelope is only half of what it is with DSBFC
Therefore, the demodulated wave has only half the
amplitude of the DSB modulated wave

AM Single-Sideband Suppressed Carrier (SSBSC)

the carrier is totally suppressed and one
of the sidebands removed.
Therefore, SSBSC requires half as much
bandwidth as conventional DSB AM and
considerably less transmitted power

fc-fm

fc

fc+fm

Bandwidth=fm(max)
Total Power=+Pusb

 The wave is not an envelope but a sine wave at

frequency equal to the carrier frequency modulating
frequency (depending on which sideband is
transmitted)

AM Single-Sideband Reduced Carrier (SSBSC)

One sideband is totally removed and the carrier voltage is reduced to

approximately 10% of its unmodulated amplitude
requires half the bandwidth of DSBFC AM
Less transmitted power than DSBFC and SSBFC but more power than
SSBSC
As much as 96% ofa the total transmitted power is in the sideband
The output modulated signal is similar to SSBFC but with reduced
maximum and minimum envelope amplitudes

Comparison of Single-Sideband
Transmission to Conventional AM
SSB Advantages :
SSB Disadvantages :
1.
2.
3.
4.

Power Conservation
Bandwidth Conservation
Selective Fading
Noise Reduction

1. Complex receivers
2. Tuning difficulties

For an AM SSB-FC wave with a peak unmodulated carrier voltage

Vc = 10 Vp ,frequency of 100kHz, a load resistor of RL = 10 ,
frequency of modulating signal of 10kHz and m = 1, determine the
following
a. Total power of the modulated wave.
b. Bandwidth of the transmitted wave.
c. Draw the power and frequency spectrum.
d. Determine also the percentage of power saved in each of the system
design.

a.)

m
m
P
P
P
4
4
1
1
(5) (5) 2.5W
4
4
2

b.)Bandwidth=2xfmmax=2(10kz)=20kHz

c.)

90kHz

110kHz

d.)

7.5W 2.5W

Power

saved

5W
% Power

saved

66.67%

5W
x100%
7.5W

For the same given values, with an AM SSB-SC wave, solve for:
a. Total power of the modulated wave.
b. Bandwidth of the transmitted wave.
c. Draw the power and frequency spectrum.
d. Determine also the percentage of power saved in each of the system design.

m
P
P
4
1
(5) 1.25W
4

a.)

d.)

saved

6.25W
% Power

saved

83.33%

b.)Bandwidth=fmmax=10kHz

c.)

fc-fm

7.5W 1.25W

Power

110kHz

6.25W
x100%
7.5W

Single-Sideband Transmission
Transmitters used for SSB suppressed and
reduced carrier transmission are identical
except
that
the
re-inserted
carrier
transmitters have an additional circuits that
adds a low amplitude carrier to the
single
sideband
waveform
after
suppressed-carrier modulation has been
performed and one of the sideband has
been removed

Single-Sideband Transmission
The re-inserted carrier is called a pilot
carrier
The circuit where the pilot carrier is reinserted is called a linear summer
3 Transmitter Configurations are commonly
used

1. Filter Method

Block diagram for a SSB

transmitter using balanced
modulators to suppress
the
unwanted
carrier
and
filters
to suppress the unwanted
sideband

2. Phase-Shift Method

with phase-shift method, the undesired sideband is cancelled in the output of

the modulator
use 2 separate DSB modulators (balanced modulator 1 & 2).
modulating signal and carrier are applied directly to one of the modulators, then
both are shifted 90 and applied to the second modulator.
the outputs from the two balanced modulators are DSBSC signals with the proper
phase (when they are combined in a linear summer, the upper sideband is
cancelled).

2. Phase-Shift Method
Mathematical analysis of the phase-shift transmitter :
modulating signal (sin wmt) is fed directly to balanced modulator 1 and shifted 90 (cos
wmt) and fed to balanced modulator 2.
carrier signal (sin wmt) is also fed directly to balanced modulator 1 and shifted 90 (cos
wmt) and fed to balanced modulator 2
the outputs of the balanced modulators are expressed as
Output of balanced modulator 1 :

(sin mt )(sin ct )
1
1
cos(c m )t (1)
cos c m t
2
2
Output of balanced modulator 2 :

(cos mt )(cos ct )

1
1
cos(c m )t cos c m t
2
2 (2)

the final output from the linear summer :

1
1
1
1
cos c m t cos c m t cos c m t cos c m t
2
2
2
2
which is the lower sideband of the AM wave.

(3)

Single-Sideband Receivers
1. SSB BFO Receiver

in a receiver, the input signal (suppressed or reduced carrier and one

sideband) is amplified and then mixed with the RF local oscillator frequency to
produce intermediate frequency.

 the output from the RF mixer is then goes through further amplification
and band reduction prior to second mixer.
the output from the IF amplifier stage is then mixed (heterodyned) with
beat frequency oscillator (BFO) frequency.

 BFO frequency is equal to the IF carrier frequency. Thus the difference between
the IF and the BFO frequency is the information signal.
the receiver is classified as noncoherent because the RF oscillator and the BFO
signals are not synchronized to each other and to the oscillators in the
transmitter.
the RF mixer and IF mixer are product detectors. A product detector and
balanced (product) modulator are essentially the same circuit.