LAB-2 Measurements On AM / FM Radio Receiver Building Blocks

Autumn 2009: Radio Electronics (TSEK-02)
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Date: Student Name: _________________________ Lab Supervisor: ___________ Personal Number:
________
Signature: _______________
LAB-2 Measurements on AM / FM Radio Receiver Building Blocks

Prepared by Rashad.M.Ramzan [email protected]
Note: The gain values in above block diagram are typical values.
Electrical Engineering Department (ISY)
Linkping University, Linkping Sweden
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1. Objectives
To understand how the radio broadcast AM/FM receivers work. To understand the RF receiver building blocks; their functionality and tradeoffs. To familiarize with basic RF measurement techniques and instrumentation like oscilloscope, spectrum analyzer and RF signal generator.
2. Instructions
2.1. You should read the LAB manual carefully and answer all questions labeled as PE (Preparatory Exercise) before starting the lab. If you fail to do this, it might not be possible for you to complete the lab assignments within the scheduled hours. Spectrum Analyzer in the LAB should be used with extreme care; it must not be used without DC blocker (already connected to RF out) and must not be exposed to power levels higher than 30dBm. Failing to do so might permanently damage the equipment!
2.2.
3. Equipment Used
The ElencoTM Superhet 108 AM/FM radio receiver board Power Supply: SN16A Oscilloscope: HP 54600B Spectrum analyzer: R&S FSL or R&S FS315 or HP 8562E Signal generator: R&S SM300 or R&S SMB100A or HP E4432B DVM (Digital Voltmeter), cables and connectors.
4. Introduction:
In this lab you will investigate characteristics and the behaviour of functional blocks used in traditional AM and FM receivers. You will also learn how to use the RF measurement equipment and how to carry out the measurements on radio circuits. The function of the broadcast radio receiver is to recover the audio signal that was modulated onto the RF carrier at the radio station, and apply it to the speaker, reproducing the sounds of the announcer. There are various ways to combine the carrier frequency and the audio signal together. This process is called modulation. The most commonly used modulation methods are amplitude modulation (AM), frequency modulation (FM), and phase modulation (PM). Also digital signals can be modulated onto radio frequency carrier. When the signal is transmitted, there is a number of impairments that degrade the signal on the way until it gets to the receiver. We can broadly categorize those impairments as
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channel impairments and impairments in transmitter and receiver. The typical impairments are: The absorption of radio signal power, air and surrounding environment absorb signal. Signal reflections caused by the ground and obstacles, signal detected in the receiver is a sum of direct and reflected waves which can cause an effect known as fading. Co-channel interference, distant radio transmitters on the same or close to frequency of interest will disturb the reception of a neighbouring station. Image-channel interference which deteriorates the receiver sensitivity. Non-linearities and saturation effects in different transmitter and receiver blocks give rise to intermodulation distortion. Noise, background noise in receiver, thermal noise generated by the receiver electronics itself, atmospheric noise (burst noises from thunder storms and similar) and industrial noise (RF noise from electronics, sparks) The radio receiver ElencoTM Superhet 108 AM/FM to be investigated in this lab is shown in Fig-1. To facilitate measurements it is mostly built of discrete components loosely spaced on the board.
Fig-1: AM/FM radio receiver
The receiver is a superheterodyne of the standard AM and FM broadcast frequencies. Its block diagram with depicted 9 sections is shown in Fig-2. The receiver sections can be characterized as follows. Section-1, the Audio Amplifier Stage, is used to increase the power of the audio signal received from either AM or FM detector to a power level capable of driving the 8 speaker. Section-2 includes the AM detector circuit and the AGC (automatic gain control) stage. The AM detector converts the amplitude modulated IF (intermediate frequency) signal to audio signal. The AGC stage feeds back a DC voltage to the first AM IF amplifier in order to maintain a near constant level of audio at the detector.
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Fig-2: Block diagram of AM/FM radio receiver

Section-3 is the second AM IF amplifier. The second AM IF amplifier is tuned to 455 kHz and has a fixed gain of 50 at this centre frequency. Section-4 is the first AM IF amplifier which has a variable gain that depends on the AGC voltage received from the AGC stage. The first AM IF amplifier is also tuned to 455 kHz. Section-5 includes the AM mixer, AM oscillator and AM antenna stages. When the radio wave passes through the antenna, it induces a small voltage across the antenna coil. This voltage is coupled to the mixer and is down-converted to the IF frequency of 455 kHz. This change is accomplished by mixing the radio frequency signal with the oscillator signal. Section-6 is the FM ratio detector. In the AM detector section we observed that the audio was detected from changes in the amplitude of the incoming signal. In FM detection, the audio is detected from changes in frequency of the incoming signal. The so called ratio detector is used here, which has a built-in limiting circuit to limit the signal amplitude so that noise at the carrier will be minimized. The FM ratio detector has a fixed gain of about 20. Section-7 is the 2nd FM IF amplifier. This amplifier is tuned to 10.7 MHz and has a fixed voltage gain of approximately 20. The 3dB bandwidth of this stage is approximately 350 kHz. Section-8 is the 1st FM IF amplifier. This amplifier is also tuned to 10.7 MHz with 3dB bandwidth of 350 kHz and has a voltage gain of approximately 10. Section-9 includes the FM mixer, FM oscillator, FM RF amplifier, AFC (Automatic Frequency Control) stage and FM antenna. The incoming radio signals are amplified by the FM RF amplifier, which is tuned to a desired radio station in the FM frequency
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bandwidth of 88 MHz to 108 MHz. These amplified signals are then coupled to the FM mixer stage to be down-converted to an IF of 10.7 MHz. This change, as in AM, is accomplished by mixing radio frequency signal with the oscillator signal. The AFC stage feeds back a DC voltage to the FM oscillator to minimize the oscillator frequency drift.
Preparatory Exercise
PE: What portions of the frequency spectrum are allocated for typical AM and FM broadcasts? ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ PE: Why is the IF fixed the superhet receiver, when we tune to the certain radio station by tuning its RF stage? ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ PE: Draw a simplified diagram of the ratio detector to illustrate its working principle by a phasor diagram. Hint: Refer to R. Blake pp. 247-248 or http://tpub.com/neets/book12/51d.htm
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PE: Draw a simplified diagram of the AM envelope detector and illustrate its working principle in the time domain.
PE: Harmonic distortion is defined as distortion components which are integer multiples of the fundamental signal frequency (i.e. they are harmonically related to the fundamental frequency). Symmetric distortion is usually represented by odd harmonics while asymmetric distortion instead corresponds to both even- and odd harmonics. Draw a tone signal with typical symmetrical distortion (caused by clipping) in the time domain and the corresponding spectrum. Similarly consider asymmetrical distortion (e.g. one side clipping). Hint: You can refer to http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/audio/amp.html) and click Harmonic Distortion inside the page. For more confidence on the asymmetric case you can also support your answer by Matlab simulations.
Asymmetric Distortion
Symmetric Distortion
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PE: Define selectivity of a radio receiver. What does it depend on ? ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________
PE: Define sensitivity of a radio receiver. What does it depend on ? ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________
Describe the tradeoff between selectivity and sensitivity in a typical superhet receiver. ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________
PE: A strong and a weak radio transmitter are transmitting very close on frequency scale. If you want to listen to the to weak radio station with good fidelity, what enhancement will you recommend for present radio receiver design? ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________
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Part-I: AM Radio Receiver

Power and current measurement of AM receiver (use DVM) Fix the supply voltage to 9V and measure the current and calculate the power. Supply current (receiver off) __________ mA Calculate ___________ mA Power = _____________________ mW Supply current (with moderate volume, FM/AM switch on AM position)
4.1.
Audio Amplifier Gain and BW (Section-1)
The purpose of the audio amplifier is to increase the signal power to the level sufficient to drive the 8 speakers. LM386 is a general-purpose audio amplifier with two pins provided for external gain control.
Fig-3: Test setup for audio amplifier measurements
Gain Measurement Power up the AM/FM radio receiver board with 9V, 0.1A current limited supply. Set AM/FM switch to FM position and use the LF output of signal generator for gain measurement. Setup the circuit as shown in the Fig-3. Keep the radio volume knob at approximately middle position. Set the signal generator frequency at 1 kHz and voltage at 20mV (RMS). (VRMS = Vpp/{22}) Connect the signal generator output to TP2 and oscilloscope CH1 to jumper J3 (Input of amplifier). Connect oscilloscope CH2 to audio amplifier output point TP1 (output of amplifier).
9/18 Record the input and output voltage levels (Please note that gain varies with volume control). Voltage Gain = _______= ________
Bandwidth Measurement Use LF output of signal generator for BW measurement. Set the signal generator frequency at 10 kHz and voltage at 20mV (RMS). Connect the signal generator output to TP2. Connect oscilloscope to monitor input and output signals at TP2 and TP1 respectively. Change the volume control so that output voltage is 2 Vpp. Now, slowly decrease the frequency to lower 3dB corner frequency so that output is approx. 0.7 x 2 Vpp = 1.4 Vpp , note down: flow,3dB = ________ Now slowly increase the frequency to higher 3dB corner frequency so that output is 0.7 x 2 Vpp = 1.4 Vpp , note down: fhigh,3dB = ________ Bandwidth = fhigh,3dB - flow,3dB = _________
4.2.
AM Detector and AGC (Section-2)
The purpose of the detector is to change the amplitude modulated IF signal to an audio signal. First, the amplitude modulated IF signal is applied to a diode in such a way as to leave only the negative portion of that signal (see Fig-6). When the diode is in conduction, it will force the capacitors C33 and C38 to charge to approximately the same voltage as the negative peak of the IF signal.
Fig-6: AM detector and AGC stage Electrical Engineering Department (ISY) Linkping University, Linkping Sweden
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After conduction stops in the diode, the capacitors will discharge through resistors R36 and R42. The discharge time constant must be small enough to follow the audio signal otherwise high frequency audio distortion will occur. The discharge time constant must be large enough, however, to remove the intermediate frequency (455 kHz) and leave only the audio as shown in Fig-6. The purpose of the automatic gain control (AGC) circuit is to maintain a constant level at the detector, regardless of the strength of the incoming signal. Without AGC, the volume control would have to be adjusted for each station and even moderately strong stations would saturate the 2nd IF amplifier causing audio distortion. AGC is accomplished by adjusting the DC bias of the first IF amplifier to lower its gain as the signal strength increases. There is negative DC bias present with audio signal. This negative bias corresponds to the strength of the incoming signal. The large signal results in the more negative the DC component. At test point five (TP5), the audio is removed by a low pass filter, R36 and C32, leaving only the DC component. Resistor R35 is used to shift the voltage at TP5 high enough to bias the base of transistor Q8 to the full gain position when no signal is present. Resistors R35 and R36 also forward bias diode D4 just enough to minimize On Condition threshold voltage. AM Detector Bandwidth Measurement Connect the circuit as shown in Fig-7 and set the switch to AM position. Set the signal generator for AM at 455 kHz, 80% modulation, 1 kHz and 300 mV (RMS) EMF. Connect the RF output of the signal generator to TP3 via 0.001uF. Connect the CH1 of oscilloscope to TP3 Connect the CH2 of oscilloscope to TP2. Set the volume of radio receiver at comfortably audible level. Increase/decrease the signal generator amplitude until output on oscilloscope CH2 (demodulated signal) is approximately 200 mV peak, make sure that its free of distortion. Leave the frequency of signal generator at 455 kHz. Increase the modulation frequency of 1 kHz until output drops to approx. 200mV x 0.7 (3dB) = 140 mV fhigh,3dB = ________ 3 dB BW of AM detector = fhigh,3dB = _________ Connect the spectrum analyzer to TP3 and observe AM spectrum for 455 kHz, 80% modulation, 1 kHz and 300 mV (RMS) EMF. Identify the carrier and sidebands. Change the depth of modulation between 10% and 100% and observe the effect both on the oscilloscope and spectrum analyzer.

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Fig-7: AM detector bandwidth measurement setup
4.3.
1st IF Amplifier Gain Measurement (Section-3 and 4)
The operation of the 1st IF amplifier is the same as the second IF amplifier with one important difference. The gain of the first IF amplifier decreases after the AGC threshold is crossed to keep the audio output constant at the detector and prevent overload of the second IF amplifier. This is accomplished by making the voltage on the base of transistor Q8 lower as the signal strength increases. Since the voltage from base to emitter is fairly constant, the drop in voltage at the base produces a similar drop in voltage at the emitter of Q8. This drop lowers the voltage across R37 and thus, reduces the DC current through R37. Since all of the DC current from the emitter of Q8 must go through R37, the DC current in Q8 is therefore lowered. When the DC current in a transistor is lowered, its effective emitter resistance increases. The AC gain of transistor Q8 is equal to the AC collector load of Q8 divided by its effective emitter resistance. Raising the value of the effective emitter resistance, thus, lowers the AC gain of Q8. Gain and Bandwidth Measurement Set the volume of radio receiver at minimum level. Connect the circuit as shown in Fig-8 and short TP3 to R38 as shown. Set the signal generator at 455 kHz, no modulation, 60 mV (RMS) EMF approx. and connect RF output to TP6 via 0.001uF capacitor. Connect oscilloscope to TP4 for output monitoring. The oscilloscope must have probe capacitance of 12 pF or less to avoid loading and detuning of IF AMP. Change the signal generator amplitude so that the output is 4 VPP.
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Fig-8: Test setup for 1st IF amplifier stage
Record the input voltage (base of Q8) and output voltage (TP4). Voltage Gain = _______ = ________
Change the Signal Generator frequency and record the 3 dB bandwidth (4VPP x 0.7 = 2.82VPP) Bandwidth = fhigh,3dB - flow,3dB = ________-________ = __________
Remove the short circuit and observe what happens to the output voltage at TP4 (AGC effect)?
4.4.
AM Mixer and Oscillator (Section-5)
In a superheterodyne receiver, the radio waves at the antenna are amplified and then mixed with the local oscillator to produce the intermediate frequency (IF). Transistor Q7 amplifies the RF signal, and simultaneously oscillates at a frequency 455 kHz above the desired radio station frequency. So the RF amplifier, local oscillator, and mixer are in one circuit here. To make the oscillator a positive feedback from the collector to the emitter of Q7 is provided by coil L5 and capacitor C31. During the mixing process the following four frequencies are present at the collector of Q7. 1. The local oscillator frequency, LO. 2. The RF carrier or radio station frequency, RF. 3. The sum of these two frequencies, LO + RF. 4. The difference of these two frequencies, LO RF.
13/18 The difference frequency is used as the intermediate frequency in AM radios. The collector of Q7 also contains an IF transformer (T6) tuned to the difference frequency. This transformer rejects all frequencies except those near 455 kHz. T6 also couples the 455 kHz signal to the base of Q8 to be processed by the IF amplifiers. The antenna and the oscillator coils are the only two resonant circuits that change when the radio is tuned for different stations. Since a radio station may exist 455 kHz above the oscillator frequency, it is important that the antenna filter rejects this station and selects only the station 455 kHz below the oscillator frequency that we refer to as the image problem. If the selectivity of the antenna (Q factor) is high, the image will be reduced sufficiently. The oscillator circuit must also change when the radio is tuned in order to remain 455 kHz above the tuning of the desired radio station. The degree of accuracy in keeping the oscillator frequency exactly 455 kHz above the tuning of the antenna is called tracking accuracy.
Measurement of Tracking Range of Local Oscillator Connect the circuit as shown in Fig-9. Connect the Oscilloscope to the collector of Q7.
Fig-9: Test setup for measurement of Phase noise and Tracking Range
Turn the Tuning Knob from one extreme to another extreme and note the oscillator frequency. fmin ___________ , fmax ____________. Tracking Range: _________________________
Calculate the AM frequency band reception possible for an IF of 455 kHz. fmin - 455 kHz = ___________ , fmax - 455 kHz = ____________
Connect the spectrum analyzer at R33 and observe the spectrum of the local oscillator (LO) signal and its harmonics.
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Down-Conversion Set the signal generator for AM at 1 MHz, 80% modulation, 5 kHz and 60 mV (RMS) EMF and connect RF output to TP7. Connect the oscilloscope to the collector of Q7 to observe the oscillator output. Turn the Tuning Knob to adjust the frequency of oscillator to 1.455 MHz which after mixing with the AM signal (from signal generator) produces an IF of 455 kHz. Connect the spectrum analyzer to R33 and observe and identify the signal components between: 900 kHz to 1.1 MHz: _________________________ 1.4 MHz to 1.5 MHz: _________________________ 400 kHz to 500 kHz: _________________________
5. Part-II: FM Radio Receiver

The architecture of FM radio receiver is same as AM in Part-I. The fundamental difference is the type of the demodulator (detector) used to detect the base-band signal. In AM receiver the AGC was used to keep the signal power constant for a certain station at the input of the detector. In FM receiver AFC (Automatic Frequency Control) is used to keep the FM oscillator frequency stable and to avoid drift with time. The signal of interest in engraved in frequency of modulated signal instead of amplitude. So amplitude variations which are in certain bound will have no bad effect on quality of FM reception. We will describe the FM ratio detector which is used here. The remaining FM receive stages are very similar to those of the AM receiver.
Fig-10: FM Radio Receiver
Power and current measurement of FM receiver (use DVM) Fix the supply voltage to 9V and measure the current and calculate the power. Supply current (receiver off) ___________ mA
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Supply current (with moderate volume, FM/AM switch on FM position) __________ mA Calculate Power = _____________________ mW
FM Ratio Detector In FM detection, the audio is detected from changes in frequency of the incoming signal. The ratio detector has built-in limiting action which limits the signal so that any noise riding on the FM carrier will be minimized. When an incoming signal is present at T4 and T5, a current flows through D2, D3, R26, R27, and a large capacitor C25 which is a bypass for R28. For the IF signal R26 and R27 are practically connected to ground (C24 is like a short circuit). At no modulation the circuit is in resonance, and the currents through the diodes D2 and D3 are equal because T5 is center tapped and the voltages on the secondary of T5 are perpendicular to the IF voltage across the secondary of T4 (also referred to ground by C23 acting as a short). Thus, no current is drawn through C23 resulting in zero audio output voltage.
Fig-11: FM Ratio Detector
When the incoming signal is modulated, its frequency is different from the resonant frequency and the current through one diode will be larger than the other because the voltages across the secondary of T5 are not any more perpendicular to the voltage across the secondary of T4. Then, like in the Foster-Seeley discriminator the driving voltage for one diode branch is different from the voltage applied to the other. This causes a current to flow in C23 which will produce an audio voltage across C23 (the same current flows through C24 as well). If the modulation is of opposite direction than before, more current will flow in the other diode, which will again cause current to flow in C23 but in opposite direction resulting in an audio voltage being produced across C23. The ratio detector is decoupled by the resistor R23 and capacitor C21.
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Bandwidth Measurement of Ratio Detector Connect the circuit as shown in Fig-12. Set the AM/FM switch to FM position. Set the volume of radio receiver at comfortable audio level. Set the generator for FM at 10.7 MHz modulated at 1 kHz, 22.5 kHz deviation with minimum voltage out (EMF 20mV (RMS)). Connect the signal generator RF output to base of Q6 (Input of the ratio detector). Connect the oscilloscope to TP2 to observe the output of detector. Slowly increase the amplitude of the generator until a 1 kHz sine wave is observable on the scope. Connect the spectrum analyzer to base of Q6 to observe the FM spectrum as well.
Fig-12: Test Setup for FM Ratio Detector (Scope to TP2)
Increase/Decrease the deviation frequency, what happens at the output and why?
_____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________

For 22.5 kHz deviation change the amplitude of FM signal so that the detector output is 400 mVPP. Increase the modulation frequency (400 mVPP x 0.7 = 282.8 mVPP) and record the 3 dB bandwidth
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Bandwidth = fhigh,3dB = __________
Measurement of Tracking Range of Local Oscillator Connect the spectrum analyzer to the emitter of Q3. Set the start and stop frequency for spectrum analyzer to 70 MHz and 130 MHz, respectively. Set the marker setting for spectrum analyzer to auto maximum peak. Rotate the Tuning Knob from one extreme to another extreme and note the minimum and maximum oscillator frequency. fmin ___________ , fmax ____________.
Tracking Range: _________________________
Down-Convertion Set the signal generator for FM at 100 MHz modulated at 1 kHz, 22.5 kHz deviation and 60 mV (RMS) EMF and connect RF output to TP13. Connect the spectrum analyzer to the emitter of Q3 to observe the oscillator output. Turn the Tuning Knob to adjust the frequency of oscillator to 110.7 MHz which after mixing with the FM signal (from signal generator) produces an IF of 10.7 MHz. Observe the spectrum and identify different signals between 1.0 MHz and 130 MHz at: 100 MHz: _________________________
110.7 MHz: _________________________ 10.7 MHz: _________________________
Congratulations! You have completed the LAB.
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Autumn 2009: Radio Electronics (TSEK-02)

Date: Student Name: _________________________ Lab Supervisor: ___________ Personal Number: