SYSTEMS AND SIGNALS - FINAL REPORT , NOVEMBER 2022 1

“FREQUENCY ANALYSIS: THE FOURIER

SERIES ”
FINAL REPORT
Breiner J. Guerra B. 202110027611; Juan E. Suarez R. 202110018611.

Abstract—Fourier series simply states that, periodic signals IV. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
can be represented into sum of sines and cosines when multiplied
with a certain weight.It further states that periodic signals can be
A. Frequency response
broken down into further signals with the following properties: Systems respond differently to inputs of different frequencies.
The signals are sines and cosines and the signals are harmonics Some systems may amplify components of certain frequencies,
of each other. and attenuate components of other frequencies. The way that
In this laboratory we test the changes of frequencies and
magnitudes in a system, basic issues and situations to which the system output is related to the system input for different
it entails, through measurements and experimental analysis. frequencies is called the frequency response of the system.
The frequency response is the relationship between the system
Index Terms—Signals, Frequency response, Fourier Series , input and output in the Fourier Domain.
Periodic Signals, AM and Modulation signals

I. INTRODUCTION
The frequency response of a system is the quantitative measure
of the magnitude and phase of the output as a function Figure 1. A diagram of a block with a transfer function in the Fourier domain
of input frequency. The frequency response is widely used Source: Taken from “Signals and Systems/Frequency Response” - wikibooks
in the design and analysis of systems, such as audio and
control systems, where they simplify mathematical analysis In this system, X(jω) is the system input, Y(jω) is the system
by converting governing differential equations into algebraic output, and H(jω) is the frequency response. We can define
equations. the relationship between these functions as:
A periodic signal is one that repeats the sequence of values Y (jω) = H(jω)X(jω) (1)
exactly after a fixed length of time, known as the period.
The frequency of a signal tells us how many times the signal The Frequency Response Functions
repeats itself during one second. Units of frequency are in Since the frequency response is a complex function, we can
cycles per second, or Hertz (abbreviated as Hz). Therefore, a convert it to polar notation in the complex plane. This will
signal with a frequency of 100Hz goes through 100 cycles give us a magnitude and an angle. We call the angle the phase.
(periods) in one second—the period of the signal is 0.01
seconds. Higher frequency signals change more rapidly, and Amplitude Response
have shorter periods than lower frequency signals. For each frequency, the magnitude represents the system’s
tendency to amplify or attenuate the input signal.
II. G ENERAL O BJECTIVE
A(jω) = |H(jω)| (2)
• Test the behavior of certain signals by means of experi-
mental physical means, simulators and software; in such Phase Response
a way that we can observe the harmonics, the FFT and The phase represents the system’s tendency to modify the
make a prediction of the data that was obtained. phase of the input sinusoids.
ϕ(ω) = ̸ H(jω) (3)
III. S PECIFIC O BJECTIVE
• In this report the main objective is to show how different The phase response, or its derivative the group delay, tells
is the calculation with the signals harmonics comparing us how the system delays the input signal as a function of
with that ones obtained from oscilloscope and MATLAB, frequency.
likewise to indicate if the frequency response behavior.
B. Periodic Signals
Fundación Universitaria Los Libertadores A signal is a periodic signal if it completes a pattern within
E-mail: [email protected] a measurable time frame, called a period and repeats that
E-mail: [email protected]
pattern over identical subsequent periods. The completion of
a full pattern is called a cycle. A period is defined as the
SYSTEMS AND SIGNALS - FINAL REPORT , NOVEMBER 2022 2

amount of time (expressed in seconds) required to complete amount that must be subtracted from the signal to center it
one full cycle. The duration of a period represented by T, on the x-axis. by definition:
may be different for each signal but it is constant for any Z T
given periodic signal. 1 2
A0 = · f (x) dx (6)
T − T2
Terminology
With A0 being the DC offset. If A0 = 0, the function is
Period centered and has no offset.
The period is the smallest value of T satisfying g(t + T) = g(t)
for all t. The period is defined so because if g(t + T) = g(t) Discontinuities
for all t, it can be verified that g(t + T’) = g(t) for all t where Discontinuities are an artifact of some signals that make them
T’ = 2T, 3T, 4T, ... In essence, it’s the smallest amount of difficult to manipulate for a variety of reasons.
time it takes for the function to repeat itself. If the period of a In a graphical sense, a periodic signal has discontinuities
function is finite, the function is called ”periodic”. Functions whenever there is a vertical line connecting two adjacent
that never repeat themselves have an infinite period, and are values of the signal. In a more mathematical sense, a periodic
known as ”aperiodic functions”. signal has discontinuities anywhere that the function has an
The period of a periodic waveform will be denoted with a undefined (or an infinite) derivative. These are also places
capital T. The period is measured in seconds. where the function does not have a limit, because the values
of the limit from both directions are not equal.
Frequency Classifications Periodic functions can be classified in a
The frequency of a periodic function is the number of complete number of ways, one of the ways that they can be classified
cycles that can occur per second. Frequency is denoted with is according to their symmetry. A function may be Odd,
a lower-case f. It is defined in terms of the period, as follows: Even, or Neither Even nor Odd. All periodic functions can
be classified in this way.
1
f= (4)
T Even
Radial Frequency Functions are even if they are symmetrical about the y-axis.
The radial frequency is the frequency in terms of radians. It
is defined as follows: f (−x) = f (x) (7)

ω = 2πf (5) For instance, a cosine function is an even function.

Amplitude Odd
The amplitude of a given wave is the value of the wave at that A function is odd if it is inversely symmetrical about the y-
point. Amplitude is also known as the ”Magnitude” of the axis.
wave at that particular point. There is no particular variable
that is used with amplitude, although capital A, capital M f (−x) = −f (x) (8)
and capital R are common.
The amplitude can be measured in different units, depending The Sine function is an odd function.
on the signal we are studying. In an electric signal the
amplitude will typically be measured in volts. In a building
or other such structure, the amplitude of a vibration could be C. Fourier Series
measured in meters. A Fourier series is an expansion of a periodic function f(x) in
terms of an infinite sum of sines and cosines. Fourier series
Continuous Signal make use of the orthogonality relationships of the sine and
A continuous signal is a ”smooth” signal, where the signal is cosine functions. The computation and study of Fourier series
defined over a certain range. For example, a sine function is a is known as harmonic analysis and is extremely useful as a
continuous signal, as is an exponential function or a constant way to break up an arbitrary periodic function into a set of
function. A portion of a sine signal over a range of time 0 to simple terms that can be plugged in, solved individually, and
6 seconds is also continuous. Examples of functions that are then recombined to obtain the solution to the original problem
not continuous would be any discrete signal, where the value or an approximation to it to whatever accuracy is desired
of the signal is only defined at certain intervals. or practical. Convergence of Fourier series means that as
more and more components from the series are summed, each
DC Offset successive partial Fourier series sum will better approximate
A DC Offset is an amount by which the average value of the the function, and will equal the function with a potentially
periodic function is not centered around the x-axis. infinite number of components. An example of successive
A periodic signal has a DC offset component if it is not approximation to common function using Fourier series is
centered about the x-axis. In general, the DC value is the illustrated below.
SYSTEMS AND SIGNALS - FINAL REPORT , NOVEMBER 2022 3

of a function f(x) is given by:

∞ ∞
1 X X
f (x) = a0 + an cos(nx) + bn sin(nx) (9)
2 n=1 n=1

Where
1 π
Z
a0 = f (x) dx
π −π
Z π
1
an = f (x) cos (nx) dx (10)
π −π
Z π
1
bn = f (x) sin (nx) dx
π −π

And n= 1, 2, 3, .... Note that the coefficient of the constant term

a0 has been written in a special form compared to the general
Figure 2. As more harmonics are added, the partial sums converge to (become
form for a generalized Fourier series in order to preserve
more and more like) the square wave. symmetry with the definitions of an and bn .
Source: Taken from “Fourier Series” - wikipedia But there is also another way to obtain the Fourier’s Coeffi-
cients, in the equation 11 its represented.

Any set of functions that form a complete orthogonal system Z

have a corresponding generalized Fourier series analogous to ak = f (t)e−jω0 t dt (11)
T
the Fourier series.
The computation of the (usual) Fourier series is based on the
integral identities as shown below.
D. AM and FM Modulation signals

Amplitude Modulation

In electronics, telecommunications and mechanics, modulation

means varying some aspect of a continuous wave carrier
signal with an information-bearing modulation waveform,
such as an audio signal which represents sound, or a video
signal which represents images. In this sense, the carrier
wave, which has a much higher frequency than the message
signal, carries the information. At the receiving station, the
message signal is extracted from the modulated carrier by
demodulation.
Amplitude modulation (AM) is a modulation technique used
in electronic communication, most commonly for transmitting
messages with a radio wave. In amplitude modulation, the
amplitude (signal strength) of the wave is varied in proportion
to that of the message signal, such as an audio signal.
In the frequency domain, amplitude modulation produces
a signal with power concentrated at the carrier frequency
and two adjacent sidebands. Each sideband is equal in
Figure 3. Integral identities - Fourier Series
bandwidth to that of the modulating signal, and is a mirror
Source: Taken from “Fourier Series” - Wolfram Math World image of the other. Standard AM is thus sometimes called
”double-sideband amplitude modulation” (DSBAM).
A disadvantage of all amplitude modulation techniques, not
Using the method for a generalized Fourier series, the usual only standard AM, is that the receiver amplifies and detects
Fourier series involving sines and cosines is obtained by taking noise and electromagnetic interference in equal proportion to
f1 (x) = cos(x) and f2 (x) = sin(x). Since these functions form the signal.
a complete orthogonal system over [−π, π] the Fourier series
SYSTEMS AND SIGNALS - FINAL REPORT , NOVEMBER 2022 4

decreasing magnitudes. This is an illustration of the signal in

the time domain and the next equation:

4 sin 3ω1 t sin 5ω1 t sin 7ω1 t

x(t) = (sin ω1 t+ + + +...) (12)
π 3 5 7

Figure 4. Am Modulation- Source:Taken from ”Am Modulation” - Byjus

Frequency Modulation

Frequency modulation (FM) is the encoding of information in

a carrier wave by varying the instantaneous frequency of the
wave.
In analog frequency modulation, such as radio broadcasting, of
an audio signal representing voice or music, the instantaneous
frequency deviation, i.e. the difference between the frequency
of the carrier and its center frequency, has a functional relation Figure 5. Harmonics in a Square wave- Source: Authors
to the modulating signal amplitude.
Frequency modulation and phase modulation are the two
complementary principal methods of angle modulation; phase
modulation is often used as an intermediate step to achieve Table I
frequency modulation. These methods contrast with amplitude H ARMONICS IN A S QUARE WAVE
modulation, in which the amplitude of the carrier wave varies,
while the frequency and phase remain constant. a1 a3 a5 a7 a9
5×10−4 1.6×10−4 1×10−4 71×10−6 55×10−6

V. H ARMONICS C ALCULATIONS

Square wave
VI. S OFTWARE AND M ODELLING
To gain details about the various elements of a complex
waveform it is necessary to perform a spectrum (frequency)
study of the frequency signal taken from the measurement The ”Fast Fourier Transform”, FFT for short, is an important
must be carried out. measurement method in audio and acoustic measurement
A periodic function is represented by the form of a Fourier technology. It breaks down a signal into its individual
series is the equivalent of breaking down it into constituent spectral components and thus provides information about its
functions which include The constant part a0 as well as the composition.
harmonic components that have two pulsations: ω1, 2ω1, 3ω1, Strictly speaking, the FFT is an algorithm optimized for
. . . , nω1, where ω1 is the fundamental pulsation and nω1 are implementing the ”Discrete Fourier Transform”, or DFT for
the harmonic pulsations, n is a natural number. ω may be short. In this process, a time limited section of a signal is
represented or equal to 2πf, where f is the frequency of the broken down into its components. These components are
signal. simple sinusoidal oscillations at discrete frequencies, the
For instance, a periodic signal that is in the form of a square amplitude and phase of which are determined. The FFT thus
waveform can be represented as an infinite trigonometric allows viewing of a signal in the frequency domain.
sequence that includes odd harmonics (1 3, 5, 7, . . . ) with
SYSTEMS AND SIGNALS - FINAL REPORT , NOVEMBER 2022 5

VII. F REQUENCY R ESPONSE

Figure 8. Frequency Response

VIII. C ONCLUSIONS
Figure 6. Sine Wave and its FFT- Source: Authors
• Q:How different is the calculation with the signals
harmonics comparing with that ones obtained from
oscilloscope and MATLAB?
Our periodogram shows some very well defined harmon-
ics of the fundamental signal. This suggests we measure
the total harmonic distortion of the input signal which
returns the ratio of power of all harmonic content to the
fundamental signal. This discrepancy in THD is due to
Square wave the settings (i.e., the number of cycles and start time) used
A square wave is a non-sinusoidal periodic waveform in by FFT analysis tool and the Signal THD block. If the
which the amplitude alternates at a steady frequency between FFT analysis block settings for the ’Number of Cycles’,
fixed minimum and maximum values, with the same duration are not the same as the Signal THD block, for example if
at minimum and maximum. In an ideal square wave, the the value was set to 3 cycles, the THD values would not
transitions between minimum and maximum are instantaneous. be identical. Once this setting is changed to one cycle the
THD values are identical. Since the measured signal is
noisy, in order to achieve maximum correlation between
the THD values computed by the FFT Analysis and the
Signal THD blocks, the signal window used should be
identical. This can be achieved by changing the ’start
time’ in the FFT Analysis, so it matches with window
used by the Signal THD block.
• Q:Are the frequency response a low-pass behavior or
a high-pass behavior? How recognise the difference
between both in the circuit?
Low pass filter: Low pass filter is the type of frequency
domain filter that is used for smoothing the image. It
attenuates the high frequency components and preserves
the low frequency components. The Frequency response
in figure ref8 shows a proper behavior of this type of
filters, since its peak it is located at a low frequency.
• To recapitulate, Fourier series simplify the analysis of
periodic, real valued functions. Specifically, it can break
up a periodic function into an infinite series of sine and
cosine waves. This property makes Fourier series very
useful in many applications.
The basic equations of the Fourier series led to the
development of the Fourier transform, which can de-
compose a nonperiodic function much like the Fourier
Figure 7. Square Wave and its FFT- Source: Authors series decomposes a periodic function. Because this type
SYSTEMS AND SIGNALS - FINAL REPORT , NOVEMBER 2022 6

of analysis is very computation intensive, different Fast

Fourier Transform algorithms have been devised.
• A square wave consists of a fundamental sine wave
(of the same frequency as the square wave) and odd
harmonics of the fundamental.
The amplitude of the harmonics is equal to 1/N where
N is the harmonic (1, 3, 5, 7. . . ) as its was registered in
Table I. Each harmonic has the same phase relationship to
the fundamental. Towards the middle of each half cycle
the harmonics alternate between being at minimum and
maximum amplitude just as we saw in Figure 5.
• AM produces side bands above and below the carrier
equal to the highest frequency content of the modulating
signal. The bandwidth required is two times the highest
frequency content including any harmonics for binary
pulse modulating signals as its represented in Figure 4.
The amplitude of the wave is altered in proportion to the
message signal, such as an audio signal, in amplitude
modulation and to avoid overmodulation. Typically in
overmodulation, the negative half cycle of the modulating
signal will be distorted.

IX. B IBLIOGRAPHIC R EFERENCES

1) Alan V. Oppenheim, Alan S. Willsky “Signals and sys-
tems”. Tsinghua University Press, 1997

2) Weisstein, Eric W. “Fourier Series”. Math world

3) Wiki Books “Signal and systems/Frecuency Response”.

Book signal and systems