520.401 - Basic Communications

520.401 Basic Communications

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
The Johns Hopkins University

Instructor
- Prof. Trac D. Tran
  Address: 207 Barton Hall
  Phone: (410) 516-7416
  Email: ttran@ece.jhu.edu
  Office Hours : Monday 1-3 or by appointment
Teaching Assistant
- Mr. Bhavesh Gandhi
  
  Address: 7 Barton Hall
  Phone: 410-516-6447
  Email: bvg@ece.jhu.edu
  Office Hours: Monday 10-12, Friday 2-4

Lectures
- Monday, 1:30 - 3:00 PM, Room 100 Shaffer Hall
- Tuesday, 1:30 - 3:00 PM, Room 302 Shaffer Hall

Text
- B. P. Lathi, Modern Digital and Analog Communication Systems, Third Edition, Oxford University Press, 1998.

Additional References
- L. W. Couch, Digital and Analog Communication Systems, Prentice Hall, 1997.
- S. Haykin, Communication Systems, John Wiley & Sons, 1994.
- G. Lewis, Communications Technology Handbook, Second Edition, Focal, 1997.
- J. G. Proakis and M. Salehi, Communication System Engineering, Prentice Hall, 1994.
- H. Stark, F. B. Tuteur, and J. B. Anderson, Modern Electrical Communications: Analog, Digital, and Optical Systems, Second Edition, Prentice Hall, 1988.
- F. G. Strembler, Introduction to Communication Systems, Third Edition, Addison-Wesley, 1990.

Outline
- Communication system fundamentals: signal transmission, system theory, signal representation, information theory, probability, random processes...
- Analog signal transmission and reception. Modulation techniques.
- Effect of noise on analog communication systems.
- Digital communication systems.
- Effect of noise on digital communication systems. Optimal signal detection.
- Numerous examples of current communication systems are used as illustrations throughout: AM/FM radio, TV broadcasting, telephone system, satellite communication, spread-spectrum technology, fiber optic network...

Ethics Issues
- Please read the information provided by the Ethics Board.
- Exams will be closed book, closed notes, no calculators. One 8.5 x 11 handwritten formula sheet will be permitted.
- On homework you are permitted to discuss the problems for clarification purposes, and to help each other with specific points. However, the overall solution and write-up should be your own work.

Important Dates
- First Class: September 8
- Fall Break, No Class: October 12
- Exam 1: tba
- Exam 2: tba
- Thanksgiving Vacation: November 26 - November 29
- Last Class Day: December 8
- Final Exam will be scheduled by the Registrar.

Note
- Graduate students will be held to a higher standard than undergraduate students when assigning final letter grades.