You are on page 1of 15

Physical layer is concerned with transmitting raw bits over a communication channel.

The design issues have to do with making sure that when one side sends a 1 bit, it is
recieved by the other side as 1 bit and not as 0 bit. In physical layer we deal with the
communication medium used for transmission.

Types of Medium

Medium can be classified into 2 categories.

1. Guided Media : Guided media means that signals is guided by the prescence of
physical media i.e. signals are under control and remains in the physical wire. For
eg. copper wire.
2. Unguided Media : Unguided Media means that there is no physical path for the
signal to propogate. Unguided media are essentially electro-magnetic waves.
There is no control on flow of signal. For eg. radio waves.

Communication Links

In a nework nodes are connected through links. The communication through links can be
classified as

1. Simplex : Communication can take place only in one direction. eg. T.V
broadcasting.
2. Half-duplex : Communication can take place in one direction at a time. Suppose
node A and B are connected then half-duplex communication means that at a time
data can flow from A to B or from B to A but not simultaneously. eg. two persons
talking to each other such that when speaks the other listens and vice versa.
3. Full-duplex : Communication can take place simultaneously in both directions.
eg. A discussion in a group without discipline.

Links can be further classified as

1. Point to Point : In this communication only two nodes are connected to each
other. When a node sends a packet then it can be recieved only by the node on the
other side and none else.
2. Multipoint : It is a kind of sharing communication, in which signal can be
recieved by all nodes. This is also called broadcast.

Generally two kind of problems are associated in transmission of signals.

1. Attenuation : When a signal transmitts in a network then the quality of signal


degrades as the signal travels longer distances in the wire. This is called
attenuation. To improve quality of signal amplifiers are used at regular distances.
2. Noise : In a communication channel many signals transmits simultaneously,
certain random signals are also present in the medium. Due to interference of
these signals our signal gets disrupted a bit.
Bandwidth

Bandwidth simply means how many bits can be transmitted per second in the
communication channel. In technical terms it indicates the width of frequency spectrum.

Transmission Media

Guided Transmission Media


In Guided transmission media generally two kind of materials are used.

1. Copper
o Coaxial Cable
o Twisted Pair
2. Optical Fiber

1. Coaxial Cable: Coaxial cable consists of an inner conductor and an outer


conductor which are seperated by an insulator. The inner conductor is usually
copper. The outer conductor is covered by a plastic jacket. It is named coaxial
because the two conductors are coaxial. Typical diameter of coaxial cable lies
between 0.4 inch to 1 inch. The most application of coaxial cable is cable T.V.
The coaxial cable has high bandwidth, attenuation is less.

2. Twisted Pair: A Twisted pair consists of two insulated copper wires, typically
1mm thick. The wires are twisted togather in a helical form the purpose of
twisting is to reduce cross talk interference between several pairs. Twisted Pair is
much cheaper then coaxial cable but it is susceptible to noise and electromagnetic
interference and attenuation is large.
Twisted Pair can be further classified in two categories:
Unshielded twisted pair: In this no insulation is provided, hence they are
susceptible to interference.
Shielded twisted pair: In this a protective thick insulation is provided but
shielded twisted pair is expensive and not commonly used.

The most common application of twisted pair is the telephone system. Nearly all
telephones are connected to the telephone company office by a twisted pair.
Twisted pair can run several kilometers without amplification, but for longer
distances repeaters are needed. Twisted pairs can be used for both analog and
digital transmission. The bandwidth depends on the thickness of wire and the
distance travelled. Twisted pairs are generally limited in distance, bandwidth and
data rate.

3. Optical Fiber: In optical fiber light is used to send data. In general terms
prescence of light is taken as bit 1 and its absence as bit 0. Optical fiber consists
of inner core of either glass or plastic. Core is surrounded by cladding of the same
material but of different refrective index. This cladding is surrounded by a plastic
jacket which prevents optical fiber from electromagnetic interferrence and harshy
environments. It uses the principle of total internal reflection to transfer data over
optical fibers. Optical fiber is much better in bandwidth as compared to copper
wire, since there is hardly any attenuation or electromagnetic interference in
optical wires. Hence there is less requirement to improve quality of signal, in long
distance transmission. Disadvantage of optical fiber is that end points are fairly
expensive. (eg. switches)

Differences between different kinds of optical fibers:

1. Depending on material
 Made of glass
 Made of plastic.
2. Depending on radius
 Thin optical fiber
 Thick optical fiber
3. Depending on light source
 LED (for low bandwidth)
 Injection lased diode (for high bandwidth)

Wireless Transmission

1. Radio: Radio is a general term that is used for any kind of frequency. But higher
frequencies are usually termed as microwave and the lower frequency band comes
under radio frequency. There are many application of radio. For eg. cordless
keyboard, wireless LAN, wireless ethernet. but it is limited in range to only a few
hundred meters. Depending on frequency radio offers different bandwidths.
2. Terrestrial microwave: In terrestrial microwave two antennas are used for
communication. A focused beam emerges from an antenna and is recieved by the
other antenna, provided that antennas should be facing each other with no
obstacle in between. For this reason antennas are situated on high towers. Due to
curvature of earth terristial microwave can be used for long distance
communication with high bandwidth. Telecom department is also using this for
long distance communication. An advantage of wireless communication is that it
is not required to lay down wires in the city hence no permissions are required.
3. Satellite communication: Satellite acts as a switch in sky. On earth VSAT(Very
Small Aperture Terminal) are used to transmit and recieve data from satellite.
Generally one station on earth transmitts signal to satellite and it is recieved by
many stations on earth. Satellite communication is generally used in those places
where it is very difficult to obtain line of sight i.e. in highly irregular terristial
regions. In terms of noise wireless media is not as good as the wired media. There
are frequency band in wireless communication and two stations should not be
allowed to transmit simultaneously in a frequency band. The most promising
advantage of satellite is broadcasting. If satellites are used for point to point
communication then they are expensive as compared to wired media.

Transmission Media

Transmission Media is the medium through which the data is transferred from one place
to another. Networks are connected by some sort of wiring /cabling or even wireless link
that acts as a network transmission medium that carries signals between computers.

Importance of Transmission Media


The choice of the medium is very important since it affects:
• Network cost,
• Maximum operating speed,
• And error rates.
Network media should be:

• Durable,
• Reliable,
• Inexpensive,
• Immune to noise,
• And easy to install, maintain, and reconfigure.

Types of transmission media


1) Air
2) Magnetic Media
3) Coaxial cable
4) Twisted pair cable
5) Fibre optic cable

1) Air (wireless):
The transmission of data is performed using radio waves, infrared, or laser light.

Advantage:
Eliminates cabling.
Disadvantages:
• Need of an unobstructed line-of-sight path between nodes.
• Light signal are susceptible to interference from fog, and smoke.
• Data can be intercepted (security problems).

2) Magnetic Media:
One of the most common ways to transport data from one place to another is to write it
on the magnetic tape or floppy and physically transport it to the destination machine
physically.

3) Coaxial Cable

:
Coaxial cable consists of a core of copper wire surrounded by insulation, a braided metal
shielding, and an outer cover.
Functions:
• The core of coaxial cable carries the electronic signals that make up the data.
• Insulating layer: Surrounding the core is a dielectric insulating layer that separates it
from the wire mesh.
• Wire mesh acts as a ground and protects the core from electrical noise and cross
talk.
At one time, coaxial cable was the most widely used network cabling.
There were a couple of reasons for coaxial cable’s wide usage.
• It was relatively inexpensive
• It is light
• It is flexible and
• Easy to work with

Example:
Television cable is a form of coaxial cable.

Types of Coaxial cable:


There are two types of coaxial cable:
1. 10Base5 / Thicknet cable:
It is an RG/U-8 coaxial cable. It was the original Ethernet cable. It is no longer in use in
modern LANs.
2. 10Base2 / Thinnet cable:
It is an RG/U-58 coaxial cable. It has a smaller diameter than Thicknet. It replaced
Thicknet.
The type of coaxial cable you select depends on the needs of your particular network.

Coaxial-Cable Connection Hardware


Both thinnet and thicknet cable use a connection component, known as a BNC
connector, to make the connections between the cable and the computers.
There are several important components in the BNC (British Naval Connector” or
Bayonet
Neill-Councelman) family, including
• BNC cable connector
• BNC T connector
• BNC barrel connector
• BNC terminator
4) Twisted pair cable
Twisted-pair cable consists of two or four insulated copper wires twisted around each
other.
• It is the most commonly and widely used cable in the network today.
• The total number of pairs in a cable varies.
• The twisting cancels out electrical noise from adjacent pairs and from other sources
such as motor, relays and transformers.

Twisted-pair cabling uses RJ-45 connectors to connect to a computer. These are


similar to RJ-11 telephone connectors.

Use twisted-pair cable if:


• Your LAN is under budget constraints.
• You want a relatively easy installation in which computer connections are simple.

The advantages of TP is that they are:


• Available in many forms at low prices.
• Relatively easier to install.
• Used extensively in telephone lines.

Do not use twisted-pair cable if:


• Your LAN requires a high level of security and you must be absolutely sure of data
integrity.
• You want to transmit data over long distance at high speeds
Types of Twisted-pair cable
There are two types of twisted pair
1. Shielded twisted-pair (STP)
2. Unshielded twisted-pair (UTP)

Shielding:
• Shielding means protection, in the cable, shielding means the woven or stranded
metal mesh protection (or other material) that surrounds some types of cable.
• Shielding protects transmitted data by absorbing stray electronic signals, called
noise, so that they do not get onto the cable and distort the data.

EIA/TIA Standard:
The standards for UTP and STP are given by EIA/ TIA (Electronic Industries association/
Telecommunications Industry Association). These organizations jointly developed
EIA/TIA-
568 standard, which is used worldwide.

Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP)


• UTP cable consists to two or four insulated copper wires.
• UTP specifications govern how many twists are permitted per foot of cable.
• The number of twists allowed depends on the purpose to which the cable will be

used.

UTP is particularly susceptible to cross talk, but the greater the number of twists per
foot of cable, the more protection against cross talk.

CATEGORIES of UTP Cable


EIA/TIA-568 standard for UTP cable classifies the cable into the following categories.
Category 1:
This refers to traditional UTP telephone cable that can carry voice but not data
transmission. Most telephone cable prior to 1983 was category 1 cable.
Category 2:
This category certifies UTP cable for data transmission up to 4 megabits per second
(Mbps). It consists of four-twisted Paris of copper wire.
Category 3:
This category certifies UTP cable for data transmission up to 16 Mbps. It consists of four
twisted pairs of copper wire with three twisted per foot. It can be used for Ethernet, fast
Ethernet and token ring.
Category 4:
This category certifies UTP cable for data transmission up to 20 Mbps. It consists of four
twisted pairs of copper wire. It can be used for Ethernet, fast Ethernet and token ring.
Category 5:
This category certifies UTP cable for data transmission up to 100 Mbps. It consists of
four
twisted pairs of copper wire.

Shielded Twisted Pair

• STP cable uses a woven copper- braid jacket that is more protective and of a higher
quality than the jacket used by UTP.
• STP also uses a foil wrap around each of the wire pairs. This gives STP excellent
shielding to protect the transmitted data from outside interference, which in turn
allows it to support higher transmission rates over longer distances then UTP.
5) Fiber optic Cable

• Instead of using electrically (electric signals) to send data, fiber optics cable uses
light.
• It works on the principle of TOTAL INTERNAL REFLECTION.

Composition of Cable
• The cables are made of glass fibers, each thinner than a human hair, that can guide
light beams for very long distances.
• An optical fiber consists of an extremely thin cylinder of glass, called the core,
surrounded by another layer of glass, known as the cladding.
• The fibers are sometimes made of plastic. Plastic is easier to install, but cannot carry
the light pluses for as long a distance as glass.

Types of Fiber Optic Cable

Single Mode:
• Single mode fiber has a very small core causing light to travel in a straight line and
allows one “mode” of the wavelength to travel down the fiber.
• Typically it has a core size of 8 or 10 microns.
• It has unlimited bandwidth that can go unrepeated for over 80 km, depending on the type
of transmitting equipment.
• Single mode fiber has enormous information capacity, more than multimode fiber.

Multi mode:
• Multimode fiber supports multiple paths of light and has a much larger core.
• It has a core size of 50 or 62.5 microns.
• The light travels down a much larger path in multimode fiber, allowing the light to go
down several paths or modes.

Use fiber-optic cable if you:


• Need to transmit data at very high speeds over long distances in very secure media.

Do not use fiber-optic cable if you:


• Are under a tight budget.
• Do not have the expertise available to properly install it and connect devices to it.

Advantages of Fiber Optic cable:


• High bandwidth capacity (many gigabits per second).
• Longer distances between devices (from 2 to over 60 kilometres).
• Immunity to electromagnetic interferences
• It can also send and receive very high frequencies at one time.

Noise is unwanted electrical or electromagnetic energy that degrades the quality


of
signals and data.
Noise occurs in digital and analog systems, and can affect files and
communications of
all types, including text, programs, images, audio, and telemetry.

Different Types of Noise


• Thermal noise is due to thermal agitation of electrons.
• White noise is a type of noise that is produced by
combining sounds of all different frequencies together.
• Cross talk is signal overflow from an adjacent wire.
• Attenuation is the loss of signal strength that begins to occur as the signal travels
farther along the cable.
• Impulse Noise: Irregular pulses or spikes e.g. External electromagnetic interference

Background:
Local Area Network (LAN): There are numerous devices associated with data information flow
across a LAN. When adjoined, they create the infrastructure of a functional LAN. These devices
include:
• Repeaters
• Bridges
• Hubs
• Switches
• Routers
Repeaters: located within the physical layer of a network, regenerate and propagate signals from one
to
another. They do not change any information being transmitted, and they cannot filter any information.
Repeaters help to extend the distances of networks by boosting weak signals.

Bridges
Bridges are intelligent repeaters. They regenerate transmitted signals, but unlike repeaters, they
canalso determine destinations.

Hubs
Hubs connect all computer LAN connections into one device. They are nothing more than multiport
repeaters. Hubs cannot determine destinations; they merely transmit to every line attached in a
half-duplex mode.

Routers
Routers are a step up from bridges. They are able to route and filter information to different networks.
Some routers can automatically detect problems and redirect information around the problem area.
These are called "intelligent routers."

Switches
Switches connect all computer LAN connections, the same as hubs do. The difference is that
switches can run in full-duplex mode and are able to direct and filter information to and from specific
destinations
Wide Area Network (WAN)
As with LANs, there are numerous devices associated with data information flow across a WAN.
Together, these devices create the infrastructure of a functional WAN. These devices include:
• Router
• ATM Switch
• Modem and CSU/DSU
• Communication Server
• Multiplexer
• X.25/Frame Relay Switches

Routers
Routers are a step up from bridges. They are able

to route and filter information to different networks.


Some routers can automatically detect problems
and redirect information around the problem area.
These are called "intelligent routers."

ATM Switches
ATM Switches provide high-speed transfer

between both LANs and WANs.

Modem (modulator / demodulator)

Modems convert digital and analog signals. At the


source, modems convert digital signals to a form
suitable for transmission over analog
communication facilities (public telephone lines). At
the destination, modems convert the signal back to
a digital format.
CSU/DSU (Channel Service Unit / Data Service Unit)
CSUs/DSUs are similar to modems, however they send data in digital format across digital telephone
loops.
They are usually in a physical box, but they may come in two separate units: CSUs or DSUs.

Multiplexers
A Multiplexer combines multiple signals for
transmission over a single circuit. This allows for
the transfer of various data simultaneously, such as
video, sound, text, etc.

Media / Cabling
Local Area Network Cabling
The earliest LANs used coaxial cables. Over time, the twisted pair cables used in telephone systems
were improved to carry higher frequencies and support LAN traffic. More recently, fiber optic cables
have
emerged as a high-speed cabling option.
Local Area Networks use four types of cables:
• Coaxial
• Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP)
• Shielded Twisted Pair (STP)
• Fiber Optic
Coaxial Cables
A coaxial cable consists of:
• a single copper conductor
• a layer of shielding with a ground wire
• an outer jacket

Coaxial Cable Uses


Coaxial cables are sometimes used for bus topologies, but many LAN products are dropping support
of
coaxial cable connectivity.
The Ethernet LAN protocol was originally developed to operate over coaxial cables.
10Base5 / Thicknet cable:
• is an RG/U-8 coaxial cable.
• was the original Ethernet cable.
10Base2 / Thinnet cable:
• is an RG/U-58 coaxial cable.
• has a smaller diameter than Thicknet.
• replaced Thicknet.
• is no longer recommended, but is still used in some very small LANs.

Unshielded Twisted Pair


Unshielded twisted pair (UTP) cable is used for
both LANs and telephone systems. UTP cables are
composed of four color-coded pairs of copper
conductors twisted around each other. An outer
jacket provides protection and keeps the pairs in
alignment. UTP cable connects to devices via 8 pin
modular connectors called RJ-45 plugs. All LAN
protocols can operate over UTP. Most modern LAN
devices are equipped with RJ-45 jacks.
What Are the Advantages of Fiber Optics?
Fiber optic cables offer several advantages, including:
• high bandwidth capacity (many gigabits per second).
• longer distances between devices (from 2 to over 60 kilometers).
• immunity to electromagnetic interferences
Fiber optic cables are widely used in WANs for both voice and data communications. The primary
barrier
to their widespread use in LANs is the cost of electronics. The cost of the fiber optic cables themselves
is
comparable to UTP LAN cables.
Cross-over cable: In order to connect to similar devices like two computers, two
routers,
two switches, we use cross over cable.
Straight through cable: Used to connect two dissimilar devices, like PC to
switch, PC to
Bridge, PC to router etc we use straight through cable.
Crimping Tool: The tool used for making the RJ-45 and RJ-11 connection is
called
`crimping tool

You might also like