Microwave Journal
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THE BOOK END

July 1, 2001

* RF and Microwave Wireless Systems

Kai Chang

Wiley-Inter-science

339 pages; $79.95
ISBN: 0-471-35199-7

RF and microwave wireless systems are currently at the cutting edge of technology. Already, it is possible to communicate or transmit information instantly all over the world and this field is expanding rapidly.

The purpose of this book is to introduce students and beginners to hardware components, systems parameters and architectures of RF and wireless systems. It is the result of teaching by the author to seniors at Texas A&M. Although the book was written as a textbook, it can also be used as a reference book for practical engineers and technicians. Throughout, the emphasis is on the basic operating principles. Design information and many practical examples have been included.

Because of the breadth of information offered, it is not possible for the author to go into any detail and each topic is briefly covered. Any interested reader can obtain further information using the references given at the end of each chapter. Several problems are also offered to test the knowledge and understanding of each subject. Mathematics are kept at a minimum and consist mainly of formulas supporting the topic concerned.

The book starts with a short history of RF and microwave wireless systems from Maxwell and Hertz to the present. The next two chapters cover the fundamental principles of electromagnetic waves and transmission lines. Chapter 3 is concerned with antennas and antenna arrays. Chapter 4 describes the different components that a circuit or system designer would use. Receiver and transmitter system parameters are the subject of Chapters 5 and 6, respectively. In Chapter 7, radar and sensor systems are described. Chapter 8 covers wireless communication systems, while Chapter 9 is concerned with modulation and demodulation schemes. Multiple access techniques are the subject of Chapter 10 and Chapter 11 is dedicated to other types of wireless systems, such as radio navigation, remote sensing and global positioning. A comprehensive index permits easy location of the desired topic.

To order this book, contact: John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 101158 (212) 850-6336 or (800) 225-5945.

* Digital Techniques
for Wideband Receivers

James Tsui

Artech House Inc.

588 pages; $129, £95
ISBN: 1-58053-299-3

For a long time, wideband receivers were the domain of electronic warfare (EW) systems. With the advent of modern communications and ever increasing bandwidth requirements, the differences between EW and communication receivers become smaller and smaller.

The purpose of this book is to introduce digital signal processing approaches that are applicable to wideband receiver designs. Its emphasis is on techniques rather than theoretical discussions. It is written primarily for researchers in EW and communications areas and is presented at a senior or graduate school engineering level. Many examples are presented and a comprehensive bibliography is offered at the end of each chapter. Many computer programs, written in MATLAB, are included to help the reader understand the problems and design of a wideband receiver.

The book is organized to present the topics in a coherent way: Chapter 1 is an introduction. Chapters 2 and 16 are the only chapters dedicated to EW. Chapter 2 provides a very brief review of EW and Chapter 16 discusses the evaluation of EW receivers. Fourier transforms, discrete Fourier transforms and some related subjects that are of special interest for wideband receiver designs are included in Chapters 3 to 5. Chapter 6 discusses analog-to-digital converters (ADC) and their impact on receiver performance. Chapter 7 shows the design of receiver front-ends with ADCs at the outputs. Chapter 8 discusses in-phase and quadrature-phase converter design. Probability of false alarm and probability of detection are discussed in Chapter 9. Phase measurement and zero crossing methods to measure frequency are discussed in Chapter 10. Chapter 11 discusses frequency channelization. Chapter 12 presents a simple design of an EW receiver. Chapter 13 presents some possible methods to process signals after channelization. High frequency resolution is discussed in Chapter 14. Angle measurements are discussed in Chapter 15. This book will make a useful addition to the library of anyone interested in wideband receivers.

To order this book, contact: Artech House Inc., 685 Canton St., Norwood, MA 02062 (781) 769-9750 Ext. 4002; or 46 Gillingham St., London SW1V 1HH, UK +44 (0) 20 7596-8750.