Essential Guide to RF and Wireless, The

Chapter 3. Basic System Components

This chapter begins by presenting block diagrams of the components that comprise the two basic building blocks in all wireless systems: transmitters and receivers. Once you understand how transmitters and receivers work, and the roles they play, you are well on your way to understanding wireless communications. And the good news is, both of these building blocks are fairly simple to look at and to understand because they consist of just five different RF components, which are covered in this chapter.

This chapter explains what roles antennas, amplifiers, filters, and mixers play in changing the nature, size, shape, and frequency of RF signals. It also points out where RF signals come from in the first place: ...