In this first part of the book the Vienna Link Level (LL) Simulators are described.
The first chapter provides basics of LL simulations, introduces the most common
variables and parameters as well as the transceiver structures that are applied in
Long-Term Evolution (LTE) and Long-Term Evolution-Advanced (LTEA). We
focus here mostly on the Downlink (DL) of LTE as most results reported in later
chapters are related to DL transmissions.
n the first part of this book, we give an introduction to the basic applications of wireless com-
munications, as well as the technical problems inherent in this communication paradigm. After a
brief history of wireless, Chapter 1 describes the different types of wireless services, and works
out their fundamental differences. The subsequent Section 1.3 looks at the same problem from
a different angle: what data rates, ranges, etc., occur in practical systems, and especially, what
combination of performance measures are demanded (e.g., what data rates need to be transmitted
over short distances; what data rates are required over long distances?) Chapter 2 then describes
the technical challenges of communicating without wires, putting special emphasis on fading and
co-channel interference. Chapter 3 describes the most elementary problem of designing a wireless
system, namely to set up a link budget in either a noise-limited or an interference-limited system.
After studying this part of the book, the reader should have an overview of different types of
wireless services, and understand the technical challenges involved in each of them. The solutions
to those challenges are described in the later parts of this book.
The advent of modern wireless devices, such as smart phones and MID 1 terminals,
has revolutionized the way people think of personal connectivity. Such devices
encompass multiple applications ranging from voice and video to high-speed data
transfer via wireless networks. The voracious appetite of twenty-first century users
for supporting more wireless applications on a single device is ever increasing.
These devices employ multiple radios and modems that cover multiple frequency
bands and multiple standards with a manifold of wireless applications often running
simultaneously.
This effort started as an answer to the numerous questions the authors have
repeatedly had to answer about electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection and
input/output (1/0) designs. In the past no comprehensive book existed suffi-
ciently covering these areas, and these topics were rarely taught in engineering
schools. Thus first-time I/O and ESD protection designers have had consider-
able trouble getting started. This book is in part an answer to such needs.
Electrostatic discharge (ESD) phenomena have been known to mankind since the Greek
Empire when Thales of Miletus, one of the Seven Sages of Greece, noticed the attraction of
strands of hay to amber, leading to the coining of the word “electron.” Electrical discharge
and the guiding of electrical discharge (e.g., lightning) was of interest to Benjamin Franklin
in the 1700s, with the invention of the lightning rod. The lightning rod was mankind’s first
effort to guide the electrical discharge current of a lightning strike in a direction that would
not harm structures.
Dear Reader, this book project brings to you a unique study tool for ESD
protection solutions used in analog-integrated circuit (IC) design. Quick-start
learning is combined with in-depth understanding for the whole spectrum of cross-
disciplinary knowledge required to excel in the ESD field. The chapters cover
technical material from elementary semiconductor structure and device levels up
to complex analog circuit design examples and case studies.
In the seven years since the first edition of this book was completed, Electrostatic
Discharge (ESD) phenomena in integrated circuits (IC) continues to be important
as technologies shrink and the speed and size of the chips increases. The phenom-
ena related to ESD events in semiconductor devices take place outside the realm of
normal device operation. Hence, the physics governing this behavior are not typ-
ically found in general textbooks on semiconductors.
Since electronic equipment was first developed, static electricity has been a
source of problems for users and designers. In the last few years, however,
electrostatic discharge (ESD) has become a source of major problems. This
has occurred because newer electronic devices, such as integrated circuits,
are much more susceptible to ESD problems than previous devices, such as
vacuum tubes. Another trend compounding this ESD susceptibility problem
is the spread of sophisticated equipment into home and office environments
where ESD is quite common.
As we enter the next millennium, there are clear technological patterns. First, the
electronic industry continues to scale microelectronic structures to achieve faster
devices, new devices, or more per unit area. Secondly, electrostatic charge, electrostatic
discharge (ESD), electrical overstress (EOS) and electromagnetic emissions (EMI)
continue to be a threat to these scaled structures. This dichotomy presents a dilemma
for the scaling of semiconductor technologies and a future threat to new technologies.
Technological advancements, material changes, design techniques, and simulation can
fend off this growing concern – but to maintain this ever-threatening challenge, one must
continue to establish research and education in this issue.
Five years have passed since the first edition of this book was published.Over the five years,the
world has witnessed a technological revolution headlined by an array of exciting consumer and
industrial products such as the Nintendo Wii, Apple iPod/iPad, sensor-rich smart phones,
phones with cameras,new operating systems for mobile phones and apps,e-books,WiFi,voice-
over-IP calls, social networking, 3D animated movies, and cloud computing, to name the major
ones that affect everyday living
