Carrier-Frequency Estimation Based on the Location of the Spectra Peak of a Windowed Sample of Carrier Plus Noise

Watson F. Walker, Tapan K. Sarkar, Fung I. Tseng, Donald D. Weiner

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

5 Scopus citations

Abstract

The frequency of an unmodulated (CW) carrier frequency transmission may be estimated by identifying the location of the peak value of the spectrum of a windowed sample of T-seconds duration. This estimate will, in general, be somewhat in error, and the error will depend on the length and shape of the window and the signal-to-noise ratio at the observing receiver. This paper quantitatively evaluates the effect of window shape and length (leakage) as well as the effect of additive broad-band noise on the accuracy of this method of estimation. In addition, it compares the method with an optimum “least mean-squared error” technique. An interesting result is that neither elaborate “shaping" of the window, nor the use of the “least mean-squared" error method will have much advantage over the use of the spectral peak in a rectangularly windowed sample, unless the signal-to-in-band-noise ratio is of the order of 50 dB or better.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)239-249
Number of pages11
JournalIEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and Measurement
VolumeIM-31
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 1982
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Instrumentation
  • Electrical and Electronic Engineering

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