Introduction to Digital Communications

Master the fundamentals of digital communications systems with this accessible and hands-on introductory textbook, carefully interweaving theory and practice. The just-in-time approach introduces essential background as needed, keeping academic theory firmly linked to practical applications. The example-led teaching frames key concepts in the context of real-world systems, such as 5G, WiFi, and GPS. Stark provides foundational material on the trade-offs between energy and bandwidth efficiency, giving students a solid grounding in the fundamental challenges of designing digital communications systems. Features include over 300 illustrative figures, 80 examples, and 130 end-of-chapter problems to reinforce student understanding, with solutions for instructors. Accompanied online by lecture slides, computational MATLAB® and Python resources, and supporting data sets, this is the ideal introduction to digital communications for senior undergraduate and graduate students in electrical engineering.

'This book emphasizes the fundamentals of digital communication as well as its practice. It provides examples to enhance the understanding, and the many illustrations explain the basic concepts very well. Several concepts from actual engineering practice are discussed in detail.' Ender Ayanoglu, University of California, Irvine, 'Wayne Stark is a widely respected researcher in digital communications, as well as a dedicated and talented teacher. This book reflects his years of experience teaching a challenging and rapidly changing subject to senior undergraduate and first-year graduate students. His choice of topics and careful balance between theory and practice ensure that this book will be a valuable resource in electrical engineering curricula for years to come.' Tom Fuja, University of Notre Dame, 'This self-contained book is excellent for a first course in digital communications. It strikes a perfect balance in theory, practice, and insights, so that a beginner can get a good understanding without getting lost in advanced mathematical concepts.' Sudharman K. Jayaweera, University of New Mexico, 'This is an extraordinary textbook on digital communication theory and practices. Key results are derived step by step, and it provides many examples and figures that help students grasp key concepts. I wish it had been available when I was a student.' Sang Wu Kim, Iowa State University, 'Not only is this textbook comprehensive and well written, it is mathematically rigorous. The specific numerical examples and practical applications enhance the theoretical derivations. The author does an excellent job of communicating the importance of each result, making it an appropriate textbook for senior undergraduates taking a solid course in the theory of digital communications.' Laurence B. Milstein, University of California, San Diego

Wayne Stark is Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Michigan, and a fellow of the IEEE. He has over forty years of experience in teaching digital communications and has conducted fundamental research on wireless communication systems, for which he has received several awards.