Teaching Wireless Communications with MATLAB and Simulink

Wireless Communications

Antenna and RF Design

Prototyping with Software Defined Radio

AI for Wireless

Using MATLAB and Simulink, educators can:

Teach fundamentals of digital communication, antenna design, and advanced mobile communication
Use apps and visualizations to demonstrate concepts, including waveform generation, antenna design, and RF budget analysis
Provide students with hands-on experience using software-defined radio (SDR) and other supported hardware devices
Explore, model, and test candidate 6G waveforms and AI for wireless communications applications
Prepare students for careers in industry with MATLAB and Simulink Challenge Projects nominated by industry leaders
Explore resources on File Exchange and GitHub

Industry Examples

Lockheed Martin Assesses 5G Network Vulnerabilities with Reinforcement Learning Toolbox

Using MATLAB to Develop 5G RF Front-End Components and Algorithms at Qualcomm

Safran Builds Emergency Locator Beacon SDR Receiver Using Model-Based Design and Analog Devices System on Module Hardware

See more examples

“We use MATLAB models to optimize and verify the 5G RF front end through all phases of development.”

Wireless Communications Course Topics

Wireless waveform generation with MATLAB.

Wireless Communications

Use MATLAB and Simulink for teaching fundamental concepts, including modulation schemes, error correction codes, MIMO, beamforming, and wireless standards, with interactive apps for modeling, simulation, and visualization. Integrate digital baseband, RF, and antenna components to simulate real-world wireless communication systems and analyze system performance without needing physical hardware in the classroom. Prototype wireless algorithms by integrating with SDR hardware.

Resources

Digital Communications Course - File Exchange
Introductory Communication Systems Course Using SDR - File Exchange
Introduction to OFDM - Documentation
Introduction to MIMO Systems - Example
Introduction to Hybrid Beamforming - Example
Generate and Transmit Wireless Waveforms - Documentation
Analyze Performance of a Communication System - Documentation

Antenna and RF Design

Use simulations and dynamic visualizations with LiveScripts to teach the fundamentals of electromagnetics. Use apps to design and analyze physical antenna elements, antenna arrays, and RF architectures with multiple RF elements. Link concepts across wireless courses by integrating digital baseband, RF front-end, and antenna design with MATLAB and Simulink.

Resources

Visualizing Electromagnetic Fields - File Exchange
Design, Visualize, and Analyze Antennas - Documentation
Matching Network Designer - Documentation
Superheterodyne Receiver - Example
RF Design - Resource Library
Antenna and EM Modeling with MATLAB Antenna Toolbox - Book

Software-defined radios supported by MATLAB.

Prototyping with Software Defined Radios

Connect MATLAB with SDRs and RF instruments to transmit or acquire live I/Q data over the air for analysis and visualization. Use SDRs with MATLAB and Simulink to implement and test transmitter and receiver algorithms and analyze the complete design of wireless systems. Integrate hands-on RF and SDR exercises in courses and labs through ready-made examples and courseware resources.

Resources

What Is Software-Defined Radio? - Discovery
Introductory Communication Systems Course Using SDR - Courseware
Digital Communications Course - Courseware
Software-Defined Radio for Engineers - Book
ADALM-PLUTO Radio | RTL-SDR | USRP - Support Packages
5G NR Waveform Acquisition and Analysis - Example

AI for Wireless

Use MATLAB and Simulink to build, model, test, and integrate AI in wireless communication systems. Teach students the fundamentals of machine learning, deep learning, and reinforcement learning for wireless using interactive apps, self-paced courses, and examples. Use MATLAB and Simulink to generate training data through simulation, capture over-the-air signal data, and augment datasets with RF impairments and channel effects. Streamline training, validation, testing, and deployment of AI models for wireless applications.

Resources