Course Catalogue

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The foundations of analogue electronics studied in Electronic Engineering 1X are applied to practical circuits such as RC filters and amplifiers based both on integrated operational amplifiers. Discrete semiconductor devices are introduced. Based around programming a modern microcontroller, and interfacing it with peripheral components, the course also introduces the concepts of embedded systems including digital and analogue input and output.

4 lectures per week

Laboratory one day per week

Mandatory Entry Requirements

None

Recommended Entry Requirements

None

None.

Electronic Engineering 1X ENG1021

15% Class Test

25% Laboratories

60% Final examination

Reassessment

In accordance with the University's Code of Assessment reassessments are normally set for all courses which do not contribute to the honours classifications. For non honours courses, students are offered reassessment in all or any of the components of assessment if the satisfactory (threshold) grade for the overall course is not achieved at the first attempt. This is normally grade D3 for undergraduate students, and grade C3 for postgraduate students. Exceptionally it may not be possible to offer reassessment of some coursework items, in which case the mark achieved at the first attempt will be counted towards the final course grade. Any such exceptions are listed below in this box.

It is not possible to offer reassessment in group project work in this course. Students failing to complete the Lab work, without good cause, will be receive a Credit Refused (CR) grade and will be required to re-attend the course the following year.

The aims of this course are to:

■ apply the basics concepts of analogue electronics to practical circuits such as RC filters and amplifiers, based both on integrated operational amplifiers and transistors;

■ give practical experience in programming a modern microcontroller;

■ introduce key concepts of embedded systems, and underpin these by practical example;

■ give practical experience of designing, building and measuring analogue circuits based on operational amplifiers;

■ develop skills in systematic design and documentation.

By the end of this course students will be able to:

Digital electronics lectures

■ explain concept of embedded electronic systems and give examples; describe a microcontroller (MCU), how it differs from a microprocessor, how memory is organised, and different architectures in common use;

■ explain basic architecture of a modern microcontroller (eg ARM LPC1768) , including arithmetic logic unit, program memory, data memory and input/output ports;

■ identify regions of memory map, which are volatile and non-volatile; understand significance of memory-mapped input and output;

■ introduce programming in C to enable the control of a modern microcontroller;

■ describe process of writing a program in C to control analogue and digital input and output to and from a modern microcontroller using an ARM mbed as the testbed ;

■ connect LEDs to the ports and calculate the value of series resistors;

■ connect pushbuttons and explain the need for pullup resistors;

■ write programs to control analogue and digital inputs and outputs using an ARM mbed;

■ have knowledge of writing a program in assembly language and its relationship with both a C program for a microcontroller, and how the programs relate to movement of data within the microcontroller;

Digital electronics laboratories

■ use ARM mbed development environment;

■ write C programs for an ARM mbed, compile them and demonstrate control of analogue and digital inputs and outputs to and from the microcontroller;

■ interface peripherals to an ARM mbed, and control their operation;

Analogue electronics lectures

■ explain what is meant by an amplifier and describe effect of source and load resistances;

■ use the standard model of a voltage amplifier to calculate power gain and treat cascaded amplifiers;

■ describe the characteristics of an operational amplifier, explain the assumptions underlying an ideal operational amplifier and how these are reflected in the behaviour of circuits;

■ draw and analyse the voltage follower, noninverting and inverting amplifier; explain concept of virtual earth; analyse the analogue integrator;

■ use modular approach to design more complicated circuits, such as amplifiers with specified frequency response; adder; difference amplifier;

■ state impedance of resistor, inductor and capacitor and how to analyse simple a.c. circuits;

■ explain operation of low pass and high pass RC and RL filters qualitatively and mathematically; define half-power point in amplitude and phase;

■ design such filters to have given characteristics and cutoff frequency;

■ derive differential equation for RC and RL circuits, deduce exponential solutions; explain form of solution and significance of time constant physically;

■ explain what is meant by an ideal diode and how it differs from more realistic characteristics; analyse circuits by assuming states and checking for consistency; use constant voltage drop model;

■ describe simple model of operation for a bipolar transistor;

Analogue electronics laboratories

■ use basic test equipment: meters, signal generator and oscilloscope;

■ design and analyse simple circuits based on op-amps using SPICE and compare real measurements;

■ specify, design and build on stripboard a simple audio amplifier for a portable music player;

■ design and build a microphone amplifier with rectifier and low-pass filter;

Combined digital/analogue laboratories

■ write C programs and design and construct appropriate analogue electronics to demonstrate an application of the students choice running on the mbed microcontroller;

■ maintain an adequate laboratory record.

Students must attend the degree examination and submit at least 75% by weight of the other components of the course's summative assessment.

Students must attend the timetabled laboratory classes.

Students should attend at least 75% of the timetabled classes of the course.

Note that these are minimum requirements: good students will achieve far higher participation/submission rates.  Any student who misses an assessment or a significant number of classes because of illness or other good cause should report this by completing a MyCampus absence report.