1. Description

Electronic building blocks and design. Topics include current sources, cascode circuits, differential pairs, op amp circuits, frequency response, filters, feedback and stability, and oscillators.

Credits

2.5 + 1.5, 3 Credits
Prerequisites

ECE 340

2. Learning Objectives

Upon successful completion of ECE 341, students will be able to:

  • Extract a functional block diagram from a large schematic.

  • Design active filters to meet a given specification.

  • Design operational amplifier circuits which account for non-ideal characteristics.

  • Construct the small-signal model of a multi-transistor amplifier circuit.

  • Explain the difference in approach between board-level and integrated circuit design

  • Estimate the frequency response of an amplifier circuit.

  • Evaluate alternative designs in light of application requirements.

  • Design and analyze amplifiers with feedback.

3. Information

3.1. Instructor

Dan White, Ph.D

3.2. Required resources

Textbook

Art of Electronics, 3rd edition, 2015. Horowitz and Hill, Cambridge University Press.

Hardware

3.3. Extra resources

Documents with dates for each class session are in:
2025 Dated items G-Drive folder

Datasheets, application notes, and other related information:
docs G-Drive folder

Lots of activities that track the Art of Electronics book:
Learning the Art of Electronics: A Hands-On Lab Course, 1st edition, 2016. Hayes, Cambridge University Press

3.4. Meetings

Lecture in GEM 159

  • 9:05 AM — 9:55 AM; Monday, Wednesday, Friday

Lab in GEM 166

  • 8:00 AM — 10:30 AM; Every-other Thursday, Lab 1 is January 16.

3.5. Canvas

Canvas will be the authoritative, official, and potentially only, source of the following information:

  • Announcements

  • Assignments, their due dates, and digital submission location

  • Gradebook scores and tokens

3.6. Matrix channel #electronics

Course-wide discussion and questions will use the chat network Matrix and application Element (or similar). The College of Engineering has our own workspace https://matrix.to/#/#valpo-engineering:matrix.org which keeps all of your CoE-related channels in the same account for convenience.

Then join the #electronics channel.

You may request new public channels to consolidate other engineering course or student organization’s channels from other workspaces.

4. Schedule

This embedded spreadsheet displays the nominal schedule with major dates. In the case of conflicting information, Blackboard takes precedence; this is considered a bug, please notify the instructor.

5. Policies

Attendance

You are expected to attend and participate in every class and lab session. It is your responsibility to contact the instructor ahead of time if you will not be able to attend for important information, and to work with classmates to help review the missed activities.

Homework

HWSW items are due by the date and time specified, credit for late submissions is possible by using a token. Frequently, the work due will form the basis of the following in-class activities and discussion — arriving unprepared will affect both your ability to participate meaningfully and hinder fellow students you are paired with. Collaborating on homework tasks is good, but the work you turn in must be yours. If you have questions about what would be acceptable, please ask.

Exams

This course does not have exams in the traditional sense. See section § 6, “Grading” for more information.

“smart” devices

Put your not-smart-enough-to-leave-you-alone devices into Do Not Disturb mode during class time — checking or responding to notifications during class is a poor use of your own tuition money.

6. Grading

6.1. Categories

There are four types of assessments for this course, each major topic will have several items spread across these types of activities:

DBM [1]

Design, build, and measure. A complete cycle of hand analysis, simulation, physical prototype, and performance measurements where all results match each other within an appropriate tolerance.

ACDC [2]

Analysis challenges and design challenges. Derivations of key results, estimations of large-scale behavior. Small circuit designs that meet certain specifications. Build and test specific circuits.

HWSW [3]

Homework and skills work. Regularly scheduled assignments to encourage good study and revision habits. These are lower-level problems and similar practice work focusing on the mechanics of a particular detail, circuit, or computation. This is the only category with deadlines per individual item.

X-factor

Small skills, curiosity results, side-projects, industry article readings, etc.

6.2. Evaluation

  • Students are limited to 3 attempts/submissions per week.

Items are marked on a scale of E, M, R, or N. See Figure 1, “The EMRN Rubric” for the general definitions of these levels. Evaluations of R or N may be re-attempted without penalty.

EMRN rubric 2020
Figure 1. The EMRN Rubric
Meet vs. Revise rate

On average, an attempt would earn an E or M about 85% of the time and needing some sort of revision 15% of the time.

  • Too few Revise results may mean that you are spending more time than needed on these item attempts. Or the items are not challenging enough.

  • A higher R rate likely means that you are not quite prepared for an attempt.

See paper The Eighty Five Percent Rule for optimal learning, or The 85% Rule for Learning summary article by Scott Young.

Expect to get a Revise early in the semester as part of intentionally getting used to the system of low-stakes revision of work. Being able to revise gives you opportunity to get feedback and have more time to learn difficult topics without late penalties.

6.3. Final letter grade

Table 1. Letter grading scheme
Grade DBM ACDC HWSW X-factor

A-

☐ 

☐ 

☐ ☐ 

☐ ☐ ☐ 

B-

☐ ☐ 

☐ 

☐ ☐ 

☐ ☐ ☐ 

C-

☐ ☐ 

☐ ☐ 

☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ 

-

D-

☐ ☐ 

☐ ☐ 

☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ ☐ 

-

Available

7

7

15

7

  • To earn a given base letter, the indicated number of items must be marked as either E or M across all categories in Table 1, “Letter grading scheme”.

  • If all four categories have more complete items than the base number, the letter grade is increased by two increments (to plus).

  • If at least two categories have more complete items than the base number, the letter grade is increased by one increment (remove the minus).

  • A grade of F is assigned if any category has fewer than the required number of items marked E or M.

These are the guaranteed minimum letter grades. The instructor reserves the right to increase an individual’s grade above this minimum level based on their professional judgment, for example, by considering the number of Excellent marks or other relevant evidence.

6.4. Tokens

Every student starts the semester with 2 tokens.

Tokens may be “spent” for the following purposes:

  • Submit something late for an item with a deadline.

  • Submit an extra item for evaluation in a given week. Max 2 extra per week for a total of 5 in that week.

Students can earn additional tokens by:

  • Submitting a revision or reattempt within one week of receiving feedback. (max 2)

  • Other opportunities as announced.

7. Additional

7.1. Honor Code

I have neither given or received, nor have I tolerated others' use of unauthorized aid.

This statement is written on all homework, quizzes and exams at Valparaiso University. Every student must write it out the Honor Code in full and sign it for all work submitted for academic credit. It expresses the promise of the student not to cheat through action or inaction. This allows unproctored examinations and expresses the faith of the faculty in the student body.

The student initiated Honor System, administered by the Honor Council and its constituent bodies, is recognized and approved by Valparaiso University as an integral part of the regulations under which students in the undergraduate colleges become members of the university community. Therefore, it is impossible for anyone to become a member of the university without both explicit and implicit adherence to the Honor System.

Every student has the responsibility to keep academics free of dishonesty, that is, to neither give or receive unauthorized aid. Non-toleration of the use of unauthorized aid is a further responsibility that is inherent in the Honor System. Each student must report to the Honor Council any violation of the System of which the student becomes aware, free from the pressure of ensuing penalty.

Remember, it shall be the responsibility of the student, when in doubt, to ask the instructor what is or is not authorized aid.

For more information: http://www.valpo.edu/student/honorcouncil

7.2. Access and Accommodation

The Access & Accommodations Resource Center (AARC) is the campus office that works with students to provide access and accommodations in cases of diagnosed mental or emotional health issues, attentional or learning disabilities, vision or hearing limitations, chronic diseases, or allergies. You can contact the office at aarc@valpo.edu or 219.464.5206. Students who need, or think they may need, accommodations due to a diagnosis, or who think they have a diagnosis, are invited to contact AARC to arrange a confidential discussion with the AARC office. Further, students who are registered with AARC are required to contact their professor(s) if they wish to exercise the accommodations outlined in their letter from the AARC.

7.3. Academic Support Services

To get help in this course, the best place to start is to work with your instructor during office hours and ask your professor if there are any Help Sessions or department-level tutoring offered for this course. The next step is to use the Academic Success Center (ASC) online directory (https://valpo.edu/academicsuccess) or contact the ASC (academic.success@valpo.edu) to help point you in the right direction for academic support resources for this course. Valpo’s learning centers (Writing Center, Language Resource Center, Hesse Learning Resource & Assessment Center, and Academic Success Center) offer a variety of programs and services that provide group and individual learning assistance for many subject areas.

7.4. Class Cancellation Policy

Notifications of class cancellations will be made through Blackboard with as much advance notice as possible. It will be both posted on Blackboard and sent to your Valpo e-mail address. If you don’t check your Valpo e-mail account regularly or have it set-up to be forwarded to your preferred e-mail account, you may not get the message. Please check Blackboard and your Valpo e-mail (or the e-mail address it forwards to) before coming to class.

7.5. Emergencies

VU’s Emergency Notification System (ENS) uses multiple forms of communication, including e-mail, building alarms, outdoor sirens, message boards, computer alerts, Twitter, and public address messaging. Please review the specific procedures for this class found in Blackboard. Remember: “Siren inside, GO outside; Siren outside, GO inside.” To evacuate, gather your personal belonging quickly and proceed to the nearest exit. Do not use the elevator. To shelter in place, move away from the windows and stay low to the ground; lock or barricade the door if there is a threat of violence.

7.6. COVID-19 policy

Following University policy, all students, faculty, and staff attending an on-campus class or event must be fully vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus, except for those who receive official University exemptions. When necessary for the safety of all, the University may require all faculty, students, and staff to wear a mask indoors for discrete periods of time. Any such decision will be made in consultation with the county and state health departments, the local conditions, and the advice of the CDC. At all times, individuals who are not vaccinated will be required to wear a mask indoors. All University policies will be updated regularly at https://valpo.edu/covid-info

Consistent with general faculty oversight of classroom conduct, students are required to follow the university guidelines for safety in the classrooms, labs, and other learning spaces.

  • Students who fail to abide by these rules will first be asked to comply because it is University policy at this time; if they refuse, they will be reminded that it is required.

  • If they again fail to comply then they will receive an unexcused absence for the class and may also receive a zero on any tests, quizzes, or other evaluated activities for that day, and/or a 5% reduction of their final class grade for each occurrence of non-compliance.

  • Non-vaccinated students who refuse to wear a mask will be reported to the Dean of Student Life for conduct in violation of University policy.

  • All instructors have the authority to ask all students to wear a mask in their classroom and create a seating chart for their classroom.

  • Students who feel ill should not attend in-person classes.

  • The University will provide information to the instructor, in a manner that complies with privacy laws, about students in these categories.

  • Students required to miss class because they are following a COVID protocol outlined by their healthcare provider or the University should contact their instructors via email to create a plan for keeping up to date with their studies.

1. From double-balanced mixer, or dBm - decibels referred to 1 mW.
2. Alternating current, direct current, or the band.
3. Or the bread and butter of ECE’s work: hardware and software.