Course Syllabus
ECE 1240 CIRCUITS & SYSTEMS Intro
Instructors
ECE1240 Sections 1,2
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Prof. Cynthia Furse
Links to an external site. |
Office: MEB 2280 Office Hours: Tues & Thur 2-3 |
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ECE 1240 Sections 3,4 |
Office: MEB 4506 Office Hours: By appointment |
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LECTURE |
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Sections 1,2 |
Tues & Thurs | 10:45am-12:05pm | Dr. Furse | WEB L103 |
Sections 3,4 |
Tues & Thurs | 3:40-5:00 pm | Dr. Stevens | WEB L114 |
EXTRA LEARNING TIME! Supplemental Instruction (Wednesday 9-11 Gardner Commons Room 2675 or Zoom)TA Raksha Prasad will host a weekly problem session, where you can work problems together and focus on answering questions and getting unstuck and cementing your knowledge. Wednesday 9-11 in (Gardner Commons Room 2675) Each week, post your "muddiest questions" on the discussion board, and Raksha will help you work on them. You can also access this via Zoom (see the left bar of canvas) TAs |
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TA Info: | Name: | Office Hours: | Room: | Email: |
Class Graders | Brian Rasmussen | u0788514@utah.edu | ||
Adam Welsh |
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Raksha Prasad | Gardener Commons 2675 | Wed 9-11 | ||
Lab Sections: |
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Section 1 |
Connor Watson | MEB 2555 | M 2-5 |
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Section 2 |
Isaac Thomas |
MEB 2555 |
F 12-3 |
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Section 3 |
Advait Mahajan | MEB 2555 | W 2-5 | |
Section 4 |
Brian Rasmussen |
MEB 2267 |
Tues 730-1030 |
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Section 5 |
Brian Rasmussen |
MEB 2267 |
F 9-12 |
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ECE Tutors (and other ECE resources) |
https://utah.instructure.com/courses/465115
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Course Description
Overview
Course | ECE 1240 | |
Department | Electrical and Computer Engineering | |
Pre-Requisites | C- or better in (MATH 1210 OR MATH 1310 OR MATH 1311) OR AP Calc AB score of 4 or better OR AP Calc BC score of 3 or better. Corequisites: ECE 1245 OR ECE 1050. | |
Credit Hours | 3 | |
Semester | Fall 2024 | |
Description | System design using electrical and computer engineering concepts. Design, evaluate, build, test, and debug simple circuits using voltage and current sources, resistors and capacitors, op amps, and diodes to accomplish specific engineering tasks. This course also covers applications in electrical and computer engineering including: electrical circuit design, sensors, signal processing, communications, electromagnetics, control and embedded systems. |
Goals & Objectives
The main goal is that at the end of this class, you will have the skills to successfully invent a sensor system of your own choosing.
At the conclusion of ECE 1240 students will be prepared to:
- Design and evaluate (with theory/math and simulation), simple electrical/computer engineering circuits using voltage and current sources, resistors and capacitors, op amps, and diodes to accomplish specific engineering tasks.
- Explain applications in electrical and computer engineering including: electrical circuit design, sensors, signal processing, communications, electromagnetics, control and embedded systems.
Relationship of the Course to the ABET Student Outcomes:
- An ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science, and mathematics. The course focuses on this outcome by teaching students the basics of circuit design and analysis.
- An ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors. The course addresses this outcome indirectly through application notes in the textbook and linked in the course schedule.
- An ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences. This course lacks assignments related to this outcome.
- An ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts. This course addresses this outcome only in a minimal way through stories from the instructor's experience.
- An ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives. This course addresses this outcome in a modest way by having group assignments in which students create example exams as a team.
- An ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions. This course does not address this outcome directly.
- An ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies. This course asks students to evaluate their learning style and uses methods such as color coding of connections to help students with different learning styles improve their performance.
Required Materials
Textbook (Free): (Links to an external site.)Circuit Analysis and Design, 3rd Ed. by Ulaby, Maharbiz, Furse Links to an external site.
Computer or Tablet:
For Matlab, I’d recommend a minimum of an Intel i5 or an AMD Athlon processor with 16 GB of RAM and an SSD hard drive (preferred but not absolutely necessary). Most of today’s new computers would run these programs just fine but the key is the amount of RAM. I’d never try to do anything less that 8 GB on a system running Windows, 16 GB or more is preferred.
Pre-class, short lectures are online, and you'll need to watch these before class.
In class, we'll work through problems and examples. In class time will also be recorded and shared via a Zoom link for those who need it. We encourage students to attend class in person, and most students finds this makes class a lot more fun and easier to concentrate on, but we understand some circumstances may prevent this. Please come to class in person if at all possible, but join the Zoom link (see the left bar of canvas) when you are not able to be there in person.
Assignments will be submitted on the Canvas software system. This will require scanning or taking pictures of assignments that are then submitted via computer or phone. (Download a free scanner for your phone, so you can create a single PDF file of each assignment, if you choose that method.)
Exams should be taken in person. Computers and tablets CAN NOT be used during exams, so be sure you print notes as needed in advance. Exceptions will be made for students who have signed up for the synchronous online (Zoom) version of this class, and for others who discuss needing this exception with the professor in advance.
Calculator:
- You will also need a calculator to do your homework and exams. Depending on the method you use to solve problems, the calculator may need to be capable of handling matrix math, including complex matrices. Calculators that will do the job include TI 85 and up, and also TI 36. The TI 83 and 84 may be sufficient for complex numbers used in the latter part of the course if you do more work by hand. Neil Cotter particularly likes the TI-36X Pro to be a good calculator for ECE 1240 and 2240.
Communication
Preferred Contact Methods
The easiest way to reach your professor is through office hours or email (see top of page).
The easiest way to contact your TA directly is to use the
Inbox, located in the far left Canvas menu.Office Hours
Posted above.
Course Schedule
The content in this schedule is subject to change throughout the semester, but the exams and exam reviews will remain as posted).
The course has four main modules:
- Basic Circuits
- Solving Circuits
- Op-Amps and Digital Logic
- RC and RL Circuits
Detailed schedule:
Week |
Lecture |
Topic |
1245/1050 Lab |
Week 1 |
Tuesday Aug 20nd |
L1-1 Welcome to ECE! L1-2 Units & Notation (review) |
Lab 0 |
Thursday Aug 22th |
L1-3 Circuit Elements L1-4 Charge and Current |
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Week 2 |
Tuesday Aug 27th |
L1-5 Voltage & Power
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Thursday Aug 29st |
L1-6 Circuit Elements II L2-1 Ohm’s Law |
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Week 3 |
Tuesday Sept 3th |
L2-2 Kirchhoff’s Laws (KCL + KVL) |
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Thursday Sept 5th |
L2-3 V,I Dividers & Equivalent Resistance |
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Week 4 |
Tuesday Sept 10th |
Review for Exam 1 |
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Thursday Sept 12th |
EXAM 1 |
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Week 5 |
Tuesday Sept 17th |
L3-1,2 Nodal Analysis
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Lab 1 |
Thursday Sept 19st |
L3-4 Solving Circuits w/ Matrices |
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Week 6 |
Tuesday Sept 24th |
L3-5 Superposition |
Lab 2 |
Thursday Sept 26th |
L3-6 Thevenin and Norton Equivalents |
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Week 7 |
Tuesday Oct 1rd |
Review for Exam 2 |
Lab 3 |
Thursday Oct 3th |
EXAM 2 |
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FALL BREAK |
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Week 8 |
Tuesday Oct 15th |
L4-1 Op Amp Characteristics L4-2 Negative Feedback |
Lab 4 |
Thursday Oct 17th |
L4-3 Ideal Op Amp + Non-Inverting Amplifier L4-4 Inverting Amplifier |
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Week 9 |
Tuesday Oct 22th |
L4-5 Summing Amplifier L4-6 Difference Amplifier |
Lab 5 |
Thursday Oct 24th |
L4-7 Voltage Follower L4-8 Multiple Op Amp Circuits |
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Week 10 |
Tuesday Oct 29st |
L-Digital |
Lab 6 |
Thursday Oct 31 |
Review for Exam 3 |
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Week 11 |
Tuesday Nov 5 |
EXAM 3 |
Lab 7 |
Thursday Nov 7 |
L5-2 Capacitors L5-3 Inductors |
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Week 12 |
Tuesday Nov 12 |
L4-4,5 RC & RL Circuits |
Lab 8 |
Thursday Nov 14 |
RC & RL Circuits continued... |
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Week 13 |
Tuesday Nov 19 |
L7-1,2,3 Sine Waves and Phasors |
Final Project |
Thursday Nov 21 |
L7-4 Phasor Domain Analysis L7-5,6 Thevenin and other equivalent circuits |
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Week 14 |
Tuesday Nov 26 |
L7-7 Phasor Diagrams L7-9 Phasor Domain Analysis Techniques |
Final Project |
Thursday Nov 28 |
THANKSGIVING (NO CLASSES) |
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Week 15 |
Tuesday Dec 3 |
Review for Exam 4 |
Final Project |
Thursday Dec 5 |
EXAM 4 |
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Finals Week |
Wednesday Dec 11 10:30-12:30 |
FINAL EXAM (OPTIONAL) |
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Student Preparation And Time Commitment
Previous Experience
No previous experience with electronics or programming is assumed or needed in this class. We will be starting from scratch. However, many students in this class will have had some experience, either formal or informal, and a few students will have had a lot of experience. If you are someone with little or no experience, do not be intimidated! We will be working together, and the course is designed to start from the beginning.
BE SUCCESSFUL IN THIS CLASS (Step-by-Step) --
Step 1: 1-2 days BEFORE class... Look at the Question of the Day (QOD) found by following the link to the lecture video. This is material you will learn in the lecture/text for that day.
Step 2: 1-2 days BEFORE class ... Watch the lecture videos (OR read the textbook section). Take notes that answer the QOD.
Step 3: Come to class and bring questions from videos. Class will NOT be a repeat of the lecture videos. We will work together actively solving examples and some of your homework problems, and answering questions (so bring your questions with you). And we will talk about how to apply what you are learning in real-world applications. Teaching this way approximately doubles the amount of time we have together, and gives me time to really work with you on the common problems that crop up in your homework.
Step 4: Finish your homework THAT DAY. If you can spend some additional time that day (or at least before the next class) finishing the homework for that day, you will be well-prepared for the next day, which typically builds on the previous day. If you wait until the homework is due, you will probably feel somewhat lost as the week progresses. Sure, you can pick this up on the weekend, but that is less efficient. It is fantastic if you can work with other students on your homework, so get a study group together. You will learn from other people's questions and problems as much as you learn from your own successes.
Step 5: Show your mastery with the comprehension quiz. Each lecture has a comprehension quiz associated with it. After you complete the homework, take the comprehension quiz on Canvas to show your mastery of the material. You can take the quiz as many times as you need (we keep the highest score), and each time the question may vary.
Go to Step 1 to Prepare for the next day ...
If you find you may have forgotten some math information you need in this class, check out the Khan Academy and others linked in the RESOURCE section of the assignments for help. The MATH tutoring center (Links to an external site.) and TAs are also available to help you.
No previous experience with electronics or programming is assumed or needed in this class. We will be starting from scratch. However, many students in this class will have had some experience, either formal or informal, and a few students will have had a lot of experience. If you are someone with little or no experience, do not be intimidated! We will be working together, and the course is designed to start from the beginning.
WORK LOAD: Plan to spend the following amount of time each week:
- 3 hours watching videos
- 3 hours in class
- 6-9 hours on homework
- Additional time studying for exams.
12+ hours per week
Expectations
Department Policies
Please see our ECE Department Student Canvas Hub regarding department policies:
- Challenging Courses
- Student Conduct
- Class Repeats
- Withdrawal Procedure
- Exceptions to Policy
- Permission Codes
- Probationary Status
- Grading
For technical issues in the lab (broken equipment, software issues, etc) please send an email that describes the issue, description of setup where error occurred, which bench station, etc to: ecelabs@coe.utah.edu
For student concerns and other feedback, please speak with our department undergraduate advisors Links to an external site..
College Policies
College policies Links to an external site. describe the following:
- Appeals
- Withdrawing from Classes
- Adding Classes
- Repeating Courses
- CR/NC Policy
- Safety
Course Summary:
Date | Details | Due |
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