Undergraduate Catalog 2002 - 2003

Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE)

Note: This department was formerly Electrical and Systems Engineering. Electrical and Computer Engineering courses were formerly offered under the EE department abbreviation using the same course numbers.
Head of Department: Professor Robert Magnusson
Department Office: Room 312, A.B. Bronwell Building (Engineering III)
For major requirements, see the School of Engineering section of this Catalog.
 
201. Fundamentals of Circuit Analysis

(Formerly offered as EE 201) Either semester. Three credits. Three class periods and one discussion period. Prerequisite or corequisite: MATH 211 and PHYS 152. Open to sophomores. This course and ECE 220 may not both be taken for credit. 

Analysis of electrical networks incorporating passive and active elements. Basic laws and techniques of analysis. Transient and forced response of linear circuits. Periodic excitation and frequency response.

202. Signals and Systems

(Formerly offered as EE 202) Either semester. Three credits. Three class periods and one discussion period. Prerequisite: ECE 201 or ECE 220. 

Representation of signals in the time and frequency domains. Fourier series. Fourier and Laplace transform methods for analysis of linear systems. Introduction to state space models. Introduction to sampling and discrete systems analysis via z transforms.

204. Electronic Devices and Circuits

(Formerly offered as EE 204) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: ECE 201. This course and ECE 239 may not both be taken for credit. 

Physical electronics underlying the operation of modern solid-state devices. Diodes and diode circuits. The bipolar junction transistor and field-effect transistors. Models of transistors. Applications of transistors to integrated circuits such as operational amplifiers and logic gates.

205. Electromagnetic Fields and Waves

(Formerly offered as EE 205) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: PHYS 152 and MATH 210 and 211. Not open for credit to students who have received credit for ECE 206. 

Application of electric and magnetic field theory to engineering problems involving conductors, dielectrics, semiconductors, magnetic materials, the motion of charged particles, and wave propagation. Relationship between fields and circuit parameters in the context of transmission lines and radiation.

209W. Electrical Circuit Design Laboratory

(Formerly offered as EE 209W) Either semester. Two credits. One 2-hour laboratory period and one 1-hour discussion period. Prerequisite or corequisite: ECE 201. Open to sophomores. 

Design and evaluation of analog electrical and electronic circuits. Emphasizes out-of-laboratory preparation and troubleshooting. Introduction to laboratory instruments including oscilloscopes, signal sources and meters.

215. Digital Integrated Circuits

(Formerly offered as EE 215) Semester by arrangement. Three credits. Prerequisite: ECE 204 and CSE 207. 

Switching, timing, wave shaping, and logic circuits to generate waveforms and functions used in pulse systems, instrumentation and computers. Emphasis is on integrated circuits.

220. Electrical and Computer Engineering Principles

(Formerly offered as EE 220) First semester. Three credits. Prerequisite or corequisite: MATH 210 and 211, and PHYS 152. This course and ECE 201 may not both be taken for credit. 

Basic concepts of circuit analysis as applied to electronic circuits and electromechanical devices, including measuring instruments.

228. Fiber Optics

(Formerly offered as EE 228) First semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: ECE 205 or ECE 207 or PHYS 255. 

Application of Maxwell's equations and geometric optics first to two-dimensional dielectric waveguides and then to cylindrical fibers. Ray and mode theory, eigenvalues, Goos-Haenchen shift. Step-index, graded-index, and single-mode fibers. Splicers, couplers, sources, detectors and optical design. Fiber manufacturing techniques.

229. Fiber Optics Laboratory

(Formerly offered as EE 229) Second semester. Three credits. One four-hour laboratory period. Prerequisite: ECE 228. 

Hands-on design and measurement of fiber-optic applications. Fiber-optic communications and fiber-optic sensors. Structured experiments and design projects centered around available equipment.

230. Electrical Instrumentation

(Formerly offered as EE 230) First semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: ECE 202, ECE 204 and CSE 207. 

Measurements of physical quantities by means of electrical circuits and electronic instruments. Analysis of measurement systems using equivalent circuits. Methods of measuring signals in the presence of noise. Use of computers in measurement systems. Recording and display devices.

232. Systems Analysis

(Formerly offered as EE 232) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: ECE 202. 

Modeling and analysis of physical systems using frequency and time-domain methods. State variable techniques for continuous and discrete-time systems. Controllability and observability. Stability of linear systems with feedback; root locus, Bode and Nyquist methods. Linearization of nonlinear systems. Computational methods for analysis of linear systems.

233. Basic Feedback Control Theory

(Formerly offered as EE 233) First semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: ECE 232. 

Design of linear feedback control systems emphasizing stability, accuracy, dynamic response, and sensitivity to parameter variations. Frequency domain compensation methods. State variable design techniques and use of observers. Lyapunov stability theory. Linear optimum control. Use of computer for simulation and design.

234. Digital Control Systems

(Formerly offered as EE 234) Second semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: ECE 232. 

Analysis and design of control systems incorporating digital computers. Building blocks of digital control. Methods of control algorithm design. Alternate control strategies. System integration. Experimental design project.

240. Electronic Circuits and Applications

(Formerly offered as EE 240) Second semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: ECE 204 and 232. 

Analysis and design of linear amplifiers. The effects of feedback in tuned, video, and operational amplifiers. Noise, stability, and frequency compensation. Applications encompass active filters, oscillators, phase lock loops and nonlinear operations such as multiplication, modulation, sampling, and analog-to-digital conversion.

241. Communication Systems

(Formerly offered as EE 241) First semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: ECE 202, and STAT 224Q. 

Communication of information over noisy channels. Fourier transform review, spectral analysis, and sampling. Amplitude, phase, and frequency modulation of a sinusoidal carrier. Time and frequency division multiplexing. Random processes and analysis of communication of systems in noise. Elements of digital communication systems.

242. Digital Communications and Networks

(Formerly offered as EE 242). Second semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: ECE 202 and STAT 224Q. 

Fundamentals of digital communication systems. Encoding of analog signals for digital transmission. Basic information theory. Source encoding techniques. Baseband data transmission. Digital carrier modulation schemes. Multiplexing techniques. Basic error control coding.

245. Micro/Opto-electronic Devices

(Formerly offered as EE 245) Second semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: ECE 204. 

Principles and applications of contemporary solid state devices such as light-emitting diodes, injection lasers, solar cells, p-n-p-n diodes, SCR and Triacs, IMPATT diodes, Schottky devices, bipolar and MOS transistors, MESFETs and MODFETs, and fundamentals of integrated circuits.

246. Introduction to Dielectric and Magnetic Materials

(Formerly offered as EE 246) Semester by arrangement. Three credits. Prerequisite: ECE 205 or ECE 206. 

Complex permittivity and permeability of isotropic materials. Polarization and magnetization. Ferroelectric and ferromagnetic materials. Electrostriction and magnetostriction. The Meissner effect and superconducting magnets. Engineering applications.

247. Introduction to Digital Signal Processing

(Formerly offered as EE 247) Second semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: ECE 202. 

Discrete-time signals and systems. The z-transform. Digital filters; stability, frequency response, canonic realizations and state equations. Fourier methods for discrete signal representation; Fourier transform of sequences, the discrete Fourier transform, and the FFT. Design of linear digital filters in time and frequency domains. Spectrum analysis and filtering via the FFT.

249. Very Large Scale Integrated Circuit (VLSI) Design and Simulation

(Formerly offered as EE 249) First semester. Four credits. Two-hour lecture and three-hour laboratory period. Prerequisite: ECE 215 and ECE 245. Not open for credit to students who have passed EE 248 or EE 269. 

Design of MOS transistors, including short channel effects in sub-micron devices; scaling laws; fabrication technologies. Layout of NMOS and CMOS logic gates; power-delay calculations. Design of static and/or dynamic memories. Laboratory emphasizes schematic capture, simulation, timing analysis; layout of custom IC's; use of VHDL; scaling laws and design of 0.25 micro circuits.

252. Digital Systems Design

(Also offered as CSE 252.) (Formerly offered as EE 252)  Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: CSE 243 or both CSE 240 and CSE 241. 

Design and evaluation of control and data structures for digital systems. Hardware design languages are used to describe and design alternative 
register transfer level architectures and control units with a microprogramming emphasis. Consideration of computer architecture, memories, digital interfacing, timing and synchronization, and microprocessor systems.

257. Numerical Methods in Scientific Computation

(Also offered as CSE 257.) (Formerly offered as EE 257.) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: CSE 123C and MATH 210Q and MATH 211Q. 

An Introduction to the numerical algorithms fundamental to scientific computation. Equation solving, function approximation, integration, difference and differential equations, special computer techniques. Emphasis is placed on efficient use of computers to optimize speed and accuracy in numerical computation. Extensive digital computer usage for algorithm verification.

261. Analog Electronics Design Laboratory

(Formerly offered as EE 261.) Either semester. Three credits. One class period and one 4-hour laboratory period. Prerequisite: ECE 209W and ECE 202 and ECE 204 or corequisite: ECE 202 and ECE 204. 

Introductory design laboratory. Use of personal computers to design and measure performance of analog electronic circuits and systems. Design with both integrated circuits and discrete components. Design of active filters, effects of feedback, broadbanding, oscillator design, A/D and D/A conversion systems, and low-noise amplifier design.

262W. Switching and Digital Electronics Design Laboratory 

(Formerly offered as EE 262W) Either semester. Three credits. One class period and one 4-hour laboratory period. Prerequisite: ECE 261. 

Intermediate design laboratory. Solution of practical design problems in electronic circuits, control systems, digital systems, physical electronics, biomedical electronics and power systems.

263. Communication Systems Design Laboratory

(Formerly offered as EE 263) Either semester. Three credits. One 4-hour laboratory. Prerequisites: ECE 205 or ECE 207 and ECE 262W. 

Design and experimental evaluation of circuits and systems useful in communication, control, and other applications. Typical subject areas are: transmission lines, microwaves, antennas, AM/FM transmitters and receivers, TV cameras and receivers, communication between computers, laser communication, fiber-optics, pulse-code modulation, acoustics, hearing, rotating machines, servomechanisms, and microprocessors.

265. Independent Design Laboratory

(Formerly offered as EE 265) Either or both semesters. Three credits. Prerequisite: ECE 262 and consent of instructor. May be taken twice for credit. 

Experimental design project undertaken by the student by special arrangement with a faculty member of the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering.

266. Microprocessor Applications Laboratory

(Formerly offered as EE 266) First semester. Three credits. One class period and one 4-hour laboratory. Prerequisite or corequisite: ECE 262W, and ECE 232. 

Design of software and interface hardware to use a microcomputer as an on-line, real-time element in data acquisition, filtering and control systems. Use of clocks, DAC's, ADC's, speech synthesis modules, and movement generators. Design project. Written and oral presentations of laboratory results

267. Systems Laboratory

(Formerly offered as EE 267) Second semester. Three credits. One 4-hour laboratory period. Prerequisite: ECE 232 and ECE 262. 

Real-time digital control and signal processing systems. Typical topics include liquid level control, velocity and position control, digital filters, image processing, and power control electronics. Written and oral presentations of laboratory results.

268. Micro/Opto-electronic Devices and Circuits Fabrication Laboratory

(Formerly offered as EE 268) Second semester. Three credits. One class period, and one 4-hour laboratory period. Prerequisite: ECE 245, ECE 215. 

Semiconductor wafer preparation and characterization including: determination of carrier concentration, mobility, and lifetime; oxidation, diffusion, metallization, mask layouts, and photolithographic techniques as employed in the realization of discrete devices (e.g., bipolar and MOS transistors, solar cells) and integrated circuits; design of basic IC components such as transistors, resistors, and capacitors; monolithic fabrication of simple digital/analog circuits. Design project. Written and oral presentations of laboratory results.

271. Physiological Control Systems

(Formerly offered as EE 271) Semester by arrangement. Three credits. Prerequisite: ECE 232. 

Analysis of human physiological control systems and regulators through the use of mathematical models. Identification and linearization of system components. System interactions, stability, noise, and the relationship of system malfunction to disease. The analysis and design of feedback systems to control physiological states through the automatic administration of drugs.

272. Introduction to Biomedical Engineering

(Also offered as BME 210) (Formerly offered as EE 272) First semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: BIOL 107. Corequisite: PHYS 151Q and MATH 210Q. Open to sophomores. 

Survey of the ways engineering and medical science interact. The art and science of medicine, and the process of medical diagnosis and treatment. Diagnostic instrumentation and measurements including medical imaging. Introduction to bioelectric phenomena, biomechanics, and biomaterials. Biochemical engineering. Computers in medicine. Molecular medicine and biotechnology.

280. Digital Design Laboratory

(Also offered as CSE 280.) (Formerly offered as EE 280.) Second semester. Three credits. Four hour laboratory period. Prerequisite or corequisite: CSE 252/ECE 252. 

Digital designing with PLA and FPGA, A/D and D/A conversion, floating point processing, ALU design, synchronous and asynchronous controllers, control path; bus master; bus slave; memory interface; I/O interface, logic circuits analysis, testing, and trouble shooting, PCB; design and manufacturing.

281. Digital Hardware Laboratory

(Also offered as CSE 261.) (Formerly offered as EE 281) Second semester. Three credits. One 4-hour laboratory period. Prerequisite: CSE 201 or 243.  Recommended preparation: CSE 252. Barker

Advanced combinational and sequential circuit design and implementation using random logic and microprocessor based system. Hardware and software interface to the basic system. Serial communication, user program loading and execution. Microcontrollers - familiarization and inclusion in design.

290. Computer and Electrical Engineering Design I

(Also offered as CSE 290.) (Formerly offered as EE 290 and EE 297) Either semester. Two credits. Prerequisite: ECE 262W or ECE 257 or CSE 257 or CSE 240. 

Discussion of the design process; project statement, specifications, project planning, scheduling and division of responsibility, ethics in engineering design, safety, environmental considerations, economic constraints, liability, manufacturing, and marketing. Projects are carried out using a team-based approach. Selection and analysis a of design project to be undertaken in CSE/ECE 291 is carried out. Written progress reports, a proposal, an interim project report, a final report, and oral presentations are required.

291. Computer and Electrical Engineering Design II

(Also offered as CSE 291.) (Formerly offered as EE 291 and EE 270) Either semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: CSE 290/ECE 290. Hours to be arranged. 

Design of a device, circuit, system, process, or algorithm. Team solution to an engineering design problem as formulated in CSE/ECE 290, from first concepts through evaluation and documentation. Written progress reports, a final report, and oral presentation are required.

292. Information Processing Systems

Second semester. Three credits. Prerequisite: ECE 262W. 

Laboratory experiments in signal processing, real-time digital filters, image processing, imaging systems, data acquisition using detectors, pattern recognition, communication receivers, and system performance 
evaluation. Emphasis is on real-time information processing systems with interface between sensors and computer/processors. Applications of analog and digital techniques to design, implementation and testing 
of real-time information processing systems.

295. Special Topics in Electrical and Computer Engineering

(Formerly offered as EE 295) Semester by arrangement. Credits by arrangement. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor. With a change in content, this course may be repeated for credit. 

Classroom and/or laboratory course in special topics as announced in advance for each semester.

299. Independent Study in Electrical and Computer Engineering

(Formerly offered as EE 299) Semester by arrangement. Credits by arrangement, not to exceed four in any semester. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor. With a change in content, this course may be repeated for credit. 

Individual exploration of special topics as arranged by the student with course instructor.