Spring 2000

Course Syllabus

Course Topic Outline

Course Notes:

Homework Assignments

Using B2 Spice

Semiconductor Fabrication Technology

Exams

Exam1 (in pdf format)

Exam2 (in pdf format)

Anouncements:

Exam 1 -- Thursday, February 24

Exam 2 -- Thursday, April 6

Final Exam, Wed. May 3, 1pm

Previous Semester (Fall 1999)

Professor Mason's: HOME | RESEARCH | AMSaC LAB | EE COURSES
University of Kentucky | UK College of Engineering | UK Electrical Engineering | UK EE Faculty

Prerequisite:
EE 221 with grade of C or better
Students are expected to have knowledge of basic circuits principles and be familiar with a SPICE simulation program.

Required Text:
Horenstein, Microelectronic Circuits and Devices, 2nd Ed., 1996, ISBN 0-13-701335-3, TK7874.H675

Supplementary Text:
Sedra and Smith, Microelectronic Circuits, 3^rd Ed., 1991, ISBN 0-03-51648-x, TK7867.S39 1991
Roberts, Sedra, Smith, Spice for Microelectronic Circuits, 3^rd Ed., 1992, ISBN 0-03-052617-5, TK7867.S39 1992

Copies of these books are on reserve in the Engineering Library (or should be soon). Please take a look at them if you want more information or are having trouble with a topic. One of these books covers SPICE, but I will hand out additional material on SPICE in class.

Class Website:
Some material such as the class syllabus, homework assignments, etc. will be available through the Web at www.engr.uky.edu/~ee461g/. Please use this at your convenience and let me know if there is anything missing. The most important feature of the website is that homework assignments and due dates will be posted on the web and it is the student’s responsibility to check the web for newly posted assignments.

Objective:
To provide students with the working knowledge required to analyze and design basic transistor and diode circuits. Transistor circuits include MOSFET (metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor), BJT (bipolar junction transistors), JFET (junction field effect transistors), and BiCMOS (bipolar CMOS) technologies. Large Signal, Small Signal, and Frequency responses are covered.

The following competencies should be imparted to the students:

1. Draw the characteristic curves for the diode, BJT, JFET, and MOSFET, to identify regions of operation, and to draw the linear circuit approximations for each region.

2. Complete a load line analysis.

3. Draw the circuit schematic of common rectifier circuits and draw the diode currents for the circuit with a resistive load.

4. Draw the circuit schematic of the common transistor amplifier configurations.

5. Know advantages and disadvantages of common the transistor amplifier configurations.

6. Bias a BJT or MOSFET device to achieve a desired quiescent operating point.

7. Linearize non-linear (transistor) devices and make small signal models.

8. Design and analyze simple digital circuits using diodes, BJTs or MOSFETs.

9. Use commercial simulation tools (such as SPICE) to analyze circuits that include semiconductors.

SPICE:
Students are expected to have a working knowledge of circuit simulation software (SPICE). Most homework will contain a SPICE assignment. Some basic principles related to the use of semiconductor devices in SPICE will be covered in class, and some tutorial handouts will be given. The college currently supports B²Spice which is available in the PC labs and will be used by the instructor for classroom examples and homework solutions. Although students may use any version of SPICE, B²Spice is recommended to maintain consistency among the class. A student version of B²Spice may be obtained from Beige Bag Software, Inc., 279 E. Liberty, Ann Arbor, MI 48104-2120, Phone: (734) 332-0487, Fax: (734) 332-0392, Info@beigebag.com, http://www.beigebag.com for $55.00, or $45.00 without the manual which is not really needed.

Grading:

Quizzes
Short quizzes covering material from the previous week's class will be given randomly once a week. Quizzes will be at the beginning of class and anyone arriving after the quiz begins will not be allowed to take the quiz. As long as you come to class and are there on time, you should do fine. Students should bring paper, pencil or pen, and a calculator to class each day.
Homework
Homework will be given approximately once a week and will be due on Thursday, one week after it is assigned. Homework assignments and due dates will be posted on the class web page and it is the students responsibility to check this site. Homework may be turned in after class or by 3pm in the instructor's office.
-LATE HOMEWORK will NOT be accepted. Students are encouraged to work together on homework as long as each student tries to complete all of the problems on his own. Everyone must turn in individual homework which will be graded more on effort than on correct answers. Copying will not be tolerated.
Exams
There will be two mid-term exams and a final exam as listed in the course outline. The final exam will be comprehensive but will focus on material covered after the second exam. Any student with an 'A' average before the final exam may optionally take a homework-like take-home final rather than the normal final exam.
Final Grade
Grades will be based on quizzes, homework, two mid-term exams, and a final exam according to the percentages below. Overall grades will be scaled to a class average of 82% and assigned to the standard scale (>90% = A, >80% = B, etc.).

Attendance:
Students are expected to attend class and be bright and cheerful with lots of questions. It will be hard to do well in this class without attending the lectures. It is the student’s responsibility to get notes and handouts for any missed class and to inform the instructor regarding excused absences for a missed quiz. Makeup exams for excused absences will be oral exams given after the normal exam date. Oral exams will not be fun for either of us, so try not to miss exams. In general, it is the student's responsibility to inform the instructor and make arrangements for an excused absence as early as possible.

Student Conduct:
Although you may work together on homework, copying is not allowed. Cheating in any form on quizzes and exams will not be tolerated. Students are on their honor not to cheat and to inform the instructor if they witness any cheating, and students will be required to sign an honor pledge agreeing to this. Classroom activities will be rather freeform -you may ask questions or make comments at any time, but you should always conduct yourself in a manner that will not disturb other people in the class.

Final Comment:
The primary goal of this class is for you to gain a basic understanding of semiconductor devices and their use in circuits. I know this material is not easy, so please come to me if you have any questions or are having any trouble understanding the material. And don’t be afraid to ask questions in class; chances are that, if you don’t understand something, then other people don’t either, and I need you to tell me when it’s not making sense.

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Professor Mason's: HOME | RESEARCH | AMSaC LAB | EE COURSES
University of Kentucky | UK College of Engineering | UK Electrical Engineering | UK EE Faculty

Back to Top

Professor Mason's: HOME | RESEARCH | AMSaC LAB | EE COURSES
University of Kentucky | UK College of Engineering | UK Electrical Engineering | UK EE Faculty