Instructor

• John A. Goree
• 512 VAN
• phone 335-1843

Lectures

Lab

Tu Th 9:30 - 10:45, 301 VAN

Tu or We 1:30-4:30, 561 VAN

Prerequisite

An introductory course on electricity and magnetism, also some calculus

Purpose

To train science students, both undergraduate and graduate, to:

• build small practical circuits
• make electronic measurements.

This course is suitable for students in all science departments. It is not intended solely for Physics and Astronomy students.

The laboratory is the focus of the learning experience in this course. The lecture serves primarily to prepare students for the laboratory.

This course is not highly theoretical. It has less math and less homework than most 100 level physics courses.

Syllabus

Grading policy

Schedule

Homework assignments

Lab Manual 2007 -- 145 pages -- please DO NOT print using a Departmental printer

For lectures, you will need to bring an Interwrite PRS Personal Response System RF "clicker" beginning the second week. You will use them to answer graded quizzes given at the beginning of lecture, and ungraded questions at various times during the lecture. Clickers are sold in bookstores for other classes (I didn't order any for this small class) or used from individuals, e.g., local students who submitted classified ads to this Yahoo group. Enter your UI student number into your clicker. You may resell your clicker after the course ends.

You will learn to use these instruments:

multimeter:


analog oscilloscope:


digital oscilloscope:


function generator:


pulse generator:


bench power supply:

Circuits you will learn to use and build include the following (use this as a checklist when studying for exams):

• analog:
  • voltage divider
  • current source
  • low-pass filter
  • high-pass filter
  • rectifier
  • power supply
  • diode limiter
  • diode clamp
  • emitter follower
  • transistor switch
  • transistor current source
  • common-emitter amplifier
  • op-amp voltage follower
  • op-amp summing amplifier
  • op-amp difference amplifier
  • op-amp low-pass filter
  • op-amp high-pass filter
  • phototransistor light detector
    
• digital:
  • gate circuits
  • flip-flop circuits
  • shift register
  • counters
  • LED display driver
  • switch debouncing
• analog/digital:
  • oscillator
  • one-shot
  • digital-to-analog conversion
  • analog-to-digital conversion

You will learn these measurement methods (use this as a checklist when studying for exams):

• continuity
• dc voltage
• ac voltage
• dc current
• resistance
• frequency
• triggering
• rise time
• phase response
• frequency response
• dc vs. ac input coupling
• voltage regulator stiffness
• amplifier gain
• common-mode rejection ratio
• input impedance
• output impedance
• amplifier saturation
• timing diagrams
• transient events
• clocking
• digitizing resolution

You will learn to use:

• SPICE-based circuit-simulation software (Multisym)
• Data acquisition software (LabView)

Toward the end of the semester, you will design and build a circuit of your own to meet whatever purpose you like:

• There will be no lectures and no regular lab exercises during this period.
• At the beginning, you will give a 10-minute presentation in class on your proposed project. At the end, you will demonstrate your circuit.
• The circuit could arise from your thesis project, or it could complement an existing instrument, for example your telephone or stereo. You could make a game, a circuit that demonstrates some mathematical or scientific concept, or something for a hobby, such as a temperature controller for a photographic darkroom. It is up to your imagination.
• Your design must be your own.
• More instructions are found in the back of the lab manual.

• Special project examples:

  • Actual student projects:
    • grade received 95+% This prototype-board project is more ambitious than average, with significant creativity and variety - the circuit has a good error-free design and it worked perfectly; the schematic is complete and fully labeled; the specifications (not shown here) were complete. The student was able to explain every feature of the design.
    • grade received 76% This prototype-board project was average or below average in complexity. The circuit has serious design errors such as: outputs of two different chips connected together at a node, elements of the circuit that are randomly connected or unnecessary, and the overall design doesn't make sense. The schematic and specifications are incomplete.
• Not actual student projects:
  • A hardwired project with reasonable complexity and variety that offset a low parts count
  • A prototype circuit with little variety but significant parts count and complexity