525.732.81 - Advanced Analog Electronic Circuit Design
Description
This course extends the fundamental concepts of practical electronic circuit design developed in the course 525.624 Analog Electronic Circuit Design, beginning with a review of the general feedback method. Students then examine a range of devices, including operational amplifiers, A/D and D/A converters, and comparators. Applications include active filters, sensor conditioning, nonlinear transfer functions, and analog computation. Students explore these topics through a series of assignments supplemented with breadboard-level experimentation. All required test equipment will be provided to the student.
Expanded Course Description
This is a design-based course, so the HW problems will be largely expressed as design problems. We will again incorporate simulation as a major component of this course, which will require the use of LTspice.
We will also incorporate a laboratory component by using university-provided, take-home test equipment and consumable components. The test equipment will be mailed to remote students and hand-delivered to local students. This equipment must be returned at the end of the semester, in the same condition it was provided (accounting for normal wear through routine usage). The consumables are yours to keep and are not expected to be returned.
Prerequisites
525.624 Analog Electronic Circuit Design, or permission of the instructor
Instructor
Jeff Houser
Course Structure
The course materials are divided into modules which can be accessed by clicking Course Modules on the course menu. A module will have several sections including the overview, content, readings, discussions, and assignments. You are encouraged to preview all sections of the module before starting. Most modules run for a period of seven (7) days, exceptions are noted in the Course Outline. You should regularly check the Calendar and Announcements for assignment due dates.
The first 8 Modules include recorded lecture material and assignments. In the background, you will begin to develop the topic for your course project that begins in Module 9 and lasts the remainder of the semester. The goal is to have completely defined the parameters of your project (topic, materials, risk, etc...) prior to week 9. This will enable you to begin development in week 9 and make best use of remaining time.
Course Topics
Operational Amplifiers, Feedback Circuits
Laboratory Equipment
Operational Amplifier DC Characteristics
Operational Amplifier AC Characteristics
Stability
Course Goals
To rapidly analyze and design electronic circuits composed of linear integrated circuits, passive components, and semiconductors (e.g. transistors and diodes). This course essentially focuses on design using operational amplifiers (a.k.a. opamps). This is a design-based course with emphasis on opamp application circuits. The course includes a laboratory component that is intended to reinforce the design and simulation with circuit fabrication using home-based laboratory equipment. By the end of the course, you will be designing actual circuits to address a design requirement.
Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs)
- Analyze opamp circuit designs using simulation and approximate methods.
- Produce analog designs stable over device parameter and environmental variations.
- Fabricate circuits using university-provided laboratory equipment.
- Test circuits using university-provided laboratory equipment.
- Design and fabricate circuits to meet a requirement (in a written specification), and compare performance results using test data.
Textbooks
Design with Operational Amplifiers and Analog Integrated Circuits, 4th ed. Sergio Franco
ISBN10: 0078028167 | ISBN13: 9780078028168
Other Materials & Online Resources
Hardware: Digital Multimeter
You’ll need an inexpensive digital multimeter for use during the labs. This is invaluable tool for troubleshooting and measurement. These can be purchased for approximately $15 and should already be in your toolbox. You’re seeking a Master’s Degree in ECE, so if you don’t already have one, keep that information to yourself. Quietly go get one and just tell me that you’ve always had it.
Required Software
Software: LTspice (free)
LTspice is a free version of SPICE that we will use for circuit simulation, and is required for this course (even if you have another). LTspice was developed by Linear Technology (recently acquired by Analog Devices) and is somewhat stripped down, but has the benefit of a shallow learning curve. Just search for LTspice. This course includes LTspice tutorials.
It is my expectation that you will use SPICE as a design aide to cross check your hand analysis – not as a synthesis tool. SPICE will not design your circuits for you! Also, simulations are only as good as the underlying component models and analysis techniques – SPICE will lie to you! The video tutorials provided for you show one specific way that SPICE can provide misleading information. SPICE is a really useful analysis tool, but all tools have limitations.
Software: Waveforms (free)
WaveForms is a powerful multi-instrument software application. It seamlessly connects to our USB portable oscilloscope, logic analyzer, and function generator products such as both versions of the Analog Discovery, the Digital Discovery, and the Electronics Explorer Board, with full Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux support.
Optional (but useful) Material
Software: MATLAB
MATLAB can be useful to cross-check your analysis; if you have it, then please feel free to use it.
Hardware: Discrete (through-hole) Resistor & Capacitor Engineering Kit
You’ll be provided with a basic kit of components, which includes resistors and capacitors needed for the labs. Although my goal is to provide you with MOST everything you need, it is possible that some components from the university-provided kit may not survive multiple circuit construction cycles. So feel free to augment this with your own components as you need.
Student Coursework Requirements
Your course grade is composed of two main components: Weekly Assignments (a.k.a. Homework) and Project.
The assignments are worth 60% of your grade and the project is worth 40%.
Assignments
There are 8 assignments each worth 10 points. The total of of all assignments (max 80) is then scaled by 6/8 for a maximum of 60 points.
Project
The project score is broken into the following elements and weighed as shown below.
- 10 pts. Initial Project Plan
- 10 pts. Final Project Plan
- 10 pts. Project Status Report 1
- 10 pts. Project Status Report 2
- 10 pts. Project Status Report 3
- 10 pts. Project Status Report 4
- 10 pts. Project Status Report 5
- 20 pts. Project Report
These two components are then added to obtain your total course score and then mapped to a letter grade according to the table below.
Grading Policy
These two components (Homework and Project) are then added to obtain your total course score and then mapped to a letter grade according to the table.
EP uses a +/- grading system (see “Grading System”, Graduate Programs catalog, p. 10).
| Score Range | Letter Grade |
|---|---|
| 100-98 | = A+ |
| 97-94 | = A |
| 93-90 | = A− |
| 89-87 | = B+ |
| 86-83 | = B |
| 82-80 | = B− |
| 79-77 | = C+ |
| 76-73 | = C |
| 72-70 | = C− |
| 69-67 | = D+ |
| 66-63 | = D |
| <63 | = F |
Course Policies
- All assignments must conform to the provided style guide.
- Homework Assignments submitted after solutions are posted will not receive credit.
- Your course grade will not be posted until your lab equipment has been returned to the university at the conclusion of the semester.
Academic Policies
Deadlines for Adding, Dropping and Withdrawing from Courses
Students may add a course up to one week after the start of the term for that particular course. Students may drop courses according to the drop deadlines outlined in the EP academic calendar (https://ep.jhu.edu/student-services/academic-calendar/). Between the 6th week of the class and prior to the final withdrawal deadline, a student may withdraw from a course with a W on their academic record. A record of the course will remain on the academic record with a W appearing in the grade column to indicate that the student registered and withdrew from the course.
Academic Misconduct Policy
All students are required to read, know, and comply with the Johns Hopkins University Krieger School of Arts and Sciences (KSAS) / Whiting School of Engineering (WSE) Procedures for Handling Allegations of Misconduct by Full-Time and Part-Time Graduate Students.
This policy prohibits academic misconduct, including but not limited to the following: cheating or facilitating cheating; plagiarism; reuse of assignments; unauthorized collaboration; alteration of graded assignments; and unfair competition. Course materials (old assignments, texts, or examinations, etc.) should not be shared unless authorized by the course instructor. Any questions related to this policy should be directed to EP’s academic integrity officer at ep-academic-integrity@jhu.edu.
Students with Disabilities - Accommodations and Accessibility
Johns Hopkins University values diversity and inclusion. We are committed to providing welcoming, equitable, and accessible educational experiences for all students. Students with disabilities (including those with psychological conditions, medical conditions and temporary disabilities) can request accommodations for this course by providing an Accommodation Letter issued by Student Disability Services (SDS). Please request accommodations for this course as early as possible to provide time for effective communication and arrangements.
For further information or to start the process of requesting accommodations, please contact Student Disability Services at Engineering for Professionals, ep-disability-svcs@jhu.edu.
Student Conduct Code
The fundamental purpose of the JHU regulation of student conduct is to promote and to protect the health, safety, welfare, property, and rights of all members of the University community as well as to promote the orderly operation of the University and to safeguard its property and facilities. As members of the University community, students accept certain responsibilities which support the educational mission and create an environment in which all students are afforded the same opportunity to succeed academically.
For a full description of the code please visit the following website: https://studentaffairs.jhu.edu/policies-guidelines/student-code/
Classroom Climate
JHU is committed to creating a classroom environment that values the diversity of experiences and perspectives that all students bring. Everyone has the right to be treated with dignity and respect. Fostering an inclusive climate is important. Research and experience show that students who interact with peers who are different from themselves learn new things and experience tangible educational outcomes. At no time in this learning process should someone be singled out or treated unequally on the basis of any seen or unseen part of their identity.
If you have concerns in this course about harassment, discrimination, or any unequal treatment, or if you seek accommodations or resources, please reach out to the course instructor directly. Reporting will never impact your course grade. You may also share concerns with your program chair, the Assistant Dean for Diversity and Inclusion, or the Office of Institutional Equity. In handling reports, people will protect your privacy as much as possible, but faculty and staff are required to officially report information for some cases (e.g. sexual harassment).
Course Auditing
When a student enrolls in an EP course with “audit” status, the student must reach an understanding with the instructor as to what is required to earn the “audit.” If the student does not meet those expectations, the instructor must notify the EP Registration Team [EP-Registration@exchange.johnshopkins.edu] in order for the student to be retroactively dropped or withdrawn from the course (depending on when the "audit" was requested and in accordance with EP registration deadlines). All lecture content will remain accessible to auditing students, but access to all other course material is left to the discretion of the instructor.