(19 Dec 2010) I have completed the grading, and posted the course grades online and on the Registrar's gradebook. I had to subvert the Blackboard system to make it do what I want. In the column labeled HW-Drop, I have recorded the grade and assignment number of the lowest homework grade. For example, 57(4) means that your lowest grade was a 57 on HW4. In keeping with the plans in the syllabus I did the same for SPICE unless you had not submitted a report at all. I requested Blackboard to neglect unscored entries in the gradebook, so your lowest grade is not counted. I recorded your midterm and final grade in the gradbook, but I weighted the lower of the two at 20% and the higher at 30%, as promised. Look in the columns "lower exam" and "higher exam" for these scores. The grade statistics for the course are posted above graphically, along with the cut lines for letter grades, which I have moved downward to a scale which I think reflects the performance of the students in the class.

The solutions to the final exam are posted above. As a result of some bad photocopying, page 10 of the exam (page 11 on the solutions) was missing, so there were a couple less questions than I had intended.

Looking over the lab work, I decided to assign straight letter grades without plus or minus, based on cuts at 90%, 80%, etc. which proved to be quite natural locations based on a histogram of the grades.

If you would like to pick up your papers, contact me and find out when I will be around. The last time I left papers on a chair outside my lab, someone stole the papers (and the chair), so I won't be doing that again.

Thanks for your participation, your efforts and attention, your questions and suggestions. I have enjoyed teaching this course, and I hope that our paths will cross again. I wish you all the best in your continuing studies and in your careers as engineers. Finally, I wish you good holidays.

-- Chuck

(15 Dec 2010) By popular request, I have decided to allow you to bring a photocopy of the FET equations summary that appears in the back of the text, as I have done in previous final exams in this course. This is a change from what I told you in class. In summary, you are allowed (A) one 8.5 by 11 inch sheet of paper using both sides, with whatever you want to help on the exam, (B) a photocopy of the FET equations from the text, and (C) a calculator. I will email the class lists, but please help me spread the word.

(14 Dec 2010) Howmework 7 solutions are posted.

(12 Dec 2010) Please note the following information from the Dean's office: "In the event that undergraduate full-time day final exams (December 10, 13-17) are canceled due to snow, all exams for that day will be administered the following Saturday, December 18th. If there is a delayed opening, only those missed exams will be made up on Saturday. "

(5 Dec 2010) The final exam will be combined for both sections on Thursday, 16 December, 3:30 to 5:30 pm in 458 Richards Hall. Material will include everything after the midterm; BJT amplifiers, FET DC, Amplifiers, and logic. The rules will be the same as for the midterm. You will be allowed one sheet of paper, 8.5in by 11in, with whatever you want on both sides.

(4 Dec 2010) SPICE project 3 was quite badly worded when I wrote it originally. I've revised the text and posted it anew. Think about what SPICE analysis will provide the right answers in part d.

(3 Dec 2010) HW6 Solutions are posted. Also, I have posted some old final exams. Keep in mind that I am going to include a short--answer section this year, as I did on the midterm. I am posting the blank exam and the solutions separately in the event that students would like to try the exam without looking at the answers first.

(30 Nov 2010) There is a ground missing in Problem 2 (5.48 in the text). The ground should be on the lowest line in the figure.

(29 Nov 2010) In Homework 7, Problem 3, the AC frequency is 50kHz. I left this number out of the original statement of the problem.

(21 Nov 2010) Homework 7 is now posted. It is due on Thursday, 2 December. This will be the final homework assignment of the term. The third problem is somewhat open-ended, although I don't believe it's as complicated as the second problem of HW6. However, I recommend you get started Early.

(8 Nov 2010) More on HW6. I believe the only way you can get the collector and emitter currents in the third stage is to know I_s for these transistors, so I don't expect very precise answers to those two questions. However, you should be able to make a rough guess as to the current required, given the required output impedance.

(8 Nov 2010) Hints on HW6. Try to break up the circuit into individual stages for the DC analysis. How much does the base current in Stage 3 matter in relation to the diode current? What kind of amplifier is Stage 3? You might look up "complementary symmetric push--pull" online to see if you can get some useful help. Relate what you learn there to what you have learned in class. Homework will be due by the end of the day Friday. I will leave envelopes on the door to 334 Egan. Please (1) do not put your homework anywhere else (such as my office mailbox) and (2) put your class (AM or PM) on the front. We tend to get the papers mixed up when we use these envelopes, and this will make life easier for Saba. Making her life easier when she is about to grade your homework is certainly a good idea.

(3 Nov 2010) Homework 6 is posted. The grade statistics are posted above. If you look at the latest curve, you can find yourself by checking Blackboard for your weighted score. I have counted the midterm as 25%. At the end of the term, I will count your lower exam (of the final and midterm) at 20%, and the higher at 30%.

(2 Nov 2010) There has been some discussion of the expectations on lab reports. Please see the clarification message here.

(31 Oct 2010) Boo! Happy Halloween. Remember, there will be no class or office hours on Monday, 1 Nov.

(23 Oct 2010) Several students have been confused by the units, dBm and dB. If you are among them, see if this helps. dbm.pdf

(22 Oct 2010) Homework solutions are posted above for 4 and 5.

(21 Oct 2010) The Midterm Exam will be held during normal class time in the class location. I was unable to find a common time so there will be different exams for the different sections. Remember to bring a calculator and one 8.5 by 11 sheet of paper (both sides) with whatever notes you wish.

(19 Oct 2010) Here is a copy of Last Year's Midterm and the Solutions. I've posted them separately in case you want to try the exam before looking at the solutions. Changes this year include one set of short--answer questions, one less problem overall. I'm sorry to report that I have been unable to find a common time. So far the best option is 6PM on Monday, but there are six students who cannot make it. If we couldl reduce that number to two, I'd probably consider that managable.

(18 Oct 2010) In Problem 2, HW5, ISE is the emitter saturation current. Normally we specify the saturation current in terms of the collector,
i_C = I_S exp(v_{BE}/V_T).
We can define
i_E = I_{SE} exp(v_{BE}/V_T).
I used to include ISE in the lectures, but have dropped it. I should have changed the question.

(18 Oct 2010) In Problem 1, HW5, the emitter current source is a 1-mA source. I accidentally left that out of the problem description. The version above, Rev. B, is corrected.

(17 Oct 2010) In the figure for Problem 1 on HW5, there may be some confusion over VEE. This voltage is negative. I probably should have labeled it -VEE. I've reposted the homework with that correction.

(17 Oct 2010) The survey for the midterm exam scheduling is now posted on Blackboard, under the "assignments" area. Please be as flexible as you can to try to find a time that is good for everyone. As I said in class, I would prefer not to try to make two separate exams. I believe a common exam will work best for everyone.

If we can do this, I will allow 90 minutes for the exam, which I think should remove some of the time pressure that students often feel during exams.

If you can "almost" make one of the times, please indicate "True" and explain in response to the last question. We can accommodate a few students starting early or late.

This is my first attempt at using the Blackboard Survey, so if you have trouble with the process, I may have done something wrong. Please email me and watch here for updates.

Thanks for your cooperation,

(13 Oct 2010) I will be out of email contact most of the middle of the day today. I will return emails this evening after 5:40.

(11 Oct 2010) I've posted more homework solutions and grade statistics above. I'm not sure whether you can see the statistics on Blackboard or not. To me this plot is the most informative way to view the grades.

(8 Oct 2010) The acdc.pdf table of DC and AC Models I presented yesterday is posted in the ``supporting material'' area below.

(6 Oct 2010) I have posted a MATLAB Tutorial at matlab_tutorial.pdf. This link is also down below in the ``supporting material'' table. There are also tutorials on the Mathworks site. If you do or do not find this useful, or if you find a better tutorial, please let me know.

(5 Oct 2010) In problem 1, remember that the power, P=IV, is the power absorbed by the diode, so you want it to be negative in order to produce power. Remember that you don't have any external voltage supply (what we've called V_s in class) here. If you don't choose your scales carefully, you can get currents up to a few amps, and these will mask the much lower currents and powers (mA and mW respectively) that are of interest to the problem. You cannot ever get this circuit to operate in the first quadrant of the diode I-V curve anyway. Why not?

(1 Oct 2010) If you'd like to see where you stand so far I have some grade statistics plotted. With two homeworks in, a perfect score would be 8.34 based on a total of 100 for the entire semester. The horizontal axis is the grade of each student divided by 8.34, and the vertical axis is the number of students with grades below that number. Data for both morning and afternoon classes are combined. For those of you wondering, solutions will be posted within a few days.

(29 Sep 2010) Just discovered: The diode in HW3, Problem 2, is upside down.

(28 Sep 2010) Almost everyone seems to be struggling with Problem 2 on the homework. I will be covering the material in class on Wednesday, and I think you will find it easier after that. I will move the Homework 3 due date to Friday.

(27 Sep 2010) Three items: (1) Homework #1 has been graded. It will be returned Monday afternoon and Wednesday morning. Grades will be posted on blackboard after it is returned. (2) In the lab, please remember that each student is to submit an individual lab report. You may collaborate on the analysis, but the written report you submit must be your own. (3) Start your homework early. These problems are difficult, and you may not be able to complete them in one evening. We will be imposing penalties for late homework. "Leave the procrastinating to us professionals."

(22 Sep 2010) Tutor is available by the honor society, Eta Kappa Nu. Check the schedule at http://www.hkn.neu.edu/

(22 Sep 2010) The positive input to the op-amp in Problem 2 of Homework 2 should be grounded. Sorry for the error.

(22 Sep 2010) Off topic: One of my students and I will be giving a talk, sponsored by the ECE honor society, Eta Kappa Nu, on ``undergraduate research'' in 306 Egan, at 3:00 on Thursday, 23 Sep. All are welcome. There will be refreshments. The abstract is at href=http://www.ece.neu.edu/faculty/dimarzio/2share/11486abs.txt

(21 Sep 2010) Reminder: No class on Wednesday, 22 Sep.

(12 Sep 2010) Lab TA office hours will begin on Monday, 20 Sep.

(8 Sep 2010) Location: We have just been informed that the University has received occupancy permits for the classrooms in Richards. Starting on Thursday, 9 Sep, the morning class will meet in 227RI as originally planned. Afternoon students disregard this message. Our room is 107RB, as planned.

Lab: Remember to buy a bound notebook exclusively for use as a lab notebook. Also complete Prelab #1 before the start of your lab on either the 21st or the 24th. You will be graded on the prelab, your lab reports, and your lab notebooks. Failure to complete the "b" part of a lab will reduce your report grade by 10 points on a scale of 100. You will be further penalized at the end of the term for not having the results in your notebook, so make sure you complete both (a and b) parts of each lab.

(6 Sep 2010) We now have our room assignments. The morning class will meet M,W,Th, 9:15-10:20 in 227RI (Richards) and the afternoon class will meet M,W,Th 4:35-5:40 in 107RB (Robinson).

(4 Sep 2010) Welcome to EECE2412, Electronics. We will introduce you to the basic components of modern electronics, namely diodes and transistors, along with their use in a variety of circuits. There will be lectures, homework assignments, computer-based design assignments, and of course, exams. The laboratory, EECE2413, will be closely coordinated with the class material. The textbook, is Hambley, Electronics , Second Edition. I'm still working on the website, so there may be a few broken links until I get everything moved.

Pspice information (Thanks to Prof. McGruer) PSpice (Available on NU computers or download for free). We will extensively use PSpice. The student version of PSpice is available for free. You may use any version of PSpice that you wish, but you may find it helpful to be consistent in your versions. You cannot save in version 9.1 and use in version 8.0. In fact, sometimes there is difficulty in saving in version 8.0 and then using in version 9.1, but less so. Pspice is avaliable at http://www.electronics-lab.com/downloads/schematic/013/ . It is reported to be available at http://www.web-ee.com/Downloads/Simulator/simulation.htm , but that did not work for me.

If you want to review circuits or more problems to solve in electronics, you might find Schaum's Outlines for Electric Circuits or Electronic Devices and Circuits useful. I have not looked at these in a while but I found their earlier outlines quite useful when I was a student.

Guidelines for writing a SPICE report are here . Some of my own pet peeves about students' reports are here

Tutoring is available by Eta Kappa Nu, Electrical Engineering Honor Society, http://www.hkn.neu.edu. Details will be announced in class and on the HKN website early in the semester.

For help with Matlab, you may find this tutorial useful. http://people.cs.ubc.ca/~murphyk/Software/matlabTutorial/html/index.html. Thanks to Tom Gaudette (NU ECE BS 1996, MS 1998), at Mathworks for passing this along.

You may want to look at the presentation files I used in a previous class, although I do not plan to use them this year. See the website for that class for more information. http://www.ece.neu.edu/courses/eceu402/2007fa-dimarzio/

ABOUT THE BACKGROUND: My favorite winter passtime is skiing. I put this background together from a detail of a photograph taken at Park City, in 2003. There are four copies in different orientations so that the tracks (and more importantly, the brightness levels) line up as the pattern repeats.