Undergraduate Electrical Engineering Course Descriptions

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Mission, Educational Objectives and Program Outcomes

Degree Requirements

Certification in Electrical
Engineering

 Course Descriptions

Industry Advisory Board

Understanding course descriptions:

•  The number following the course title indicates total credit hours. For example, in the case of the following course:

ECE 214 Design of Logic Circuits 3 (2-3)

number 3 indicates that this is a three-credit course. The letter V indicates variable credits. If there are other numbers in parenthesis following the credit hour, they indicate the total number of lecture and laboratory hours per week. In the above example, (2-3) indicates that there are 2 lecture hours and 3 laboratory hours per week.

•  Prerequisites are listed if there are courses you need to take before you enroll in a course. There are three types of prerequisites:

  1. Rec.: Recommended prerequisite
  2. Prereq.: Prerequisite course that must have been completed to take this course
  3. c//: Indicates that you may take the course at the same time you take the prerequisite

•  [M] indicates that this is a writing in the major type course. The course will require writing related to the major of the student.

•  Senior standing: In order to take this course the student must have completed at least 90 credits of course work towards the degree.

 

Lower-division courses in the Major

ECE 120 Introduction to Electrical Engineering 2 (1-3). Prereq Math 171 or c//. Survey of the field of electrical engineering. Introduces students to the fundamental concepts behind electronic devices and systems, including charge, voltage, current, power, energy, resistance, capacitance, inductance, and Kirkoff's laws.

ECE 214 Design of Logic Circuits 3 (2-3). Prereq CS 121 or 251. Design and application of combinational logic circuits with exposure to modern methods and design tools; Introduction to sequential logic circuits. Same as CS 214.

ECE 234 Microprocessor Systems 3 (2-3). Prereq ECE 214. Microprocessor system architecture, instruction sets, and interfacing; assembly language programming. Same as CS 234.

ECE 260 Circuit Modeling and Analysis I 4 (3-3). Prereq Math 315 or c//; Phys 202. Introduction to circuit modeling and analysis, component models, and circuit theory. Introduction to circuit simulation tools. Application of network theory to solve linear and non-linear circuits under static and dynamic operation. Laboratory measurement.

ECE 295 Digital Communications I 3. Prereq ECE 214; ECE 260 or c//. Introduction to hardware and protocols for digital communications systems. Ethernet, ATM, physical and media access layers; encoding and modulation techniques. Shannon and Nyquist Theorems and their application.

 

Upper-division courses in the Major

ECE 302 Properties of Electronic Materials 3. Prereq Chem 105; Phys 202. Schrodinger's wave equation, potential barrier problems, crystal structure and bonds, band theory of solids, semiconductors, super conductor, dielectric and magnetic material properties.

ECE 321 Circuit Modeling and Analysis II 3. Prereq ECE 260. Laplace transforms, Fourier analysis, state space analysis, two port networks.

ECE 324 Digital Design II 3 (2-3). Prereq ECE 234. Implementation of datapaths and controllers, use of HDLs and automated synthesis tools, filed programmable gate arrays and simulation. Introduction to integrated circuit layout.

ECE 325 Electronic Devices and Applications 4 (3-3). Prereq ECE 260; ECE 214. MOS small and large signal models, bipolar transistors, biasing and parasitics, amplifier design and feedback, frequency response. Circuit simulation and device models.

ECE 341 Signals and Systems 3. Prereq ECE 321. Discrete and continuous sytems, sampling, convolution, Fourier and Z transforms, modulation. Introduction to distributed parameter.

ECE 345 Digital Communications II 3. Prereq ECE 295; Stat 360 or c//. Digitally modulated signals and their spectral characteristics, modulation/demodulation techniques, coherent/non-coherent detection methods with AWGN, error performance, band-limited channels with ISI and AWGN, channel capacity, bandwidth efficiency, link.

ECE 349 Principles of Solid State Devices 3. Prereq ECE 325; ECE 302. Fundamentals of semiconductor theory, carrier diffusion and drift, direct and indirect energy materials, homo and heterojunctions, operations principles of bipolar junctions and MOS field effect transistors, and metal-semiconductor contacts.

ECE 366 Introduction to VLSI Design 3 (2-3). Prereq ECE 325; ECE 234. CMOS devices and deep-submicron fabrication technology. CMOS circuits and layout extending from gates and inverters to the design of large logic blocks. Interconnect modeling, power and clock distribution, area, power, and speed optimization.

ECE 370 Electromagnetic Fields and Waves 3. Prereq ECE 260. Electrostatic and magnetostatic fields; Faraday's laws, Maxwell's equations, electromagnetic properties of matter, uniform plane waves, and transmission lines.

ECE 405 Professional Issues and Ethics in Electrical Engineering [M] 3. Prereq certified in ECE; completion of University Writing Portfolio. Social, legal, ethical, and professional issues that arise in the context of electrical engineering.

ECE 411 Energy Systems 3 (2-3). Prereq ECE 321. Investigation and analysis of the design, tradeoffs and efficiency of conventional and alternative energy sources. Principles and economics of energy transmission, storage, and conversion systems.

ECE 414 Introduction to Digital Signal Processing 3 (2-3). Prereq ECE 341. Discrete and fast Fourier transforms, Z-transform, sampling, discrete convolution, digital filter design, and effects of quantization.

ECE 424 Computer Architecture and Design 3 (2-3). Prereq ECE 324; ECE 366. Survey of architectural approaches to computer instruction sets and organization. Design, analysis, and simulation of student computer designs. Implementation and testing of designs in an FPGA.

ECE 425 RF Devices and Circuits 3 (2-3). Prereq ECE 341; ECE 370. Introduction to semiconductor devices and circuit design targeting wireless applications.

ECE 451 Electrical Engineering Project Management 3. Prereq certified in ECE; senior standing; Engl 402 or 403. This is the first of a two course senior design project sequence. Design for manufacture, schedule estimation and tracking, costing, ethics, and proposal writing will be covered.

ECE 452 Electrical Engineering Capstone Design Project [M] 3 (1-6). Prereq ECE 451. This course is the execution phase of the senior design project course sequence. An independent or team project proposed in ECE 451 is designed, and, to the extent possible, implemented. Students will regularly report their progress and present results.

ECE 471 Antenna Design and Analysis 3 (2-3). Prereq ECE 425. Antenna types and radiation, wire antennas, antenna arrays, broadband and aperture antennas. Theory and simulation of antenna performance, laboratory testing, and measurement.

ECE 475 Electro-optical Devices and Systems 3. Prereq ECE 370; Stat 360. Electromagnetic reflection and refraction, waveguide theory. Theory and application of optical source and sensor devices. Coupling, dispersion, and loss in waveguides and optical fiber.

ECE 476 Computer-aided Design for VLSI 3 (2-3). Prereq ECE 366. Algorithms and design flows for VLSI design synthesis and verification. Logic synthesis, floorplanning, placement, and routing are covered with consideration of scalability and complexity.

ECE 477 VLSI Testing and Design for Test 3 (2-3). Prereq ECE 366. Test pattern generation for digital devices, controllability, and observability; Tester characteristics and capabilities; Pseudo random test patterns; Fault modeling, and analysis of test coverage.

ECE 483 Topics in Electrical Engineering V (1-4). Prereq Certified in ECE; junior standing. Current topics in electrical engineering.

ECE 486 Solid State Device Design and Modeling 3 (2-3). Prereq ECE 349. Cross-sectional design of CMOS devices. Simulation and optimization of device design using CAD tools such as PISCES and use of SUPREM for process integration. Device model extraction for circuit simulation and parametric testing.

ECE 490 Work Study Internship V (1-9). Prereq certified in ECE; by interview only. Experience in electrical engineering and systems analysis in a working environment under supervision of industrial or governmental professionals and faculty. S, F grading.

ECE 495 Wireless and Mobile Communication Systems 3 (2-3). Prereq ECE 345; ECE 425; ECE 414. Wireless communication with an emphasis on cellular and multiple access communication. RF environment, duplexing and multiple access, cellular, mobile systems, standards, and applications. Introduction to wireless ad hoc networks.

ECE 499 Special Problems V (1-4). Prereq ECE 341; certified in ECE; by interview only. May be repeated for credit. S, F grading.

 

Technical elective and option areas:

Digital Systems option

  • CS 122
  • CS 360
  • ECE 324
  • ECE 366
  • ECE 424

Electronic Devices and Materials option

  • ECE 302
  • ECE 349
  • ECE 366
  • ECE 486
  • Mech 438

Networks and Communication Systems option

  • ECE 295
  • ECE 345
  • ECE 414
  • ECE 425
  • ECE 495