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Electronic Circuit & Systems Design (H7076)

15 credits, Level 5

Autumn teaching

Electronic Circuit & Systems Design builds on the first-year modules in electronics and provides you with an introduction into the design and analysis of the most common analog circuits. These circuits are of increasing importance to enable computers and other digital systems to communicate with our purely analog world.

You’ll explore how single components (such as diodes, resistors or transistors) can be biased and connected to form functional blocks. This forms the foundation to realise circuits such as amplifiers, filters and converters for different application, including wireless communication, signal processing and audio drivers.

Additionally, you will learn how to simulate, build and characterise various circuits using state of the art equipment and simulation software in our practical sessions. You’ll also look at techniques to design more complex systems.

This module will enable you to design and fabricate a complex electronic system based on the specifications provided by a customer or the technical requirement of a research/development project.

Topics include:

• semiconductor devices: Diodes, field effect transistors, bipolar transistors
• biasing and small signal analysis: Transistors, circuits
• basic amplifiers: Gain, phase
• impedance, matching and transmission lines
• operational amplifiers: Circuit configurations, digital to analog converters
• power amplifiers and devices: Efficiency, and distortion
• thermal analysis: Heat sinks and stability
• oscillators and other communication circuits
• active filters: Frequency domain analysis, gain, and phase
• non-idealities: Gain-bandwidth product, and common mode rejection
• systems design: Bottom-up, top-down, computer aided design
• coursework: Design project of a small analogue circuit, building and testing.

Contact hours and workload

This module is approximately 150 hours of work. This breaks down into about 51 hours of contact time and about 99 hours of independent study. The University may make minor variations to the contact hours for operational reasons, including timetabling requirements.

We regularly review our modules to incorporate student feedback, staff expertise, as well as the latest research and teaching methodology. We’re planning to run these modules in the academic year 2024/25. However, there may be changes to these modules in response to feedback, staff availability, student demand or updates to our curriculum.

We’ll make sure to let you know of any material changes to modules at the earliest opportunity.