EECS 1 Course Syllabus
This material will be available on the course web page at:
http://inst.eecs.berkeley.edu/~ee1/
Goal: The overall objective of the course is for students to develop an understanding of and appreciation for the three basic elements of electrical engineering – devices, circuits and systems – along with their interactions and the ways that engineers work.
Text: A text written for this course by Dick White and Roger Doering entitled Electrical Engineering Uncovered, 2nd Ed., 2001, Prentice Hall, (ISBN 0-13-091452-5) is available at the ASUC Bookstore. A separate lab manual, Laboratory Manual for Electrical Engineering Uncovered, can be downloaded from the course web page (see lab manual information below).
The text has three main sections:
1. On Being an Engineer: Essays and advice about some of the less quantitative aspects of engineering, such as modeling, design, technical writing, and the conduct of a large research project and the roles that are played in such a project by the specialties within EECS. In addition, there are a number of very brief technical articles about interesting technical developments.
2. Electrical Engineering -- A Survey of the Field: The goal is to help the student develop a primarily physical, intuitive understanding of electronic components and devices, alternating currents, semiconductors, op-amps, and digital devices such as logic circuits and memories. Basic laws are introduced, and hydraulic models for the electronic devices are described in order to help one understand how the devices work.
3. Appendices: These include: "Instructional Objectives" for the course, "Glossary "of terms, a tabulation of "Significant Contributions to the Field", a brief discussion of "Grading on the Curve", and a reprint about Alexander Graham Bell's experiments with optical communications.
The lab manual contains 27 laboratory experiments, of which students are expected to complete at least 10. An additional experiment on the new wireless sensor devices known as “Smart Dust” will also be made available. The labs are self-contained two-hour experiments that cover topics such as use of the oscilloscope, operating principles of many pieces of consumer electronics gear, and other less-familiar devices such as the ultrasonic rangefinder and the curve-tracer, and computer-based experiments on topics such as the circuit simulator PSpiceTM and the image processing program PhotoshopTM. The principles involved in the experiments are explained, and there are tear-out sheets for pre-lab questions and data-taking. There is also reproducible graph paper and a blank experiment form for students who wish to devise their own experiments.
Students should download and read the experiment they choose to do next and bring to the lab session the sheet of answered pre-lab questions. The Lab Manual files on the web page are in pdf format; you may download Acrobat Reader from the web page if necessary so that your computer can read those files. There is a Contents file that you can download to find the pages of each experiment. You should use the files identified as "single-sided printing".
Class Meetings: These are lectures on topics included in the text, with demonstrations where possible. Some guest lecturers may present special topics. In the past we have had an illustrated talk about computer equipment given by Cory Hall staff who maintain that equipment, and a “field trip” to the Berkeley Microfabrication Facility on the 4th floor of Cory Hall where semiconductor devices are made. At many class meetings, a student volunteer will take notes that are edited and reproduced ("scribe notes") for distribution at the next class meeting.
Discussion Sections: Run by a faculty member and/or graduate student instructor, these are an opportunity for students to ask questions about puzzling points. Frequently there are also demonstrations in discussion sections.
Grading: The 2-unit course grade is based on scores averaged with the following weights and curved: Laboratory 50%, Final exam 25%, Mid-term exam 13%, Homeworks 10%, Scribe notes 2%.
Updated 20 January 2004