ECE 351 - Electronic Circuits Spring Semester 1996
1995-96 Catalog Data:  

ECE 351 Electronic Circuits. Credit 4. Analysis and design of analog electronic circuits utilizing bipolar and field-effort transistors. Prerequisites: ECE 202, ECE 203, ECE 350 & ECE 352. Co-requisite: ECE 353 

Textbook:  

• Allan R. Hambley, Electronics: A Top-Down Approach to Computer-Aided Circuit Design, Macmillan Publishing Company, 1994. 
• J. J. Whalen, "Notes on Electronic Circuits - Volume 1: Lectures," 125 pp., 1995. 
• J. J. Whalen, "Notes on Electronic Circuits - Volume 2: Exams," 215 pp., 1996. 

References:  

P. W. Tuinenga, SPICE: A Guide to Circuit Simulation & Analysis Using PSPICE, Prentice Hall, 1992. 

Coordinator: 

Dr. James J. Whalen, Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering 

Goals:  

This course introduces student to the analysis and design of analog electronic circuits beginning with single-stage amplifiers and concluding with multi-stage amplifiers. Feedback amplifiers and stability are treated in detail. Extensive use is made of the electronic circuit analysis program SPICE to verify circuit design and to predict circuit performance. 

Prerequisites by topic:  

• Network theory: Ohm's law, Kirchhoff's laws, node-voltage equations, dependent sources, four-terminal network parameters, sinusoidal steady-state analysis, magnitude and phase vs. frequency plots, pole-zero analysis, superposition, transformers 
• Physical electronics: pn-junction diode theory including I-V and C-V equations, bipolar junction transistor theory including charge-control model, JFET and/or MOSFET theory. 
• An introduction to SPICE. 

Topics:  

• Basic amplifier concepts; inverting vs noninverting; voltage gain; current gain; power gain; dB; amplifier classifications: voltage, current, transconductance, transresistance; importance of amplifier input impedance; ac vs dc amplifiers; Miller effect: Rin, feedback capacitance, oscillation; waveform distortion: the two tone response; single tone Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) (3 classes) 
• Introduction to FETs; JFET regions of operation: cutoff, triode, saturation; JFET model parameters; JFET characteristics; load line analysis of simple JFET amplifier; MOSFETs vs JFETs; fixed-plus self bias JFET circuit design; goal: to accommodate JFETs with spread in I-V characteristics; small-signal equivalent circuit (gm & gd); SPICE parameters: BETA, VTO, LAMBDA (2 classes) 
• Introduction to BJTs; I-V relationships; Common Emitter (CE) characteristics; load-line analysis of CE amplifier; waveform distortion; voltage breakdown; Beta (hFE) variation; large-signal dc models; regions of operations: cutoff, active, saturation; determining region of operation; CE constant IB design; four resistor circuit design for b(min)=20 & b(max) = 200; SPICE simulations (2 classes) 
• BJT small-signal equivalent circuit based upon SPICE model; application to CE stage: ac load-line, voltage, current, & power gain, input & output resistance, design for CE stage based upon QP Triangle with VCC=12V, VPP=4V, b(min)=20 & b(max) = 200, ICQ(min) as low as possible; SPICE simulation and design modifications; minimum ac gain requirement & Rb(min) (1.5 classes) 
• Common-Collector(CC) stage analysis; QP Triangle design of CC with ac-coupled RL (CCACRL) with VCC=12V, VPP=5V, b(min) = 20 & b(max) = 200, ICQ(min) as low as possible, RE = RL; ac current gain (AI) considerations; tradeoffs between VPP and AI (1.5 classes) 
• Computer-aided analysis of electronic circuits: SPICE; discussion of PSPICE Exam 1 (1 class) 
• Feedback; advantages of negative feedback: stabilization of gain; reduction of nonlinear distortion & reduction of noise; feedback types; effect of feedback type on gain, input impedance, and output impedance; examples of resistive feedback networks; ideal op amp rules and their application to several examples (resistive feedback networks) (2 classes) 
• Transient analysis
• SPICE parameters for the diode; PARTS; review of static characteristics of BJT; small-signal BJT models including the h-parameter & hybrid-pi models; large-signal BJT models; determining parameter values for the SPICE BJT and JFET models (2.5 classes) 
• Discussion of PSPICE Exam 2: application of the QP Triangle design method for BJTs with b(min) at T(min) & b(max) at T(max); maximum power dissipation (1 class) 
• Sensitivity & worst-case analysis of discrete BJT bias circuits; dual-supply bias circuit for the Common-Emitter(CE); biasing of bipolar IC amplifiers e.g. emitter follower with current mirror; other current-mirror circuits; Wilson & Widlar current sources (2 classes) 
• The method of short-circuit time constants for selection of coupling & bypass capacitors; application to design of Common Emitter stage; Monte Carlo simulations of CE amplifier; design of Common-Collector (CC) Amplifier and use of the method of short-circuit time constants for selection of coupling & bypass capacitors; design of two-supply Common-Base (CB) amplifier & cascode amplifier; use of the method of short-circuit time constants for selection of coupling & bypass capacitors (3 classes) 

Computer usage: 

• PSPICE Exam 1: design of fixed-plus self bias JFET circuit design to accommodate JFETs with spread in I-V characteristics; SPICE QP simulations to verify design specifications are met; SPICE simulations to determine lower half-power frequency and total harmonic distortion (two recitations) 
• PSPICE Exam 2: application of the QP Triangle design method for BJTs with b(min) at T(min) & b(max) at T(max); SPICE QP simulations to verify design specifications are met; SPICE simulations to determine lower half-power frequency and total harmonic distortion (two recitations) 
• SPICE demonstrations are integrated into the lectures to demonstrate that designs done during lecture meet the design specifications and to demonstrate many of the topics discussed. Computer usage also occurs in the co-requisite laboratory course ECE 353 Electronic Circuits Laboratory. Located in the laboratory are fifteen 286 work stations. SPICE simulation results are required as part of the laboratory reports. See ECE 353 Course Description for details. 

Laboratory projects:  

See ECG course description. 

ECE 351 Electronic Circuits (Lecture Course) and ECE 353 Electronic Circuits Laboratory (Laboratory Course) are closely coupled. The lecture course emphasizes electronic circuit analysis and provides the foundation for the electronic circuit design required in the laboratory. Our staff is distributed accordingly. One professor and three assistants are assigned to the lecture course. One professors and nine assistants are assigned to the laboratory course. The resources expended by ECE on the laboratory course make possible a high degree of staff-student interaction which design requires. 

ABET category content as estimated by faculty member who prepared this course description: 

Engineering Science: 3 credits or 75%  
Engineering Design: 1 credit or 25%  

Prepared by: James J. Whalen 
Date: 6-1-96