Electronics I

Semiconductor physics, diodes and rectifiers, Zener regulators and wave-shaping, LEDs and photodiodes, BJT and MOSFET operation, biasing and switching, small-signal models, single-stage amplifiers and frequency response.

ELE-240 Year 2 3 credits 12 lessons · 4 h 55 min ▶ Video lessons coming soon

Offered by HSM University · Electrical Engineering

This is the American version of this course. See the Canadian version.

What you'll learn

  • Explain conduction in semiconductors with electrons and holes, calculate carrier concentrations in doped silicon, and describe how a pn junction forms its depletion region and built-in voltage.
  • Model diodes with the ideal, constant-drop, piecewise-linear and exponential models, solve diode circuits by iteration and load lines, and use the small-signal diode resistance.
  • Design half-wave, full-wave and bridge rectifiers with capacitor filters, calculate ripple, diode stresses and inrush, and check supply headroom at low and high line.
  • Design Zener shunt regulators by worst-case analysis, select transient voltage suppressors, and analyze clippers, clampers, peak detectors and envelope detectors.
  • Design LED drive circuits, use photodiodes with transimpedance amplifiers, find a solar cell's maximum power point, and design optocoupler interfaces using minimum current transfer ratio.
  • Explain how a bipolar junction transistor amplifies, identify its operating modes, and use its exponential law, current gain, output characteristics and Early effect.
  • Analyze and design stable BJT bias circuits, constant-current sources and saturated transistor switches, including flyback protection for inductive loads.
  • Explain MOSFET operation, apply the triode and saturation equations with channel-length modulation, and read power MOSFET datasheet ratings.
  • Bias MOSFETs with source degeneration, design low-side and high-side MOSFET switches, and estimate conduction loss, switching time, switching loss and PWM dimming behavior.
  • Derive and apply small-signal models of BJTs and MOSFETs, calculate transconductance, input and output resistances, and state the limits of the small-signal approximation.
  • Analyze common-emitter, common-base and common-collector amplifiers and their MOSFET counterparts, including emitter degeneration and the loading of cascaded stages.
  • Estimate low- and high-frequency corners with time constants and the Miller effect, draw Bode plots, and carry an amplifier design from specification through worst-case verification and bench testing.

Course content

12 lessons · 4 h 55 min total · final exam

  1. 1 Semiconductors and the pn junction 25 min · quiz
  2. 2 Diode models and diode circuit analysis 27 min · quiz
  3. 3 Rectifiers and DC power supplies 24 min · quiz
  4. 4 Zener diodes, regulators, clippers and clampers 26 min · quiz
  5. 5 LEDs, photodiodes and special-purpose diodes 25 min · quiz
  6. 6 Bipolar junction transistors: physics and characteristics 24 min · quiz
  7. 7 BJT DC biasing and the transistor switch 25 min · quiz
  8. 8 MOSFETs: physics and characteristics 21 min · quiz
  9. 9 MOSFET biasing and switching circuits 26 min · quiz
  10. 10 Small-signal models 24 min · quiz
  11. 11 Single-stage amplifiers 25 min · quiz
  12. 12 Frequency response basics and an amplifier design project 23 min · quiz
  13. E Final exam 20 questions

Requirements

Recommended background. You can start any course at any time.

Description

Semiconductor physics, diodes and rectifiers, Zener regulators and wave-shaping, LEDs and photodiodes, BJT and MOSFET operation, biasing and switching, small-signal models, single-stage amplifiers and frequency response.

Part of the Engineering stream, typically taken in year 2.