Physics
2303
Electronics Lab
Fall 2017
Instructor: |
Dr.
Lloyd Bumm, NH 123, phone: 325-3961 x36123 |
TA: |
Ryan O'Toole, NH 406
|
TA:
|
Hadi Afshari, NH 405
|
|
Lectures: |
M 11:30-12:20 Nielsen Hall 302 |
|
Laboratory: |
Sect
001 MW 14:30-16:20 Nielsen Hall 250 (Ryan) |
|
Textbook: |
|
|
Notebook: |
|
|
Class Website: |
http://www.nhn.ou.edu/~bumm/ELAB
|
|
What the course covers: |
circuits, test equipment, measurements, and analog & digital electronics. |
Course Description: Physics 2303 is a one semester introductory course in electronics. The focus is on practical application of theory and measurement techniques that will prepare the student for laboratory research.
The course begins with linear DC and AC circuits and familiarizes the student with standard measurement tools. The relationship between time and frequency domain measurements of circuits is a fundamental component. We then introduce nonlinear circuit elements (diodes and transistors). We then move to operational amplifier circuits. The digital component of the course will include both combinational and sequential logic. We will create digital circuit using both discrete logic components and programmable gate array logic.
Prerequisites: Phys 1215 or Phys 2524 or permission of the instructor.
Communication
Email: When contacting your professor or TA via email, be sure to include the course number in the subject line and your full name in the body or the signature of your message. Incoherent, confusing, or inappropriate emails will be ignored, so please think before you simply fire off an email. Following these guidelines will help keep you email from getting lost in the daily spam and get you better service. We will try to respond to messages in a timely fashion, but since I receive dozens of messages each day, I ask that you use email judiciously. Here are some guidelines:
- Email to arange an appointment. Please suggest 2-3 possible times when you can meet so that we can efficiently arange a time to meet. Please confirm by email after we respond. If you send email, you also need to read email.
- For questions about what you missed when you were absent, consult the calendar on the class website or a trusted classmate instead of emailing.
Subjects that are best handled face to face after class, after lab, or at an appointment include the following:
- questions about course concepts and readings, and the nuances of specific assignments;
- desire for feedback on your performance, grades, completed assignments, and work in progress.
Phone & Voicemail: You can leave me a voicemail on my office phone. I do not check messages daily, however, and I generally do not return student calls, except in emergencies.
Course Components
There are eight major components of this course: lecture, laboratory, lab reports, lab notebook, quizzes, homework, the lab practical, and attendance. Below the details of each are discussed.
Lecture
The lectures will be used to clarify the material in each chapter. In many cases the lecture will include material that is not in the text. You are responsible for all of the assigned material even if it is not covered in lecture. TAKE NOTES.
You are adults. You are responsible for getting work done, getting it in on time, and keeping track of changes in the syllabus. Be aware that the course schedule is subject to change. If you miss this information because you have elected not to attend class or lab regularly, you will suffer the consequences of that decision. ATTENDANCE IS REQUIRED.
Laboratory
You will choose a lab partner. If problems arise, I reserve the right to make reassignments. Please be considerate of your lab partner. Do not let him/her carry all of the weight. This is a hands-on learning experience. ATTENDANCE IS REQUIRED.
Lab Reports
You will choose a lab partner. If problems arise, I reserve the right to make reassignments. Please be considerate of your lab partner. Do not let him/her carry all of the weight. This is a hands-on learning experience.
The lab reports are due no later than the beginning of the lab period one week from the date the lab was completed. In many cases the lab can be completed, or very nearly completed, in the lab period. Take advantage of the help we will provide during the lab period. If you leave the lab without a completed lab report, you should know exactly what you need to do to complete it. Do not wait until the last minute. NO LATE LAB REPORTS WILL BE ACCEPTED.
For each lab report:
1. Place your name on your report.
2. Write the name of your lab partner on the report.
3. Place your section number on your report.
4. Clearly state the title of the lab.
5. Staple all the pages of your lab report together.
6. Appropriately label any questions, tables, graphs, etc.
7. Where applicable show your work. A sample calculation may be enough if many repetitive calculations are performed (such as would be found in a spreadsheet).
8. Graphs carry a lot of information and are the fastest way to convey scientific and engineering data. Graphs require a main title, titles for each axes, units on each axes, clearly identified data points, etc. (More on this in class.)
Lab Notebook
Learning to keep a good notebook is critical to any scientific profession. The most important aspect of your notebook is completeness. Record all of your measurements, sketches, etc. in your notebook. Do not write on scraps of paper or loose note sheets. Incorrect behavior will be modified by confiscating the offending media. Neatness and organization are important, but the ability to keep a neat and organized notebook on the fly develops only with practice. Completeness is critical. When you leave the lab, your notebook should contain enough information that you could write up the lab even if you lost all memory of having done it.
In most labs, your lab notebook should include a sketch of the circuit, showing where the measurements were taken, a table of the raw measurements. For measurements using the oscilloscopes it is vital that you include the settings required to convert these raw numbers into voltage, time, frequency, or phase as is required by your experiment.
The top of each page must include the date and the lab being performed. Never remove ANY pages from you lab notebook. If you mess your notes or a table, simply cross it out and move to the next page. Do not obliterate the mistake, it may turn out that it was correct in the first place. Many great discoveries were initially thought to be mistakes.
The TA will initial and date each page before you leave. This will provide feedback to you. We will not initial blank pages.
In addition to the lab report, you are required to photocopy your notebook pages for the lab and submit them with your lab report. You will also receive a grade for you lab notebook pages for that lab. While neatness is not graded, your notebook does need to be legible!
Quizzes
Reading the text and the posted lecture notes is fundamental to your preparation to learn in lecture and in the laboratory. Therefore quizzes will be given from time to time. Some of these quizzes will be unannounced. They can cover any material from today's reading assignment to material on any previous assignment or lab. These quizzes provide feedback for your instructor as well as an incentive for you to keep up with the course.
THERE ARE NO MAKE UPS ON THE QUIZZES.
Homework
Homework will be assigned at most once per week. Homework will be due at the beginning of the lecture. Once the lecture has begun, your homework is late. NO LATE HOMEWORK WILL BE ACCEPTED. If you will be absent the day of (or the days prior to) the due date, turn the homework in early. Plan ahead. We do accept homework early. DO NOT WAIT UNTIL THE LAST MINUTE!
1. Place your name on your assignment.
2. Write the name of your lab partner on the assignment.
3. Place your section number on your assignment.
4. Clearly state the problem set number and problem numbers on the assignment.
5. Staple all the pages of your assignment together.
6. Clearly number your problems. Answers that are not worthy of identification are not worthy of grading.
7. Show your work. Answers without calculation or reasoning will not be given credit.
8. Neatly draw a box about your answer. Answers that are not boxed will not be graded!
You will be working with a lab partner throughout this course. Naturally you will share results and your lab reports and notebooks will be strikingly similar. You are encouraged to work on problems with your partner or other classmates. However you must take responsibility to personally learn the material. Copying another person's work is plagiarism, and will be considered cheating. Remember that quizzes and the lab practical are taken individually.
Laboratory Practical
 |
The practical counts 10% of your grade. The Practical will be held during the last week of class. You will sign up for a 30 min time slot during the afternoon of your regularly scheduled lab period. You are permitted a calculator. Pin outs for op amps will be provided for you. The resistor code will be provided.
Attendance
Attendance is required at each scheduled lab period and at each scheduled lecture. We will take attendance at both the lectures and the labs. Your lab partner will thank you. If you are consistently late, those periods will be counted as an absence.
Excused Absences
Illness. From time to time we all get sick. We understand this. Please give me a doctor's excuse for my records; otherwise it will count as an unexcused absence.
Death in the family is a tragic loss. Let me know and we will work with you. Please give me a copy of the death announcement, obituary, a copy of the funeral service, or some other document with the date for our records.
Regardless of the reason for your absence, you will still be responsible for the material you missed. This includes homework, lab reports, lecture notes, etc. We need documentation to support your excused absence in case it is called into question.
Unexcused absence include: studying for exams, over sleeping, and working on the lab report or homework you are supposed to turn in.
Talk to us, we will try to work with you. My goal is to teach you electronics, not run a penal colony. Help me out.
Grading
The approximate grade breakdown follows
|
Component |
percentage |
|
Quizzes + Homework |
20 |
|
Notebook |
10 |
|
Lab practical |
10 |
|
Lab Reports |
50 |
|
Attendance |
10 |
Letter grades are assigned on the percentage scale: >90 A; 80-90 B; 70-80 C; 60-70 D; <60 F.
The number one cause of poor grades is failure to complete the assignments.
Cheating
There is no cheating in Electronics Lab, but if it occurred, it would be punished according to University guidelines. See the student handbook under academic misconduct for a description of infractions and policies. While working together on problem sets is encouraged, simple rote copying of the homework solutions of other students is cheating. The work of both students will be handed over to Academic Misconduct Committee. Copying homework from solution manuals is cheating.
Students with Disabilities
Any student in this course who has a disability that may prevent him or her from fully demonstrating his or her abilities should contact me as soon as possible so we can discuss accommodations necessary to ensure full participation in this class.