ECEL 301- ECE Laboratory I Fall 2017

Instructor Information

Instructor: Dr. Christopher Peters

Office: Bossone 512
Phone: 215-895-6604
Office Hours: TBA
Email: cpeters@coe.drexel.edu

Course TAs
David Cinciruk, dac79@drexel.edu

Credits
2 credits, one hour lecture, two hours laboratory per week for one quarter

Prerequisites by Course
ECE 200, ECE 201

Prerequisites by Topic
Kirchhoffs voltage and current laws, mesh analysis of resistor networks, solutions of
systems of equations using matrices and determinants

Courses using this as prerequisite

ECEL 302

Overview

This is the first in a series of four departmental laboratory courses. The primary goal is
to give students a working knowledge of PSpice, a computer application useful to the
circuit and system designer and training in circuit breadboarding and circuit
experimental measurement technique. We will use analog passive and active electronic
circuits as the vehicle for learning the fundamentals of both these skills. Connections to
computer engineering will be highlighted as appropriate.

Supporting Web Sites

http://learning.drexel.edu

Course Goals
Introduce PSpice, industry standard CAD software for electronics (analog and digital)
and systems engineers. Use of this software will continue in ECE Labs II-IV as well as
other ECE courses
 Solve dc bias, dc sweep, ac sweep, and transient problems in MultiSim
Execute some simple circuit designs using these same concepts
Perform measurements on devices and circuits
Raise students capabilities in technical writing

Course Format
We have a one hour common lecture and a two hour lab period each week of the term.
In most cases pre-lab reading will be required outside of the regularly scheduled hours
for preparation. Lectures will be presented using PowerPoint slides. Copies of the
presentations will be placed on the course web site for review.

Content
Week 1: Ideal Op-Amp Model
Week 2: Non-Inverting Amplifier
Week 3: Summing Amplifier
Week 4: TBD
Week 5: TBD
Week 6: TBD
Week 7: TBD
Week 8: TBD
Week 9: TBD
Week 10: TBD

Expectations of Students and Staff

What is expected of you?
Mandatory attendance in lab lecture
Mandatory attendance in lab hours
o You can work in a group of 2
o You will write a group lab report with the shared data you collected with
your lab partner
o You will attend the lab section listed on your schedule
Your assignments will be turned in on time
You will maintain a bound lab notebook that will be turned in no later than
Friday of the last week of classes.

What is expected of us?

We will provide you with the materials and documentation needed to perform
the project
We will provide grade feedback on a timely basis. These grades will be available
on the course web site.

Grading Basis
 Lab Reports: The report for each experiment will receive a numerical grade out of 100
points. All lab reports are equally weighted. There are nine (9) reports this term.
Writing Assignments: Two (2) of your lab reports will be graded for writing style by your
TA. Each of these writing reports will receive a numerical grade out of 100 points.

Assignment Points
Lab Reports (9) 900
Writing Assignments (2) 200
Total 1100

All reports are due no later than one week after your scheduled lab meeting. Reports
that are late will lose 50% in value per week until two weeks have gone by, at which
time the report will not be accepted. All materials must be received by the first day of
finals week. After this time, they will not be accepted. It is not expected that there will
be a grade curve in this course.

Letter Grade Grade Points

A 90 -100
B 80 - 89
C 70 - 79
D 60 - 69
F 0 - 59

Lab Report Submission

Lab reports are due at the beginning of the next lab session after you perform a laboratory.
You need to submit the lab report in printed form.

Students Needing Accommodations

Students have the right to receive accommodations if they have registered with the
Drexel Office of Disability Services (215 Creese Student Center, 215-895-2506/7) and
have submitted an Accommodation Verification letter to their professor. You should
arrange a meeting with your professor privately during office hours to discuss your
needs.

Course Cheating Policy

Cheating is taken very seriously in this class. The ECE Department applies the University
Policy on Academic Honesty. This policy is published in the Student Handbook. The
interpretation for this class is:
1. a first offense will result in zero for the assignment
 2. a second offense will result in failure of the course and the inclusion of a letter
describing your actions in your permanent Drexel transcript.
3. Any egregious action of cheating will be referred to the Committee on Academic
Honesty.

Some overall thoughts on cheating: This is the first class where you will be expected to
provide individual written reports for work performed in a team. As such, the bounds
can be confusing at first, and it is important that you ask questions as they arise so you
can learn the proper way to formulate a written technical document.

Some specific examples of cheating that were points of confusion in the past include:
1. You and your lab partner write the introduction / theory / conclusions portion
together and submit it individually. You may work together with your lab
partner, but you should be writing your own report based upon mutual concepts
and interpretations. The conclusions you draw may be similar, but the writing
itself must be your own.
2. Your lab experiment did not work, so you borrow the data/graph/figure from
another group and interpret it in your report. Instead, you should see the TA
about your issue and see what options are available (e.g using another lab
station, rewiring a circuit, getting an extension for hardware failure).
3. You have several friends in the course, and decide to take turns writing the
reports and pass them around to each other, then submit them as your own. This
sounds unbelievable, but has happened. Do not do this.

Please remember that if you are unsure if something is cheating, it probably is cheating.
If you are in doubt, see a TA and ask if what you are doing is ok.