Courses

• ENG EC 416: Introduction to Digital Signal Processing
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: ENG EC 401.
  Introduces techniques of digital signal processing and application to deterministic as well as random signals. Topics include representation of discrete-time random signals, A/D conversion, D/A conversion, frequency domain and z-domain analysis of discrete-time signals and systems, discrete-time feedback systems, difference equation and FFT based realizations of digital filters, design of IIR Butterworth filters, window-based FIR filter design, digital filtering of random signals, FFT-based power spectrum analysis. Includes lab. 4 cr.
• ENG EC 417: Electric Energy Systems: Adapting to Renewable Resources
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: ENG EK 307.
  This course will present a detailed perspective of electric power systems from generation, transmission, storage, to distribution to end users. Significant emphasis will be placed on methodologies for reliable and efficient transmission and distribution of power over the grid including challenges for adapting to renewable resources such as photovoltaics and wind. Conventional approaches will be presented with emphasis to future technology such as the "smart grid". Analysis of 3-phase power will be presented using numerous examples. Items such as power system stability, security, reliability will be covered. Optimization methods, models, simulation techniques, monitoring and control, grid storage technologies, and micro-grids will also be discussed. Power electronics will be introduced specifically in reference to high voltage circuits. Finally, planning for large numbers of electric vehicles will present new challenges to the effective distribution of power which will be discussed from both centralized and decentralized approaches.
• ENG EC 440: Introduction to Operating Systems
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: ENG EC 327.
  Operating system concepts and design objectives. Concurrent processes, process synchronization, and deadlocks. Resource management including virtual memory, CPU scheduling, and secondary storage. File structures, input/output, and distributed systems. Case studies of popular operating systems. 4 cr.
• ENG EC 441: Introduction to Computer Networking
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: ENG EC 381 or ENG EK 381; And ENG EC 401
  Computer networks, focusing on the Internet. Application protocols (Web, E-mail), basics of socket programming, major Internet protocols (TCP and IP), fundamental aspects of routing and reliable data transfer over networks, medium access protocols, wired and wireless Local Area Networks (LANs) technologies. Hands-on laboratory modules on client-server programming, Internet experiments, and protocol implementation. Includes lab. 4 cr.
• ENG EC 444: Smart and Connected Systems
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: ENG EC 311 and ENG EC 327.
  Hands-on introductory course to cyber-physical and IoT systems. Microcontrollers: integrated development environments (ISEs), architecture, and I/O interfaces. Hardware interfacing of systems: formal design and specifications, real-time OS, programming, and control. IoT systems: smart phones, wireless personal area networks (WPANs), IP gateways, mobile cloud computing, reliability, security, and privacy. Course culminates with a team project.
• ENG EC 447: Software Design
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: ENGEC327
  Object-oriented software design for desktop applications with a graphical user interface. C# and Microsoft .NET programming assignments. Provides a solid foundation in modern programming for engineering and other applications. 4 cr
• ENG EC 450: Microprocessors
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: ENG EC 327.
  This course focuses on the interface between the digital world and the physical world. Hardware and software design methodology for embedded microcomputers. Open laboratory and projects and considerable hands-on work. Architecture, hardware, I/O, interrupts, memory organization and decoding. Uses the TI MSP430 family microcontrollers. Peripheral devices including general digital I/O, timers, analog to digital converters, and synchronous serial interfaces SPI and I2C. The course stresses the dependency of hardware and software design on project identification, rationale, and goals. Includes lab.
• ENG EC 451: Directed Study
  Student may, under the supervision of a faculty member, undertake individual study of a subject relevant to electrical, computer, and systems engineering, if the subject is not covered in a regularly scheduled course. Tangible evidence of achievement must be submitted at the end of the semester. Variable cr.
• ENG EC 455: Electromagnetic Systems I
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: CAS PY 212 and CAS MA 226.
  Time varying electric and magnetic fields. Maxwell equations. Electromagnetic waves. Propagation, reflection, and transmission. Remote sensing applications. Radio frequency coaxial cables, microwave waveguides, and optical fibers. Microwave sources and resonators. Antennas and radiation. Radio links, radar, and wireless communication systems. Electromagnetic effects in high-speed digital systems. Includes lab. 4 cr
• ENG EC 456: Electromagnetic Systems II
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: ENG EC 455.
  Electric field, energy, and force. Lorenz force. Dielectric materials. Steady electric currents. Magnetic field, energy, and force. Magnetic materials. Applications of electrostatics, magnetostatics, and electrodynamics. Electromagnetic waves in dielectric and conducting materials. Solution techniques for electromagnetic fields and waves. 4 cr
• ENG EC 463: Senior Design Project I
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: senior standing
  Development of the technical, communication, personal, and team skills needed for successful design in electrical and computer engineering. Specifications and standards, information collection, design strategies, modeling, computer-aided design, optimization, system design, failure and reliability, human factors. Oral and written communication of technical information. Team dynamics and ethical issues in design. Design project for a small-scale electrical or computer system. Preparation of detailed proposals for senior design projects in the following semester. Includes lab. 4 cr.
• ENG EC 464: Senior Design Project II
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: ENG EC 463.
  Continuation of a team project in an area of electrical and computer engineering, as proposed in SC 463. Application of technical, communication, personal, and team skills. Oral and written communication of technical information, including progress reports, technical memos, final report, and oral presentations. Includes lab. 4 cr.
• ENG EC 467: Senior Honors Thesis
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: senior standing and deparmental approval.
  Well-prepared students may choose to do a formal senior thesis under the direct guidance of a departmental faculty member. Students selecting this option must obtain petitioned approval before the beginning of the semester of thesis registration. 4 cr.
• ENG EC 470: Sensors in Space
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: CAS PY 212; equivalent or consent of instructor
  This course provides a practical introduction to the development, integration, and deployment of instrumentation on spacecraft platforms. Students are introduced to the physical concepts and practical designs of sensors that measure particles, magnetic fields, and electric fields over a range of energies and frequencies. Particular attention is given to special constraints presented by the space environment. In addition to established designs, the course will also cover new and emerging sensor technologies. The course includes a lab component in which students will learn about small satellite development through design and implementation of a high-altitude balloon ("balloon-sat") experiment. 4 cr.
• ENG EC 471: Physics of Semiconductor Devices
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: CAS PY 313 or CAS PY 354.
  This course addresses the theory of semiconductors and semiconductor electronic devices. The section on the theory of semiconductor includes their crystal structure, energy bands, and carrier concentration in thermal equilibrium as well as carrier transport phenomena (drift, diffusion, generation and recombination, tunneling, high field effects, and thermionic emission). The section on electronic devices addresses the theory of p-n junctions and heterojunctions, of Bipolar Junction Transistors (BJT), Thyristors, Metal Oxide Semiconductor (MOS) Capacitors and MOS Field Effect Transistors (MOSFETs). 4 cr
• ENG EC 481: Fundamentals of Nanomaterials and Nanotechnology
  Nanotechnology encompasses the understanding and manipulation of matter with at least one characteristic dimension measured in nanometers with novel size-dependent physical properties as a result. This course explores the electronic and optical properties of material at the nanoscale and applications of nano-scale devices. The parallels between light and electron confinement are emphasized, e.g. in terms of normal modes, resonances and resonators, and the dispersion of light and electrons as affected by the periodicity of crystals and photonics crystals. Wave-mechanics and electromagnetics are reviewed and used to understand confinement and energy quantization. Nano-devices such as carbon nanotube transistors, nano-resonators, nanocavity lasers, nano-biosensor and their applications are discussed. Fabrication using top-down and bottom-up methods are discussed, as well as characterization using scanning probe methods, electron microscopy, and spectroscopic techniques. 4 cr.
• ENG EC 500: Special Topics in Electrical and Computer Engineering
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: senior standing or consent of instructor.
  Specific prerequisites vary according to topic. Coverage of a specific topic in electrical, computer, or systems engineering. Subject varies from year to year and is generally from an area of current or emerging research.
• ENG EC 501: Dynamic System Theory
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: Familiarity with differential equations and matrices at the level of ENG EC 404 or CAS MA 242, or consent of instructor.
  Introduction to analytical concepts and examples of dynamic systems and control. Mathematical description and state space formation of dynamic systems; modeling, controllability, and observability. Eigenvector and transform analysis of linear systems including canonical forms. Performance specifications. State feedback: pole placement and the linear quadratic regulator. Introduction to MIMO design and system identification using computer tools and laboratory experiments. Same as ENG ME 501 and ENG SE 501. Students may not receive credit for both.
• ENG EC 503: Introduction to Learning from Data
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: ENG EK 381.
  This is an introductory course in statistical learning covering the basic theory, algorithms, and applications. This course will focus on the following major classes of supervised and unsupervised learning problems: classification, regression, density estimation, clustering, and dimensionality reduction. Generative and discriminative data models and associated learning algorithms of parametric and non-parametric varieties will be studied within both frequentist and Bayesian settings in a unified way. A variety of contemporary applications will be explored through homework assignments and a project.
• ENG EC 504: Advanced Data Structures
  Undergraduate Prerequisites: ENG EC 330.
  Review of basic data structures and Java syntax. Data abstraction and object-oriented design in the context of high-level languages and databases. Design implementation from the perspective of data structure efficiency and distributed control. Tailoring priority queues, balanced search trees, and graph algorithms to real-world problems, such as network routing, database management, and transaction processing.