Course Syllabus: EE 397K Microwaves Devices; Unique Number 15110, Spring 2003

MICROWAVE DEVICES
fee: $96.00

• Lecture notes (made available as I write them!) .
• Project ideas and suggestions
• Homework .
  • none yet .
• Neat microwave related links (some of these are old and may not work; I'll add/update as we move through the semester):
  • tear-down of radar detectors .
  • cell phone tear-downs .
  • H-P Application Note 95-1: S-Parameter Techniques for Faster, More Accurate Network Design: Interactive Impedance Matching Model .
  • an excellent discussion of why electron tubes are supior to solid state devices in certain applications appears in R. S. Symons, "Tubes: Still vital after all these years," in IEEE Spectrum, vol. 35, 1998, pp. 53-63.

To schedule your "pre-talk" review (this is mandatory and should be done at least one week prior to your presentation!) see my schedule .

Course Syllabus EE 396K Microwaves Devices; Unique Number 15110
Spring, 2003; M-W 12:30-2:00, ENS 145
Instructor:  Dean P. Neikirk, office: ENS 635, phone 471-4669; MER 1.606C, 471-8549
e-mail:  neikirk@mail.utexas.edu
Office Hours:  M-W 2:00-3:00; other times by appointment; on the following days I have Faculty Council or Graduate Assembly meetings at 2pm: 1/27, 1/29, 2/3, 2/17, 3/3,  3/17, 3/26, 3/31, 4/14, 4/23, 4/28, 5/5
Class Web Page: http://weewave.mer.utexas.edu/DPN_files/courses/MicroWave_Devices/MicroWave_Dev.html 
Prerequisites: EE 325; EE 325K, EE 339, and EE 363M won't hurt, but are not required

Objectives: The intrinsic speed/frequency performance of semiconductor devices has increased dramatically in the last decade and a half.  For instance, today you can buy a MMIC (monolithic millimeter / microwave integrated circuit) amp with performance that ten years ago would probably have cost at least ten times more.  Due to the extremely rapid growth of the Personal Communications Services (PCS) industry, the demand for knowledge about rf circuits and microwave wireless systems has also increased dramatically.  Finally, as digital systems achieve speeds with GHz effective bandwidths, microwave issues have begun to influence even microprocessor design!

Course Outline:
i) Review of network formulations: Z, Y, S, H, ABCD parameters
- matching networks
- microwave measurement techniques
i) Basic physical processes that determine ultimate speed/frequency limitations in semiconductor devices; "classical" microwave devices that clearly illustrate these phenomena:
- Transferred electron devices (TEDs)
- transit time effects
ii) "Extrinsic" effects which often produce more severe limits than the "intrinsic" device physics.
- contact resistance, space charge resistance
- impact of finite conductivity; skin resistance
- causality and propagation delays
iii) Basic rf models and properties of MISFETs and MESFETs.

As a class goal, we will try to prove or disprove the following conjecture:
The physical world is fundamentally unfriendly towards complex (read: generally useful) electronic systems which operate at frequencies in excess of 100 GHz or speeds faster than 10 psec. I first proposed this in class nine years ago, and I’ve seen little since then to suggest we change this goal....

Class Projects:  You must complete a class project, which will , in the end, count for 50% of your grade.  The project will consist of the identification of a state-of-the art high frequency/speed SYSTEM, and a detailed, critical examination of relevant literature to identify what components limit the performance of this system.  A written paper with a preliminary review is due at mid-term, and counts for 20% of your grade (it will take the palce of a mid-term exam). You will then prepare a throuroughly referenced final paper on your findings, as well as presenting a DETAILED, ~20 minute, oral presentation to the class.  You will be expected to explain your findings in language we can all understand; I will not accept "conventional" explanations which consist primarily of fancy jargon.  Before making your class presentation expect to spend at least two hours with me, with a return visit to clarify any problems (and I guarantee I will find something to object to) identified in your first meeting with me.  Class presentations will probably begin in mid-April, but we may try and schedule two half days or one full day at the end of the semester for a “conference” to make all the presentations at once. Final written term papers and PowerPoint slides from your talk are due at the end of the semester, and will be compiled into a class web page.

Reference texts: P. Ladbrooke, MMIC Design: GaAs FETs and HEMTs. Norwood, MA: Artech House, Inc., 1989 (ISBN 0-89006-314-1); Microwave Semiconductor Devices, by Sigfrid Yngvesson, Kluwer Academic Publishers, 1991 (ISBN 0-7923-9156-X); S. M. Sze, “High-Speed Semiconductor Devices,” . New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1990 (ISBN 0-471-62307-5).
Other useful texts: G. Gonzalez, Microwave Transistor Amplifiers: Analysis and Design, second ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1997 (ISBN 0-13-254335-4); Physics of Semiconductor Devices editor S. M. Sze; Microwave Engineering, by D. Pozar, Addison-Wesley Publishing Co. (1990); Fields and Waves in Communication Electronics by S. Ramo, J. R. Whinnery, and T. Van Duzer.
 

Grades
Your grades will be based upon performance on homework, exams, and the class project.  Homework will be assigned periodically; credit for late homework will be reduced at a rate of 10% per class the work is late.
 

The weighting for different areas is:

Attendance             20%
Homework             10%
Mid term project paper        20%
Class project               30%
Final                                   20%
                                         100%

The worst-case grades will be based on:
A         100-90% of total points available
B         80-89%
C         70-79%
D         55-70%
F         0-55%

THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN PROVIDES UPON REQUEST APPROPRIATE ACADEMIC ADJUSTMENTS FOR QUALIFIED STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES.  FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT THE OFFICE OF THE DEAN OF STUDENTS AT 471-6259, 471-4641 TDD OR THE COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING DIRECTOR OF STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES AT 471-4382. PLEASE SEE http://www.utexas.edu/depts/dos/ssd/
OFFICIAL UNIVERSITY CALENDAR AVAILABLE AT: http://www.utexas.edu/student/registrar/02-03long.html 
LAST DAY OF ADDS/DROPS: 4TH DAY OF CLASSES (Jan. 16); LAST DAY TO ADD A COURSE: 12th class day (Jan. 29); LAST DAY TO DROP WITHOUT POSSIBLE ACADEMIC PENALTY: Feb. 10. Notice of planned absences for the observance of religious holy days must be submitted two weeks in advance of the date of the absences. (See http://www.utexas.edu/student/registrar/catalogs/gi01-02/ch4/ch4g.html#attend  , for requirements.)

Course Evaluation:  University and optional in-house survey during last week of class.

Policy on CHEATING:
You are expected to do your own work at ALL times.  I expect you will often discuss assignments, but you MUST do your own ORIGINAL written work.  Any evidence of cheating or plagiarism* will be treated as grounds for FAILURE in the class. 

The following is extracted from the document "On Being A Scientist: Responsible Conduct In Research" by the COMMITTEE ON SCIENCE, ENG, NATIONAL ACADEMY OF ENGINEERING, INSTITUTE OF MEDICINE, NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS, Washington, D.C. 1995. 

Copyright © 1994 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. This document may be reproduced solely for educational purposes without the written permission of the National Academy of Sciences.  Internet Access: This report is available on the National Academy of Sciences' Internet host. It may be accessed via World Wide Web at http://www.nas.edu/ .  As a case study, note the material below is enclosed in quotation marks, the URL’s locating the original material are given, and I have specifically secured NAS permission to reprint these passages in this syllabus.

*"A CASE OF PLAGIARISM
"May is a second-year graduate student preparing the written portion of her qualifying exam.  She incorporates whole sentences and paragraphs verbatim from several published papers.  She does not use quotation marks, but the sources are suggested by statements like '(see . . . for more details).'  The faculty on the qualifying exam committee note inconsistencies in the writing styles of different paragraphs of the text and check the sources, uncovering May's plagiarism.
"After discussion with the faculty, May's plagiarism is brought to the attention of the dean of the graduate school, whose responsibility it is to review such incidents.  The graduate school regulations state that 'plagiarism, that is, the failure in a dissertation, essay, or other written exercise to acknowledge ideas, research or language taken from others' is specifically prohibited.  The dean expels May from the program with the stipulation that she can reapply for the next academic year." [ URL: http://www.nap.edu/readingroom/books/obas/contents/misconduct.html - Plagiarism]

"A broad spectrum of misconduct falls into the category of plagiarism, ranging from obvious theft to uncredited paraphrasing that some might not consider dishonest at all.  In a lifetime of reading, theorizing, and experimenting, a person's work will inevitably incorporate and overlap with that of others.  However, occasional overlap is one thing; systematic use of the techniques, data, words, or ideas of others without appropriate acknowledgment is another."  [ URL: http://www.nap.edu/readingroom/books/obas/contents/appendix.html - Plagiarism]

THIS SCHEDULE IS WILL BE MODIFIED ONCE I SURVEY THE INTERESTS OF THE CLASS!
 

FINAL: THURS, May 8, 2:00-5:00