ELEC 241 Lab

Chapter 1 Introduction

Welcome to the ELEC 241 Lab, the real world companion to the ELEC 241 lectures.

The Grand Plan

We have a number of lofty goals for this lab. Our ultimate goal is the transmission and processing of information and our vehicle for that information will be the signal. Along the way we will study how signals carry information, how they arise in circuits and systems, how to characterize them, and how they interact with the components that make up information systems. Finally we will give you a chance to do what engineers do: to put it all together in the design, construction, and analysis of an optical communication system.

Here's a diagram of such a system:

$\includegraphics[scale=0.330000]{system1.ps}$ From this picture we can see some of the types of components we will need: electroacoustic transducers to convert speech sounds to (and from) electrical signals, electrooptical transducers to convert electrical signals to (and from) optical signals, amplifiers to boost weak signals, and other signal processing functions to encode the signal into a form suitable for transmission and decode it when received. Another component is the medium (or channel) over which the optical signal is transmitted. This could be either an optical fiber or air.

All in all a formidable task, so we had best get down to work.

The Laboratory Schedule

Here's what we have to do:

Date	Laboratory
Sep. 8-10	Lab 1: Basic Electrical Measurements
Sep. 15-17	Lab 2: Signal Sources and Sinks
Sep. 22-24	Lab 3: Signal Processing I: Basic Circuits
Sep. 29-Oct. 4	Lab 4: Signal Processing II: Active Circuits
Oct. 6-8	Lab 5: Signal Analysis and Characterization
Oct. 13-15	Mid-term Recess
Oct. 20-22	Lab 6: Analog to Digital Conversion
Oct. 27-29	Lab 7: Digital Signal Processing I
Nov. 3-5	Lab 8: Digital Signal Processing II
Nov. 10-12	Lab 9: Optical Communications
Nov. 17-19	Lab 9 continued
Nov. 24-6	Thanksgiving Recess

The Lab Cycle

As you can see from the schedule, the Laboratory Experience will begin the second week of class and proceed in an unrelenting cycle until we reach Lab 9, the Culmination of our Efforts. Since there will be a new Lab every week (except for the week of Mid-term Recess) it behooves you to establish an effective rhythm as quickly as possible.

The cycle has the following phases:

Before Lab.: Before your come to lab, you should carefully read the lab handout, formulate a plan of action, and do any calculations, design, or construction that you can do before coming to lab.
During Lab.: In lab you will be wiring (and rewiring) circuits, making measurements, making sure you have answers to the questions posed in the lab handout, and writing it all down in your Lab Notebook. Your lab notebook is so important that it has a whole chapter to itself, so more about it later.
After Lab.: Lab work isn't over when you leave the lab. Instead of weekly formal lab reports you will be asked to summarize your work and answer a few questions. This will be done in your lab notebook.
Grading.: There will be one lab report required, describing the design and analysis of your optical communication system in Lab 9. You will also get a weekly lab grade based on your lab notebook. To give you time after lab to summarize your work, and to get your notebook back in time to prepare for the next lab, notebooks must be turned in for grading by noon on Monday.

Lab Groups

In lab (and outside lab as well) you will work in a team of two or three people. Since lab grades will be given on a per group basis, rather than individually, you should choose your fellow team member(s) with care. If possible, responsibilities should be shared among all members rather than one person always taking the same job. In particular, the task of making entries in the notebook during lab should alternate from week to week.