ELEC ENG 7051 - Microelectronic Systems
North Terrace Campus - Semester 1 - 2014
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General Course Information
Course Details
Course Code ELEC ENG 7051 Course Microelectronic Systems Coordinating Unit School of Electrical & Electronic Engineering Term Semester 1 Level Postgraduate Coursework Location/s North Terrace Campus Units 3 Contact Up to 5 hours per week Assumed Knowledge Linear circuit analysis techniques, operation & characteristic of field effect transistor Assessment Written exam, test, computer labs, major project work Course Staff
Course Coordinator: Dr Said Al-Sarawi
Course Coordinator and Lecturer: Dr Said Al-Sarawi
Email:said.alsarawi@adelaide.edu.au
Office: Ingkarni Wardli 3.39
Phone:8313 4198Course Timetable
The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from .
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Learning Outcomes
Course Learning Outcomes
At the end of this course, students are expected to:
1. Understand the characteristics of CMOS technology and the process of CMOS fabrication to a sufficient level to appreciate the implications of layout and technology on circuit behaviour.
2. Be able to design digital logic gates at transistor schematic and layout level for implementation in CMOS technology.
3. Understand the parasitic effects and loading on CMOS circuit performance.
4. Understand contemporary CMOS design methodologies.
5. Be able to design leaf cells for standard-cell and full-custom projects.
6. Be able to estimate complementary CMOS circuit performance, size and noise margin.
7. Be able to minimise the delay of a combinatorial logic circuit implemented in complementary CMOS technology.
8. Be able to model the effect of interconnect upon a design and to apply strategies to mitigate problems arising from interconnect loading.
9. Be able to explain the function of CMOS memory circuits and design basic CMOS ROM and PLA circuits.
10. Understand factors that influence circuit reliability and be able to apply reasonable design margins.
11. Understand the effect of scaling on circuit behaviour and appreciate technology trends with respect to scaling.
12. Be able to design circuits using complementary CMOS, pseudo-nMOS, pass transistor, footed and footless domino logic families.
13. Understand the importance of system level considerations such as floor planning, power dissipation, clock skew and micro-architecture to system performance.
14. Appreciate current challenges in microelectronic circuit design.
15. Be aware of alternative process technologies, their benefits, drawbacks and potential applications.
16. Be able to use a set of software tools to specify, synthesise, layout and simulate microelectronic circuits.
17. Ability to work as part of a team to design a system moduleUniversity Graduate Attributes
This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:
University Graduate Attribute Course Learning Outcome(s) Knowledge and understanding of the content and techniques of a chosen discipline at advanced levels that are internationally recognised. 1-17 The ability to locate, analyse, evaluate and synthesise information from a wide variety of sources in a planned and timely manner. 4,6,7,13 An ability to apply effective, creative and innovative solutions, both independently and cooperatively, to current and future problems. 9,10,14,15 Skills of a high order in interpersonal understanding, teamwork and communication. 17 A proficiency in the appropriate use of contemporary technologies. 1,3,11,12 A commitment to continuous learning and the capacity to maintain intellectual curiosity throughout life. 2,5,8 -
Learning Resources
Required Resources
Textbook
Neil H. E. Weste & David Harris, “CMOS VLSI design: a circuits and systems perspective,” Addison Wesley, 3rd edition, 2004.
Reference Books:
Kang and Leblebici, “CMOS digital integrated circuits,” McGraw Hill, 3rd edition, 1998.
Rabaey, Chandrakasan & Nikolil, “Digital Integrated Circuits,” Prentice Hall, 2nd edition, 2003.
A set of course notes, practice problems and other supporting materials will also be available for downloading from the course web site.Online Learning
Extensive use will be made of the MyUni web site for this course,
Course notes, tutorial problems and solutions, laboratory exercises and practice problems will all be available for downloading from the web site. Where the lecture theatre facilities permit, audio or video recordings of lectures will also be available for downloading. -
Learning & Teaching Activities
Learning & Teaching Modes
This course relies on lectures as the primary delivery mechanism for the material. Tutorials supplement the lectures by providing exercises and example problems to enhance the understanding obtained through lectures. Practicals are used to provide hands-on experience for students to reinforce the theoretical concepts encountered in lectures. Continuous assessment activities provide the formative assessment opportunities for students to gauge their progress and understanding.
Workload
The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.
The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.
Activity Contact Hours Workload Hours Lecture 24 Lectures 24 48 Tutorials 5 Tutorials 5 10 Practicals Computer Lab 1 3 6 Computer Lab 2 3 8 Computer Lab 3 3 8 Computer Lab 4 6 24 Test Theory part of the course 1 6 Exam All Theory Part 3 30 48 140
Learning Activities Summary
Lectures Activity Session No. Week No of Lectures Introduction to the course and presentation of prac structure 1&2 1 2 Introduction to fabrication processes, design rules (revisted). Transistor models (revisited from third year electronics) and layout issues and ASIC design flow 2&3 2 2 VLSI design methodology and leaf cell design 4&5 3 2 Performance estimation of CMOS complex gates and interconnected modules using logical effort 6-13 4-7 8 Interconnect issues, clock distribution, design margin, reliability and scaling 14-17 8,9 4 Static and dynamic CMOS logic families and adders design 18,19,20 10,11 2 Memory structures and operation 21,22 11,12 2 Low power design and system level consideration 23-24 12 2 Tutorials Activity Sessions Week Topic Demonstrating the design of CMOS gates and transistor sizing 1 4 Tutorial 1 CMOS circuits layout and delay estimation 2 6 Tutorial 2 CMOS circuits delay estimation using logical effort 3 8 Tutorial 3 Delay path estimation using logical effort 4 10 Tutorial 4 Delay and crosstalk in interconnects 5 12 Tutorial 5
Note that practical classes begin in week 1 of the semester and run in odd weeks. Students must attend their allocated practical class, when further instructions on the operation of the laboratory session will be provided. Students should be aware of the Occupational Health and Safety issues associated with working in a laboratory environment. -
Assessment
The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:
- Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
- Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
- Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
- Assessment must maintain academic standards.
Assessment Summary
Assessment Summary Type Weighting Due Date Learning objective addressed Computer Lab 1 Diagnostic 2% Week 3 All Computer Lab 2 Diagnostic 3% Week 6 All Computer Lab 3 Diagnostic 5% Week 8 All Test Summative 10% Week 11 All Computer Lab 4 Summative 20% Week 12 All Exam Summative 60% Week 12 All Assessment Detail
The examination is a hurdle requirement. It is necessary to achieve at least 40% in the exam. If this is not achieved, the total course mark will be limited to a maximum of 49.
A hurdle requirement is defined by the University's Assessment for Coursework Programs policy as "...an assessment task mandating a minimum level of performance as a condition of passing the course.If a student fails to meet a hurdle requirement (normally no less than 40%),and is assigned a total mark for the course in the range of 45-49, then the student is entitled to an offer of additional assessment of some type. The type of assessment is to be decided by the School Assessment Review Committee when determining final results. The student’s final total mark will be entered at no more than 49% and the offer of an additional assessment will be specified eg. US01. Once the additional assessment has been completed, this mark will be included in the calculation of the total mark for the course and the better of the two results will apply. Note however that the maximum final result for a course in which a student has sat an additional assessment will be a “50 Pass”.
If a student is unable to meet a hurdle requirement related to an assessment piece (may be throughout semester or at semester’s end) due to medical or compassionate circumstances beyond their control, then the student is entitled to an offer of replacement assessment of some type. An interim result of RP will be entered for the student, and the student will be notified of the offer of a replacement assessment. Once the replacement assessment has been completed, the result of that assessment will be included in the calculation of the total mark for the course.An assessment of work done during the lab will be conducted at the end of each lab session.Submission
Submission will be through MyUni and information on the process will be provided for each assignment in due course.Course Grading
Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:
M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme) Grade Mark Description FNS Fail No Submission F 1-49 Fail P 50-64 Pass C 65-74 Credit D 75-84 Distinction HD 85-100 High Distinction CN Continuing NFE No Formal Examination RP Result Pending Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.
Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.
Final results for this course will be made available through .
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Student Feedback
The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.
SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.
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Student Support
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Policies & Guidelines
This section contains links to relevant assessment-related policies and guidelines - all university policies.
- Academic Credit Arrangements Policy
- Academic Integrity Policy
- Academic Progress by Coursework Students Policy
- Assessment for Coursework Programs Policy
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- Modified Arrangements for Coursework Assessment Policy
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- Student Experience of Learning and Teaching Policy
- Student Grievance Resolution Process
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