Overview: The aim of this course is to analyze the properties of submicron scale electronic devices with an emphasis on current flow. This topic has become increasingly relevant as advances in fabrication technology make it possible to engineer devices with near atomic dimensions, and limitations in standard device technologies impact the semiconductor industry’s need for increased integration densities. We will provide a general method to calculate the conductance from a microscopic viewpoint and discuss electronic phenomena observed at reduced device dimensions, including quantized conductance, tunneling and Coulomb charging. Finally, several advanced device concepts based on these principles are discussed. more info...

ECE 600 - VLSI Fabrication Technology

Overview: The microelectronics revolution has been driven by a continuous decrease in transistor size with a corresponding increase in device performance. The relentless pace of miniturization has resulted in the development and refinement of a sophisticated array of fabrication and process techniques for micron-scale devices. This course will provide an overview of these techniques, and their application to integrated circuit manufacturing. The course will go on to describe process integration in the fabrication of important discrete devices (CMOS, GaAs FETs, and Silicon Bipolar transistors) as well as integrated circuits. The course is complementary to ECE 543 Fundamentals of Microfabrication and MEMS, and will focus on techniques not normally covered in this course. more info...

ECE 542 - Physical Electronics

Overview: The goal of this course is to develop an understanding of the physical mechanisms governing semiconductor device behavior. We will discuss the electronic properties of semiconductors, and how we can take advantage of these properties to create basic semiconductor device components (pn diodes, solar cells, bipolar transistors, and field effect transistors). A thorough appreciation of these concepts will provide a basis for further study in electronic circuit design, materials characterization, electrical measurements, and advanced device design and characterization. more info...

ECE 473 - Introduction to Electromagnetic Fields

Overview: The goal of this course is to introduce electromagnetic field theory—a description of the interactions between stationary and moving charged particles. The course describes basic electromagnetic theory and how it can be used to calculate useful electromagnetic properties for different charged systems. We will start by considering fixed charge in free space, and derive expressions for the electric field and electric potential for various charge distributions. This will be followed by a discussion of charge within electronic materials, and methods to calculate important electrical properties (such as resistance and capacitance) for different geometries and material systems. Finally we will introduce magnetic fields in free space, magnetic materials, magnetic forces and devices. Although every effort will be made to minimize complicated mathematics, the course does require some knowledge of vector algebra, vector calculus and non-Cartesian coordinate systems. A review will be presented. A thorough appreciation of electromagnetic field theory provides a basis for further study in electrodynamics which includes transmission lines, waveguides and antennas. The course is also useful for electronic and magnetic device design and characterization. more info...