Latest Module Specifications
Current Academic Year 2025 - 2026
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Description The aim of this module is to support the student to develop knowledge and skills relating to electricity and electronics through a combination of lectures and practical learning. No prior knowledge of electricity or electronics is assumed. The learning on the module includes lab-based activities, but it is an explicit aim of this module that with access to a selected set of suitable tools and components students would be able to undertake self-directed learning activities outside the lecture theatre and outside the lab. This module will prepare the students who are going on to take more advanced electronic engineering modules with the necessary fundamentals. It also provides students entering other disciplines with a grounding in the technologies which enable the modern world. Topics include (i) an introduction to electricity and electrical concepts; (ii) an introduction to the concept of electrical resistance; (iii) fundamentals of direct current (DC) circuit analysis (e.g. Kirchhoff's laws); (iv) an introduction to components and their applications such as diodes, transistors, capacitors and inductors; (v) fundamentals of electromechanics. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Learning Outcomes 1. Measure current, voltage, resistance and power dissipated in a circuit 2. Wire up and debug circuits involving standard passive and active components on a breadboard according to a circuit diagram 3. Demonstrate a capacity to use electronic components, circuits and tools with due regard to the health and safety of themselves and others 4. Apply Coulomb’s Law to small sets of point charges 5. Identify the main circuit elements and draw a circuit diagram corresponding to a physical combination of standard electronic components 6. Apply Kirchhoff’s Laws to calculate currents, voltages and powers in typical DC electric circuits using a variety of analytical methods 7. Analyse simple circuits that include components studied within the module such as, resistors, capacitors, inductors and diodes 8. Describe the operation and I-V characteristics of a diode and a transistor | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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All module information is indicative and subject to change. For further information,students are advised to refer to the University's Marks and Standards and Programme Specific Regulations at: http://www.dcu.ie/registry/examinations/index.shtml |
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Indicative Content and Learning Activities
Teaching & Learning Strategies/Assessment Methodology This module is delivered via a combination of lectures and practical sessions in an integrated manner. The lectures and laboratories between them provide opportunities to explore the behaviour of components and systems through both applied observations and fundamental theory. The laboratory kit used by students allows work to take place in timetabled laboratories with academic guidance and also for self-study to support a range of student abilities and interests. Continuous assessments throughout the semester provide students feedback in their progress against the learning outcomes over the module, covering topics based upon content from that period. The class test and end-of-module written exam evaluate the extent to which understanding achieved by the students can be used to design and analyse simple electronic circuits/devices and fundamental engineering science with underpins their operation. Indicative Syllabus: Laboratory Basic electronic components and their use in circuits: resistors, LEDs, potentiometers, transistors, switches, relays, 555 timers, breadboard; Standard electronics tools and their safe usage; Reading circuit diagrams to construct circuits; Measuring electrical signals. Indicative Syllabus: Lecture Fundamentals of electricity and electric circuits. Voltage, current and resistance. Series and parallel circuits. Electrostatics. Capacitors. Kirchhoff's Laws. Semiconductors, diodes and transistors. Circuit analysis techniques: mesh analysis, nodal analysis, superposition, Thévenin’s theorem. Magnetism and magnetic circuits. Inductors. Motors and generators. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Indicative Reading List Books:
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Other Resources None | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||