Telecommunication Engineering

The course introduces the fundamental concepts for the characterization of electrical structures through circuit models. In summary, the course program is detailed as follows: 1. Introduction to electrical circuits [3 hours] 2. Circuit elements [12 hours] 3. Circuits without memory [15 hours] 4. Transient-state circuits [12 hours] 5. Network function and stability [6 hours] 6. Permanent circuits and energy balance [10 hours] 7. Magnetic circuits [2 hours]

No prerequisite is required but the following prerequisites are recommended. Element of Mathematical Analysis and Geometry: complex numbers, matrix and vector operations, linear equation systems, definite and indefinite integrals, Taylor series. Useful knowledge is represented by Fourier series, linear differential equations with constant coefficients. Physics elements: velocity, force, energy and power concepts.

[1] R. Perfetti, “Circuiti Elettrici”, Zanichelli, II ed. 2012. [2] M. Panella, A. Rizzi, “Esercizi di Elettrotecnica”, Esculapio, Roma, II ed., 2014. The recording of the lessons and any other material useful for learning are made available asynchronously on the Google ClassRoom portal of the course (https://classroom.google.com/u/1/c/Mzg5ODU1MTA4NzEz). Access code: vqj2pno.

Lessons are held mainly in classroom in a frontal way with sample exercises. Computers serve for demonstrating aspects of automatic circuit analysis and CAD of simple filters and for complex figures. During the lesson, students may be called to perform parts of the classroom exercises or are questioned, to verify the accumulated knowledge and the understanding of certain topics. The personal research on Web is solicited for program downloading and for finding up to date notices about recent devices and circuit applications. The course is based on well-proven textbooks and exercise books, useful even for more advanced courses, open competitions and job interviews. Additional material is available by Web download on particular topics. Course contents are tailored specifically for communication engineering, aiming to show the passage from the non-oriented physical modeling to the circuit (interconnected blocks) modeling, to the oriented (source-effect) modeling, characterized by transfer functions and state space representations. The extension of the electrical circuit theory with electro-mechanical and magnetic systems is detailed, as well as with a class of digital circuits arising from simulation and automated circuit analysis. All these applications are up-to-date, given the wealth of available sensors, requiring appropriate modeling and analog signal pre-conditioning. Classroom exercises detail typical application problems and show efficient solutions of written tests. The teaching method is the traditional one, in the classroom. By appointment, it is possible to arrange a reception in person or through Google Meet.

Attending the course is not mandatory, but it is warmly recommended. In particular, the analysis of circuits requires the sequential mental coordination of several mathematical procedures to achieve the goal, with the aim of efficiency and verifiability of results. It is recommended to follow classroom exercises and to solve proposed problems alternating the techniques, to achieve a sufficient agility of reasoning. The personal work on textbooks remains highly useful for a deep understanding of methods that in turn speed up the solution of application problems.

The evaluation of the preparation is conducted through an exam, consisting of a written test lasting two and a half hours. The test includes a part of exercises and a part with theoretical questions. The global evaluation derives from an average of the results of the two parts. To pass the exam, the candidate must obtain no less than 18/30 overall and no less than 8/30 in each of the two parts. Specifically, the practical part of the written exam consists in solving two problems with a method chosen by the student and is used to verify mastery of the basic techniques of circuit analysis (construction of solving systems and use of transforms) and the ability to organize an efficient multi-step procedure to obtain certain information from circuit analysis (e.g.: transfer functions, impulse responses and time behavior of particular quantities). The theoretical part of the written test is open-ended and has the function of verifying the understanding of the mathematical system and the main applications of the theory. Sufficiency is obtained by demonstrating a basic knowledge of the theory. The maximum score is obtained by demonstrating a secure mastery of the techniques, mental flexibility in reasoning and a significant ability to integrate the notions of the course with previous knowledge.

[1] R. Perfetti, “Circuiti Elettrici”, Zanichelli, II ed. 2012. [2] M. Panella, A. Rizzi, “Esercizi di Elettrotecnica”, Esculapio, Roma, II ed., 2014. [3] G. Rizzoni, “Elettrotecnica: Principi e applicazioni”, McGraw-Hill, III ed., 2013. [4] G. Martinelli, M. Salerno, “Elementi di Elettrotecnica”, voll. I e II, Siderea, Roma, 1996 (II ed.). [5] F. Piazza, “Esercizi di Elettrotecnica”, Ingegneria 2000, Roma, 1994.

Lessons are held mainly in classroom in a frontal way with sample exercises. Computers serve for demonstrating aspects of automatic circuit analysis and CAD of simple filters and for complex figures. During the lesson, students may be called to perform parts of the classroom exercises or are questioned, to verify the accumulated knowledge and the understanding of certain topics. The personal research on Web is solicited for program downloading and for finding up to date notices about recent devices and circuit applications. The course is based on well-proven textbooks and exercise books, useful even for more advanced courses, open competitions and job interviews. Additional material is available by Web download on particular topics. Course contents are tailored specifically for communication engineering, aiming to show the passage from the non-oriented physical modeling to the circuit (interconnected blocks) modeling, to the oriented (source-effect) modeling, characterized by transfer functions and state space representations. The extension of the electrical circuit theory with electro-mechanical and magnetic systems is detailed, as well as with a class of digital circuits arising from simulation and automated circuit analysis. All these applications are up-to-date, given the wealth of available sensors, requiring appropriate modeling and analog signal pre-conditioning. Classroom exercises detail typical application problems and show efficient solutions of written tests. The teaching method is the traditional one, in the classroom. By appointment, it is possible to arrange a reception in person or through Google Meet.