CSUSB PHYSICS 150 Introductory Electronics(Lab) Spring 2016
Timothy D. Usher, Ph.D.
Office: PS-113
Telephone: 537-5410
E-mail: tusher@csusb.edu
Physics Office: PS-216, Telephone: 537-5397
Web site http://physics.csusb.edu/~tusher
Office Hours: to be arranged. (I will try to have some office hours in the lab)
Required Text: 150
Laboratory Manual, provided free of charge.
Recommended books: "The Art of Electronics
(second edition)" by Paul Horowitz and Winfield Hill. This is
considered by many experimental physicists to the bible of practical
electronics.
Prerequisites: essentially none. Knowledge of trigonometry and
exponential functions should help
There are seventeen labs. Yes, Lab number 13 is missing… long story. We will not cover all the labs. We will cover one lab per lab meeting with some flex days. I expect everyone to complete through at least lab number 9 on op-amps.
Each lab consists of two parts. The first part is the entire lab write-up. In the second part, called the worksheets, the questions are separated out for convenience. You will just turn in the worksheets.
It is extremely important that you read each lab thoroughly before coming to lab, not just the worksheets, but the worksheets AND the lab write-up. The lab manual is considered to be a primary text for the course and material from the lab manual may very well be taken from the lab manual.
Always bring the manual, the appropriate worksheet (hard copy) and a calculator to the lab.
The laboratory worksheets are due at the end of the period. The labs are quite involved. You should work steadily. You can take breaks as you need. If you have extra time, you are encouraged to play after completing the required parts of the lab. You should resist the temptation to “chat”.
You will work in pairs, however, discussing electronics with other pairs is encouraged.
You may also confer with your lab instructor (me). You should leave the lab with a high degree of confidence that you got everything right.
Lab grades
The lab grades will reported to your lecture instructor as a percentage. It is up to your lecture instructor as to how they are to be used to determine your final grade for the course.
Troubleshooting is one of the most important skills you should acquire/build in this lab. You should develop a systematic troubleshooting approach.
Physics has a reputation of being difficult but this lab is designed so that a freshman will be able to succeed in the course. It should also be of interest to upperclassmen.
This is a small laboratory class which is taught by a tenured professor (me). Physics majors are strongly encouraged to talk with me about careers in science, academic advising, or other matters which may not be directly related to electronics.
Originally, funding to design this course came from the National Science Foundation (NSF). We believe that not only the technology used in teaching this course is new, but the position in the curriculum is new. The feedback from the first students was used extensively in revising the course. Your feedback will be greatly appreciated.
Helpful Tips
- Keep this handout!
- Honesty is expected. Dishonesty will be dealt with harshly. Anyone caught
cheating will receive a failing grade for the course!
- Be sure to ask questions. The only dumb question is the one left unasked.
- Easy to use software is available.
- A study room is available (Second floor of the Physical Sciences building
(this building, across from the water fountains). You may even, on occasion,
find a strange beast in there: a physics professor.
- Be sure to see me if you have any problems. We are all human and deserve to
be treated as such.
- If you have a concern about your grades be sure to speak with me before
taking any drastic measures.
- Many services are available at the University. See Bulletin for details.
And many more (See Bulletin!)
- You should strive for the big picture first before focusing on the details.
- YOU are ultimately the one who decides what this course will be
to you.
- Enjoyable; if you let yourself enjoy; removing all mental
blocks and negative attitudes.
- VALUABLE for a professional career
- Good Grade if you do the following:
- put in quality
time.
- do the assigned reading before
coming to class
- ask questions
- work/answer and understand
all of the problems/questions
- do well on your laboratory
work