Lecturer: Rinaldo Castello  

Course name: Industrial topics in microelectronics
Course code: 505060
Degree course: Electronic Engineering
Disciplinary field of science: ING-INF/01
University credits: ECTS 3
Course website: n.d.

Specific course objectives

The course has two main objectives. First and foremost, it wants to provide the students an introduction to the industrial reality that exists near the University of Pavia in the area of Microelectronics. This is done through a series of seminars held by Design Managers of several Multinational Semiconductor Companies (about 8 of them) that have established themselves in the Pavia/Milano area. The goal is to present the Company profile and explain the opportunity offered to the students and expectations the company has toward them. The second objective is to present some advanced topics in Microelectronics emphasizing the practical designer approach that is typical of the industrial environment. This is done through a series of seminars given by the instructor.

Course programme

The course includes seminars from industrial managers and lectures from the instructor on advanced topics of relevance for industry.

Seminars from industrial Managers
Eight two hours seminars from Design Managers will be offered from the following companies: Huawey, TI, Maxim, AMS, STM, Marvell, IR and Micron

Lectures by the instructor
Intuitive explanation of the behavior o the MOS transistor including some second order effects with emphasis on the designer prospective. Comparison between MOS and Bipolar transistor operation. The design of a two stage MOS operational amplifier. Detailed discussion of the main target specifications and the circuit techniques used to achieve them. The designer prospective i.e. emphasis on the intuitive understanding of the operation of the various building blocks. Overview of alternative topologies of operational amplifier other than the classic two stage Miller compensated one. Intuitive explanation and discussion of the key features of each topology. Brief overview on push pull amplifier topologies.

Course entry requirements

none

Course structure and teaching

Lectures (hours/year in lecture theatre): 30
Practical class (hours/year in lecture theatre): 0
Practicals / Workshops (hours/year in lecture theatre): 0

Suggested reading materials

The adopted material is written in English and is made up of slides prepared by the instructor and available on the following web site http://www-3.unipv.it/microlab

Testing and exams

Written report on one of the topics presented to the students and a discussion of its content with the instructor.