Last modified: 25 Mar 2016 11:32
iPods are excellent, but they’re expensive, so why not take this course, in which you will learn the basic electronics skills required to make an iPod? In electronics you will go from building simple circuits to designing complex logical architectures.
The optics half of the course explores various fascinating optical phenomena, some of which are practically applicable for geologists and many other scientific disciplines. The practicals elegantly demonstrate the fundamental properties of light.
Oh, and did I mention the course is 100% continuously assessed?
| Study Type | Undergraduate | Level | 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Term | Second Term | Credit Points | 15 credits (7.5 ECTS credits) |
| Campus | None. | Sustained Study | No |
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The electronics begins at the level of specifying the behaviour of the basic logic gates and the construction on a breadboard of simple circuits from circuit diagrams, covers Boolean algebra and ends with using Karnaugh maps to develop fairly complex circuits from a set of desired behaviours.
The optics covers: interference effects, such as using Newton's rings to determine the radius of curvature of a lens and then the refractive index of water; polarisation, including optical activity and Brewster's angle; the function of lens systems, from finding focal to length to determining the six cardinal points of a telephoto lens; and laser diffraction from various different gratings and objects.
The optics experiments include a number of places where digital photographs are taken of an optical effect (the ring system for a lens on an optical flat, the Peacock's eyes from the aser beam) and used, particularly in the former case, to make measurements.
Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.
1st Attempt: In-course assessment (60%) and assessment of laboratory reports (40%)
The demonstrators assess lab performance. Students keep a lab manual, which is submitted at the end of the week and returned at the beginning of the next lab session, with a mark and brief comments from the demonstrators.
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