The Tao of Microelectronics / Edition 1

by Yumin Zhang

Overview

Microelectronics is a challenging course to many undergraduate students and is often described as very messy. Before taking this course, all the students have learned circuit analysis, where basically all the problems can be solved by applying Kirchhoff's laws. In addition, most engineering students have also learned engineering mechanics: statics and dynamics, where Newton's laws and related principles can be applied in solving all the problems. However, microelectronics is not as clean as these courses. There are hundreds of equations for different circuits, and it is impossible to remember which equation should be applied to which circuit. One of the common pitfalls in learning this course is over-focusing at the equation level and ignoring the ideas (Tao) behind it. Unfortunately, these ideas are not summarized and emphasized in most microelectronics textbooks, though they cover various electronic circuits comprehensively. Therefore, most undergraduate students feel at a loss when they start to learn this topic. This book tries to illustrate the major ideas and the basic analysis techniques, so that students can derive the right equations easily when facing an electronic circuit.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781627054522
Publisher:	Morgan and Claypool Publishers
Publication date:	12/01/2014
Series:	Iop Concise Physics: A Morgan & Claypool Publication
Pages:	118
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 10.00(h) x 0.00(d)

About the Author

Yumin Zhang is an associate professor in the Department of Physics and Engineering Physics, Southeast Missouri State University. His academic career started in China; in 1989 he obtained a master’s degree in physics from Zhejiang University and then was employed as technical staff in the Institute of Semiconductors, Chinese Academy of Sciences. After receiving a PhD degree in electrical engineering from the University of Minnesota in 2000, he started to work as a faculty member at the University of Wisconsin–Platteville and then at Oklahoma State University–Stillwater. His research fields include semiconductor devices and electronic circuits. Since joining Southeast Missouri State University in 2007, he has also investigated in the field of Physics and Engineering Education. In addition, he is very interested in teaching Chinese to non-native speakers and has written a book on this topic: Roots and Branches: a Systematic Way of Learning Chinese Characters.