Amplifiers

Floyd, T. L. (2012). Electronic Devices: Conventional Current Version (9th ed.). Upper Saddle River, N.J: Pearson Prentice Hall.

If you have already studied the subject D.C. Fundamentals or A.C. Fundamentals, then you already know how to use Floyd books. The layout of all Floyd books is uniform and very easy to learn. After reading the theory from the relevant chapter, you will be required to answer the questions in each section checkup. If you get stuck, Floyd has given you the answers to those questions online here. However, please do yourself a favour and do not rush to look them up straight away. Make sure that you read the theory first and that you have the underpinning knowledge to answer them properly. After all, you will not have access to a computer during the tests.

After reading each chapter familiarise yourself with its summary, all new key terms related to it and also make sure that you comprehend all new formulas. These are given at the end of each chapter. You will be provided with a formula sheet at the tests, so you do not need to memorize them. However, please make sure that you have used them at least once or twice and that you understand them. Floyd gives you plenty of solved examples in his book and so do I during my lectures and tutorials. In addition, you will find plenty of solved examples in my trial tests, given at the bottom of this page. The questions given to you in the real test will be very similar to those, which are solved for you in the trail tests. Hence, you have all the necessary information to obtain excellent results, if you are eager to learn. However, if you never had a look at the formula sheets during the semester, your chances of selecting the correct one during the test are very slim.

As part of your coursework you will be required to answer all the true/false quizzes, the circuit action quizzes and the self-tests. Please, attempt to solve the problems, given at the end of each chapter, you study. The answers to all odd-numbered problems are given at the end of the Floyd book. You will find many other useful online resources on Pearson’s website here. These include objectives, multiple choice questions, true/false questions, fill-in-the blanks, tech tips and a summary for each chapter. What is best of all, you can submit your answers for an instant grading, so you can check your improvement online.

Floyd also offers many practical circuits for troubleshooting via the electronic laboratory simulation software, called ‘Multisim’. The software is installed on all computers in room UL05 in the Beaconsfield campus of the Challenger Institute of Technology. Troubleshooting some of those circuits will form part of of your practical work.

For Amplifiers you need to study the following chapters from Floyd’s book:

Chapter 1. Introduction to Electronics.

Chapter 2. Diodes and Applications (excluding sections 2-6, 2-7 and 2-8).

Chapter 4. Bipolar Junction Transistors (excluding section 4-6).

Chapter 5. Transistor Bias Circuits.

Chapter 6. BJT Amplifiers.

Chapter 7. Power Amplifiers.

GreenTech sections are not studied in this course. Most of the application activities are also not included. For further information, please ask your lecturer. Since you have passed D.C. Fundamentals, you already know what to bring in class and what to do in order to achieve competency in a quick and efficient manner. Those of you who have already studied the subject D.C. Fundamentals with us for one semester should know the information given in the links below. Those of you, who have this subject RPL-ed (recognition for prior learning), and now attend classes for the first time, need to read it very carefully.

For a list of things to bring every time you come to class, please click here.

For a list of things you need to do, in order to pass a subject in a quick and efficient manner, please click here:

The setup is pretty much the same, as it is for the other subjects. The only difference is that you will perform your measurements with simulated components, oscilloscopes and function generators, using Multisim software. You will need to sit two written tests: one at the end of the term, and the other at the end of the semester. There are two re-test weeks, which you can take off, provided you have successfully completed everything on time, including, of course, all your simulated troubleshooting exercises and all your coursework.

To facilitate your preparations for the tests, I have created two trial tests in a similar fashion to your D.C. and A.C. Fundamentals subjects. If you carefully examine all questions and you genuinely understand how to solve them independently, you will have no trouble on the actual tests at all. Please note, that the trial tests given here contain a variety of different problems. In real tests you will be required to solve only about a third of the questions, presented here.

To prepare successfully for the test, please download the relevant test, print it and try your best to answer all the questions in the blank spaces provided. Then download the solutions, print it and compare your work with the given answers. Try to mark yourself objectively. It is pointless to give yourself marks, which you don’t deserve, just to make yourself feel better. At the end of the day, you should really understand the content of the subject and that’s all that matters. If you achieve this, then passing the real test will be not a problem at all. Your answers should be pretty much identical to the given solutions. When solving electrical problems, always label the circuits first, then write the formula, substitute with numbers, calculate the result and specify the measurement units. If you have many incorrect answers in the first attempt, then print the trial test again and start over. Please, do this until you reach satisfactory results. Only then you are done.