Digital Systems

This course introduces the following aspects in digital design:

• combinational digital systems,

• sequential systems,

• complex combinatial and sequential building blocks

• reconfigurable hardware and complex digital systems.

• Design and verification, using espresso, QuestaSim and Quartus II tools, with VHDL or Verilog hardware description languages.

All the important aspects of digital design will be discussed:

• number systems,

• Boolean algebra,

• combinational logic,

• Two-level and multilevel networks and reduction techniques/design tools,

• timing hazards,

• Moore/Mealy machines,

• Finite State Machines (FSM) and more.

The lab starts with the realization of simple circuits and will end with complex systems realized on an FPGA.

• Multiple-choice exam and successful completion of the lab assignments.

• Weekly online tests (5x) that can lead to 10% of the final grade. This rule does not apply for resits.

There will be two trial exam for formative assessment. Each trial exam consists of 10 multi-choice questions. So students and the lecturer can assess the progress.

There are two requirements for students to pass the course:

• Obligatory Lab: Students must successfully complete the lab. Only successful completions are registered.

• Written Exam: Students must take a written exam comprising at least 20 multiple-choice questions and achieve a passing grade of 6 or higher (considering 90% for the final exam and 10% for the weekly quizzes).

Permitted Materials during Test: Book and lecture slides, excluding old exams and tests.

Resit and Repair

• Each year, you have two opportunities to take the exam: the regular exam in the same quarter and a resit in the subsequent quarter. This follows the exam regulations, which also define the validity duration of the exam results.

• If you do not complete the lab assignments on time, there will be an extra lab session to finish the assignments.

Online Quizzes

• To motivate you to study consistently throughout the quarter, an online test system via Brightspace is set up with up to 5 quizzes, each containing 4 multiple-choice questions. The questions are made available online in sets of 4 over a period of 5 weeks, covering material from the preceding weeks. These weekly quizzes contribute 10% to the final grade. Note that this online test result will only count for the first upcoming exam in the same quarter and will not count for the resit or for exams in subsequent years.

Study Groups

• Interested and motivated students have the opportunity to interact more with the lecturer through study groups, which meet 5 times over 5 weeks. Registration is required to participate, as the number of seats is limited. A task for students in these study groups is to create multiple-choice questions that may be used in the upcoming online quizzes. After discussion and vetting by the lecturer, each group will select up to 4 questions for the weekly quizzes. Each student in the group will receive a pass for the questions selected in the meeting.

Disclaimer: information may change depending on unforeseen circumstances or measures (see: TER Art 29, sub 4).