Fundemental Engineering

Chapter 2: Engineering Probability and Statistics

• Measures of Central Tendencies and Dispersions: Mean, median, mode, variance, and standard deviation.
• Probability Distributions: Overview of normal, binomial, and conditional probabilities.
• Expected Value: Understanding weighted averages.
• Laws of Probability: Fundamental laws and set operations.
• Combinatorics: Permutations and combinations.
• Propagation of Error: Managing uncertainties in calculations.
• Linear Regression and Goodness of Fit: Analyzing data trends and model accuracy.
• Hypothesis Testing and Confidence Intervals: Making inferences from sample data.
• Statistical Quality Control: Ensuring product and process quality.

Chapter 3: Ethics and Professional Practice

• Codes of Ethics: Reviews ethical principles for engineers, focusing on integrity and professionalism as outlined by the NCEES.
• Intellectual Property: Explains the basics of copyrights, patents, trademarks, and trade secrets in engineering.
• Safety: Highlights workplace safety practices to protect engineers and the public.

Chapter 4: Engineering Economics

• Time Value of Money: Explains how the value of money changes over time, covering basics like present value and future value.
• Cost Estimation: Breaks down how to estimate costs for projects, including capital, operating, and maintenance costs.
• Risk Identification: Teaches how to spot and assess risks that could impact project success.
• Economic Analysis: Reviews methods like cost-benefit analysis and break-even analysis to evaluate project options.

Chapter 5: Properties of Electrical Materials

• Semiconductor Materials: Covers tunneling, diffusion/drift current, energy bands, doping, and p-n junction theory, essential for understanding diodes and transistors.
• Electrical Properties: Reviews conductivity, resistivity, permittivity, magnetic permeability, and noise, and how they affect electrical circuits.
• Thermal Properties: Explains thermal conductivity and thermal expansion, important for heat management in electronic systems.

Chapter 6: Circuit Analysis (DC and AC Steady State)

• Kirchhoff's Laws (KCL and KVL): Understanding current and voltage relationships in circuits.
• Series and Parallel Equivalent Circuits: Techniques for simplifying circuit analysis.
• Thevenin and Norton Theorems: Methods to reduce complex circuits to simpler equivalents.
• Node and Loop Analysis: Systematic approaches for circuit analysis using nodal and mesh techniques.
• Waveform Analysis: Key characteristics like RMS values, averages, frequency, phase, and wavelength.
• Phasors and Impedance: Representation of AC signals with phasors and calculating impedance.

Chapter 7: Linear Systems

• Frequency/Transient Response: Analyzing how systems respond to different frequencies and how they behave over time during transients.
• Resonance: Understanding the conditions under which systems oscillate at maximum amplitude and its impact on engineering systems.
• Laplace Transforms: Using Laplace transforms to simplify the analysis of linear time-invariant systems, particularly for solving differential equations.
• Transfer Functions: Deriving transfer functions to describe the input-output relationship of systems, including the analysis of RC and RL transients.

Chapter 8: Signal Processing

• Sampling: Understanding aliasing and the Nyquist theorem (refer to page 225 for details).
• Analog Filters: Explains filter circuits used to process continuous signals (pages 225-377).
• Digital Filters: Introduction to difference equations and Z-transforms (pages 225-377) for digital signal processing.
• Analog-to-Digital Conversion: Grasping essentials of analog-to-digital conversion.
• Convolution, Pulse-Amplitude Modulation (PAM), and Pulse-Code Modulation (PCM): Key signal processing concepts.

Chapter 9: Electronics

• Discrete Devices: Models, biasing, and performance of diodes, transistors, and thyristors (solid-state electronics).
• Amplifiers: Analysis of single-stage/common emitter amplifiers and differential amplifiers (pages 382-383).
• Operational Amplifiers: Overview of ideal and non-ideal operational amplifiers and their applications.
• Instrumentation: Focus on measurements, data acquisition, and transducers (page 220).
• Power Electronics: Discussion on rectifiers, inverters, and converters.

Chapter 10: Power Systems

• Power Theory: Exploring power factor, single-phase and three-phase systems, and voltage regulation.
• Transmission and Distribution: Understanding real and reactive power losses, system efficiency, voltage drop, and delta vs. wye connections.
• Transformers: Detailed coverage of single-phase and three-phase transformers, including reflected impedance and connection methods.
• Motors and Generators: Overview of synchronous, induction, and DC motors and generators, including their operating principles and applications.

Chapter 11: Electromagnetics

This Chapter covers:

• Electrostatics and Magnetostatics: Understanding spatial relationships and vector analysis, covering electric and magnetic fields, voltage, and resistivity.
• Electrodynamics: Exploring Maxwell's equations and wave propagation, fundamental to understanding the behavior of electromagnetic fields.
• Transmission Lines: Focus on high-frequency transmission lines and the analysis of lossless transmission lines, which is essential for power and communication systems.

Chapter 12: Control Systems

• Block Diagrams: Explanation of feedforward and feedback control systems, along with block diagram reduction techniques.
• Bode Plots: Understanding frequency response analysis using Bode plots to evaluate system stability and performance.
• Open-Loop and Closed-Loop Response: Detailed discussion on the differences between open-loop and closed-loop systems, including stability considerations.
• Controller Performance: Focus on critical performance metrics such as steady-state errors, settling time, and overshoot, providing insight into system behavior and tuning.

Chapter 13: Communications

• Modulation and Demodulation Concepts: Overview of amplitude modulation (AM), frequency modulation (FM), and pulse-code modulation (PCM), including how signals are modulated and demodulated for transmission and reception.
• Fourier Transforms/Fourier Series: Understanding how signals are transformed between the time and frequency domains using Fourier transforms and series, crucial for analyzing and synthesizing signals.
• Multiplexing Techniques: Explanation of various multiplexing methods such as time-division multiplexing (TDM), frequency-division multiplexing (FDM), and code-division multiplexing (CDM), which are essential for efficient communication systems.
• Digital Communications: An introduction to digital communication principles, error coding, and how digital signals are processed for reliable data transmission.

Chapter 14: Computer Networks

• Routing and Switching: Overview of network routing protocols and switching techniques used to direct data across various networks.
• Network Topologies: Explanation of common topologies such as mesh, ring, and star, highlighting their advantages and applications.
• Network Types: A look at different network types, including Local Area Networks (LAN), Wide Area Networks (WAN), and the internet, emphasizing their use cases.
• Network Models: An in-depth discussion on the OSI and TCP/IP models, focusing on how data is transmitted across different layers.
• Network Intrusion Detection and Prevention: Introduction to firewalls, endpoint detection, and network intrusion prevention tools for safeguarding networks.
• Security: Detailed focus on network security methodologies, including port scanning, network vulnerability testing, and penetration testing.