Clock frequencies and data rates are increasing, driven by the high growth rate of internet traffic and computer processing power. For most electronic products, signal-integrity effects begin to be important at clock frequencies above about 100 MHz or rise times shorter than about 1 nsec. Interconnects — like circuit boards, cables and connectors — are not transparent. If you don’t design them correctly, signal integrity (SI), power integrity (PI) and electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) problems can ruin any product.
The Department of Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering is expanding its professional course offerings to include a new track in High-Speed Digital Engineering as part of our Professional Master of Science (MS) degree for students with bachelor’s degrees in electrical engineering.
Professors from CU Boulder’s faculty, local national labs and local industry will offer five core courses and numerous electives for a 10-course, 30-credit hour program to prepare students with the specialized knowledge required to be a successful high-speed design team member and be able to quickly and efficiently solve signal integrity, power integrity and EMC problems. This means having a firm grasp of the fundamental principles, hands on familiarity with the design tools, simulation tools, and measurement tools. The core curriculum will emphasize mastery of the industry established best design practices, best measurement practices and best analysis practices.
At this time, all courses are taught in person on the Boulder campus.