Digital Electronics Revision

Richard Harris
 Objectives

• To identify the key points from the lecture material

presented in the first section of this paper.
• What is in the examination and what is not…..

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 Presentation Outline

• Identifying the key points

• Summary on a lecture by lecture basis
• Supplementary material

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 Remember this!

• The Objectives slides in each lecture are:

– intended as a guide to the things that you should be able to do
as a result of
• participating in the lecture and
• reading the suggested reference material
– (Remember that merely sitting in a lecture doesn’t produce
learning, its an active process!)
• For each of the tutorial sheets there is also a summary
of the important points from each of the lectures.
• Use these two things to guide you in your studies.
• Use the tutors from the labs to help clarify points –
that’s what they are paid to do!

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 Lecture 01

• Topics
– Characteristics of analogue and digital signals
– Digital circuit states: on / off, high / low, open / closed
– Representation of information: numbers, Gray code, ASCII
– Digital circuits: AND, OR, NOT, NAND, NOR gates
– Truth tables
• Key Points
– Understand the important differences between analogue and digital signals.
– Know how to represent more than two levels using digital signals.
– Be aware of different codes for representing numbers and letters: natural
binary, signed binary, twos complement, offset binary, Gray codes, ASCII
characters.
– Know how to convert between binary and base 10.
– Recognise the logic symbols for AND, OR, NOT, NAND and NOR gates.
– Be able to draw up a truth table to represent relationship between inputs and
outputs of a logic circuit.

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 Lecture 02

• Topics
– Diode Transistor Logic
– TTL
– Schottky TTL
– CMOS
– Tristate logic outputs
– Definitions:
• Noise margin,
• fanout
Timing: rise and fall times,
• propagation delay
Power dissipation
– Power supply decoupling

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 Lecture 02 (Contd)

• Key Points
– Know how diodes can be used to form logic gates (Diode
logic).
– Understand the need for introducing transistors in the output
(DTL and TTL).
– Understand why Schottky transistors improve the speed of
gates.
– Be familiar with the operating principles of CMOS logic gates.
– Know the definitions of noise margin, fanout, propagation
delay, rise and fall time.

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 Lecture 03

• Topics
– Theorems: AND, OR, NOT, commutation, absorption, association,
distribution, DeMorgan's theorems
– Completeness of NAND or NOR implementations
– Reducing a circuit to symbolic form
• Key Points
– Know the theorems of Boolean algebra
– Be able to use these to check if two digital circuits are equivalent.
– Know how to represent a logic function completely using either
NAND or NOR gates.
– Be able to analyse a circuit to give a symbolic representation.
– Understand how to interpret the symbolic representation of a logic
function.

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 Lecture 04

• Topics
– Representing a circuit from its truth table
– Minterm and maxterm circuit representations
– Circuit simplification
– Addition / subtraction circuits
– Multiplexer / demultiplexer circuits
• Key Points
– Understand what is mean by the minterm (sum of product)
and maxterm (product of sum) representations of a logic
circuit.
– Know how to design a digital circuit from the truth table of its
function.
– Be familiar with adder and multiplexer circuits.
Semester 2 - 2006 Digital Electronics Slide 9
 Lecture 05

• Topics
– Circuit minimisation
– Simplifications of 2, 3, and 4 variables
– Handling more than 4 variables
– Handling don't cares
• Key Points
– Be able translate the information represented on a truth table
into a Karnaugh map and vice versa.
– Know how to use a Karnaugh map to simplify expressions
containing 2, 3 and 4 variables.
– Understand how to use a Karnaugh map to simplify
expressions containing 5 and 6 variables.
– Be able to simplify expressions with don't care states.
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 Lecture 06

• Topics
– Race conditions
– Sequential circuits
– Hazards
– Sequential circuits and internal states
– Latches (NAND and NOR)
– Flipflops (JK and D)
– Removing hazards with synchronous circuits
• Key Points
– Realise the limitations of Boolean algebra and Karnaugh maps.
– Understand what is meant by the terms "hazard" and "race", and their causes
in logic circuits.
– Know the differences between combinatorial circuits and sequential circuits.
– Be able to draw truth tables for sequential circuits.
– Be familiar with D latches, RS latches, Toggle flip-flops, and JK flip-flops.
– Know how to use latches to create synchronous circuits.
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 Lecture 07

• Topics
– Shift registers and applications:
serial / parallel conversion; pseudo random binary sequences;
delays;
multipliers; memory register; counting
– Counter circuits: synchronous / asynchronous; up / down;
presettable
• Key Points
– Know how to construct shift registers and counters out of flip-flops.
– Be familiar with some of the applications of shift registers.
– Know the differences between a ripple counter, a ring counter, and a
synchronous counter.
– Be able to construct a synchronous counter for any modulus.

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 Lecture 08

• Topics
– State transition diagrams
– Automatic controllers
– Designing synchronous sequential circuits from state
transition diagrams
• Key Points
– Know what a state transition diagram is.
– Be able to analyse a sequential logic circuit, and draw the
corresponding state transition diagram.
– Be able to design synchronous finite state machines for
simple problems.

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 Lecture 09

• Topics
– One-hot state machines
– Multiplexer based state machines
– Asynchronous sequential circuits
• Key Points
– Understand what is meant by a one-hot state machine.
– Be able to design synchronous one-hot state machines for
simple problems.
– Know how to implement a state machine using multiplexers.
– Understand the differences between synchronous and
asynchronous state machine design.

Semester 2 - 2006 Digital Electronics Slide 14

 Lecture 10

• Topics
– Programmable logic arrays
– PLA, PAL, and ROM formats
– Programming languages for logic - CUPL
• Key Points
– Understand what is meant by programmable logic
– Be familiar with the differences between the 3 main programmable
architectures: PLA, PAL, and PROM
– Know how to use a PLA to implement an arbitrary logic function
– Know how to use a PLA to implement a synchronous finite state
machine
– Be familiar with the basics of CUPL – a simple hardware language
used to program PLAs.

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 Lecture 11

• Topics
– Memory as a bank of registers
– Memory types: static / dynamic, volatile / nonvolatile
– RAM, ROM, PROM, EPROM, EEPROM
– Flash memory
– Use of memory as a combinatorial circuit implementation
• Key Points
– Know how to select one register or memory location from among all that are
connected.
– Appreciate how tristate logic can simplify the design of memory circuits.
– Be able to describe what is meant by the following terms as they apply to
memory circuits:
address bus static dynamic
refresh volatile random access read only
– Understand how memory can be used to implement a combinatorial logic
block.

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 Lecture 12

• Topics
– Signal propagation along a wire
– Transmission line effects: characteristic impedance, reflection,
matching
– Need for repeaters: attenuation, dispersion
– Signal pickup in cables
• Key Points
– Understand the limitations caused by propagation delay along a
length of wire.
– Know the basic characteristics of transmission lines.
– Appreciate the need for impedance matching when sending signals
over any distance.
– Be aware of the causes of cross-talk and signal pickup in lines or
cables.

Semester 2 - 2006 Digital Electronics Slide 17

 Mid-semester test

• 50 minutes – BE ON TIME!
• Closed book examination conditions. (No notes, books
etc) Standard calculator might be useful.
• Will consist of short answers and requirements for
simple and brief explanations.
• Marks are an indication of how much time you should
spend on answering the question. Spend 5 times
longer answering a question worth 5 marks compared
with a question worth only one mark!

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 Last Year!

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 Last Year (Continued)

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 This year ☺?

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 Examinations - Final

• Examination is in two parts

• Each part has 4 questions
• You will be required to answer a total of 5 questions
• You must answer a minimum of two questions from
each part.
• The fifth question can come from any part.

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 Conclusions

• Good luck with all your examinations!

• See you next time.

Semester 2 - 2006 Digital Electronics Slide 23