Circuits and Electronics 1: Basic Circuit Analysis

This was a terrific class that teaches the fundamentals of circuit analysis, including resistors, capacitors, inductors and with a particular focus on MOSFET transistors and their applications to amplifier circuits and digital logic circuits.

The basic toolbox of analysis methods which are presented includes analysis of passive circuit elements in the time domain using the fundamental device current-voltage relationships for passive devices. This then allows for the analysis of resistive networks, resistor-capacitor circuits and finally RLC circuits as well, in the time domain. Here differential equations are used; Prof. Agarwal does give a primer on how to solve such equations, though, so students who have never seen ordinary differential equations need not be scared away outright by the mathematics required here. The online forum also carries much of the water of helping those who are struggling with the sophistication of the mathematics of this part.

After treating circuits in the time domain, the course moves into frequency domain analysis of circuits. This part was a lot of fun and many motivating examples of filter circuits were provided. Finally, the course tied everything together by introducing operational amplifiers and the analysis of op amp circuits in both the frequency and time domains.

One particular feature of this course that made it so enjoyable was the quality of the homework and exam problems. These were not trivial routine exercises, but rather required the students to go above and beyond what was taught in the lectures and really apply the concepts to new scenarios. Often the problems required creativity in order to find the way to the solution.

The course also featured weekly lab exercises, which were to be done on a virtual circuit 'sandbox' that was integrated into the course website. These were also a lot of fun. Some labs required students to build circuits to conform to certain design parameters(eg: design an active filter circuit with a specified frequency response) and others served to reinforce concepts introduced in the lectures(eg: examining the effect of a diode bridge on an AC signal).

Overall, I was immensely impressed with the quality of the course. Prof. Agarwal is a terrific lecturer and his enthusiasm is truly infectious, such that by the end of the course many students had adopted his catchphrases(one common one was to describe illuminating concepts as "A-HA! moments"). Online courses can often feel like watered-down versions of real life courses, but this was certainly not the case here. This was every bit as difficult and a hell of a lot more fun than any course I took while in university, and I'd recommend the course to ANYONE wishing to gain a solid grasp of circuit analysis.

I took this class in 2012 when it was available as a single course (all 3 parts combined) and was a prototype from MITx. That was the time when edX was not created, and it was created during the time this class was in session! So, I started this class as an MITx class and ended as edX/MITx class.

It is a great class! Taught by the MIT professor, who became the founder of edX! Prof. Agarwal is a very good teacher. This class is still available and is upgraded and divided into 3 parts. This class introduced me to Khan Academy, for reviewing certain pre-requisite in the differential equation. So, if you have the appropriate Math background, it is a great course for high schoolers.

The experience in this class hooked me on to MOOCs!

If you are interested in learning from Prof. Agarwal, this is the class to take! It is for anyone interested in learning about Circuits and Electronics. You will enjoy the class and exams are very challenging, so it will be a great celebration of learning! Enjoy!