Circuits and Electronics 1: Basic Circuit Analysis

About this course

Want to learn about circuits and electronics, but unsure where to begin? Wondering how to make computers run faster or your mobile phone battery last longer? This free circuits course taught by edX CEO and MIT Professor Anant Agarwal and colleagues is for you.

This is the first of three online Circuits & Electronics courses offered by Professor Anant Agarwal and colleagues at MIT, and is taken by all MIT Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) majors.

Topics covered include: resistive elements and networks; circuit analysis methods including KVL, KCL and the node method; independent and dependent sources; linearity, superposition, Thevenin & Norton methods; digital abstraction, combinational gates; and MOSFET switches and small signal analysis. Design and lab exercises are also significant components of the course.

Weekly coursework includes interactive video sequences, readings from the textbook, homework, online laboratories, and optional tutorials. The course will also have a final exam.

This is a self-paced course, so there are no weekly deadlines. However, all assignments are due when the course ends.

What You Will Learn

How to design and analyze circuits using the node method, superposition, and the Thevenin method
How to employ lumped circuit models and abstraction to simplify circuit analysis
How to use intuition to solve circuits
Construction of simple digital gates using MOSFET transistors
Measurement of circuit variables using tools such as virtual oscilloscopes, virtual multimeters, and virtual signal generators

XSeries Program in Circuits and Electronics

Learn about electronic circuit techniques and applications

Circuits and Electronics 1: Basic Circuit Analysis

Circuits and Electronics 2: Amplification, Speed, and Delay

Circuits and Electronics 3: Applications

3 Courses in Program 4 months 7 - 9 hours per week

Complete Program $456.30

Program Details

Prerequisites

High school mathematical background of working with algebraic equations and basic calculus, and a high school physics background including the basics of electricity and magnetism.

Frequently asked questions

Where can I buy the textbook for this course?
You may purchase the physical textbook or its ebook from Elsevier. An online version of the book will also be accessible for free to students who upgrade to the verified certificate track in the course.

Will the text of the lectures be available?
Yes, transcripts of the video lectures in the course will be made available.

Do I need to watch the lectures live?
No, you can watch the lectures at your leisure.

I don ‘t have the prerequisites, can I still take the course?
We do not check students for prerequisites, so you are certainly allowed to try. However, the course does rely on previous experience on the topics listed as prerequisites. If you do not know these subjects before taking the course, you will have to learn them in parallel with the new material.

Who can take this course?

Unfortunately, learners from one or more of the following countries or regions will not be able to register for this course: Iran, Cuba and the Crimea region of Ukraine. While edX has sought licenses from the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) to offer our courses to learners in these countries and regions, the licenses we have received are not broad enough to allow us to offer this course in all locations. EdX truly regrets that U.S. sanctions prevent us from offering all of our courses to everyone, no matter where they live.

Meet Your Instructors

Anant Agarwal

CEO and Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, MIT at edX

CEO of edX and Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT. His research focus is in parallel computer architectures and cloud software systems, and he is a founder of several successful startups, including Tilera, a company that produces scalable multicore processors. Prof. Anant won the Maurice Wilkes prize for computer architecture, and MIT's Smullin and Jamieson prizes for teaching. He is also the 2016 recipient of the Harold W. McGraw, Jr. Prize for Higher Education, which recognized his work in advancing the MOOC movement. Additionally, he is a recipient of the Padma Shri award from the President of India and was named the Yidan Prize for Education Development Laureate in 2018. He holds a Guinness World Record for the largest microphone array, and is an author of the textbook "Foundations of Analog and Digital Electronic Circuits."

Gerald Sussman

Professor, Electrical Engineering at MIT

Professor of Electrical Engineering at MIT. He is a well known educator in the computer science community, perhaps best known as the author of "Structure and Interpretation of Computer Programs," which is universally acknowledged as one of the top ten textbooks in computer science, and as the creator of Scheme, a popular teaching language. His research spans a range of topics, from artificial intelligence, to physics and chaotic systems, to supercomputer design.

Piotr Mitros

Former Chief Scientist at edX

Chief Scientist of edX and Research Scientist at MIT. His research focus is in finding ways to apply techniques from control systems to optimizing the learning process. He has worked as an analog designer at Texas Instruments, Talking Lights, and most recently, designed the analog front end for a novel medical imaging modality for Rhythmia Medical.

Chris Terman

Senior Lecturer, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT

A Senior Lecturer in the MIT Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Chris has been an award-winning lecturer for this course on campus since 1995. He has four decades of experience as a teacher, digital systems designer and courseware developer. Chris’ recent research is focused on educational technologies for teaching design skills.

Bonnie Lam

Graduate student, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT

Graduate student in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT. Her research interests are digital design methodologies for low-power applications, and she is currently studying low-power techniques for ultrasound imaging. She received her Bachelor of Applied Science (B.A.Sc.) degree in Engineering Physics (Electrical Engineering Option) at the University of British Columbia in 2008 and her Masters of Science (S.M.) degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2010.

Testimonials

Brilliant course! It’s definitely the best introduction to electronics in Universe! Interesting material, clean explanations, well prepared quizzes, challenging homeworks and fun labs

Ilya

6.002x will be a classic in the field of online learning. It combines Prof. Agarwal’s enthusiasm for electronics and education. The online circuit design program works very well. The material is difficult. I took the knowledge from the class and built an electronic cat feeder.

Stan

Brilliant course! It’s definitely the best introduction to electronics in Universe! Interesting material, clean explanations, well prepared quizzes, challenging homeworks and fun labs

Ilya

6.002x will be a classic in the field of online learning. It combines Prof. Agarwal’s enthusiasm for electronics and education. The online circuit design program works very well. The material is difficult. I took the knowledge from the class and built an electronic cat feeder.

Stan

Circuits and Electronics 1: Basic Circuit Analysis

Scheduled Start:

About this course

What You Will Learn

XSeries Program in Circuits and Electronics

Prerequisites

Frequently asked questions