Communications Systems and Lab

Course Description

Communications Systems and Lab examines principles and interrelationships of communication system components and circuits. Students explore signals, noise, modulation, demodulation, and bandwidth requirements, along with the design and operation of transmitters and receivers.

Within the SCNS taxonomy, EET is the Electronic Engineering Technology prefix and the C suffix marks a combined lecture-and-laboratory course. Daytona State publishes it at 4 credits with a $21.00 lab fee, offered spring, with EET3716 as prerequisite, giving approximately 80 contact hours at the prefix's four-credit C-form convention.

Noise is the organising idea of communications engineering, and it is what makes the subject harder than it first appears. Every design decision — modulation scheme, bandwidth, transmit power, receiver architecture — is ultimately a trade against noise, and the fundamental limits are physical rather than technological. A student who grasps signal-to-noise ratio as the governing constraint understands the field.

Daytona State does not publish a lecture and laboratory split for its EET courses. The prefix's C-suffixed courses cluster tightly at 20 contact hours per credit — EET1015C, EET1035C, EET1084C, EET1180C, EET1214C, EET1215C, EET1610C, EET2326C, EET2355C, EET2724C and EET3085C are all published at 3 credits and 60 hours, and EET1033C, EET1142C, EET2142C, EET2323C, EET2351C, EET3716C, EET4158C and EET4732C are all published at 4 credits and 80 hours.

Learning Outcomes

Required Outcomes

• Describe the elements of a communication system and their functions.
• Describe signals in the time and frequency domains and move between them.
• Apply Fourier concepts to signal spectra.
• Describe bandwidth and its relationship to information rate.
• Describe noise sources and their characteristics.
• Calculate and interpret signal-to-noise ratio.
• Describe noise figure and noise temperature.
• Describe amplitude modulation and demodulation.
• Analyse AM spectra, power distribution, and efficiency.
• Describe single-sideband and its advantages.
• Describe frequency and phase modulation and demodulation.
• Analyse FM spectra and bandwidth requirements.
• Compare modulation schemes and select for an application.
• Describe digital modulation schemes and their characteristics.
• Describe sampling, quantisation, and digitisation.
• Describe multiplexing methods.
• Describe transmitter architecture and its stages.
• Describe receiver architecture, including the superheterodyne receiver.
• Describe mixing, heterodyning, and image frequency.
• Describe oscillators, filters, and amplifiers in communication circuits.
• Describe antennas, transmission lines, and impedance matching.
• Measure modulation, bandwidth, and signal quality in the laboratory.
• Use a spectrum analyser and interpret its display.
• Troubleshoot a communication circuit systematically.

Optional Outcomes

• Describe error detection and correction.
• Describe spread spectrum techniques.
• Describe satellite and microwave links.
• Describe optical fibre communication systems.
• Describe software-defined radio.
• Describe spectrum regulation and licensing.

Major Topics

Required Topics

• Elements of a communication system
• Time and frequency domains
• Fourier concepts and spectra
• Bandwidth and information rate
• Noise sources
• Signal-to-noise ratio
• Noise figure and temperature
• Amplitude modulation and demodulation
• AM spectra, power, and efficiency
• Single-sideband
• Frequency and phase modulation
• FM spectra and bandwidth
• Comparing modulation schemes
• Digital modulation
• Sampling and quantisation
• Multiplexing
• Transmitter architecture
• Receiver architecture and superheterodyne
• Mixing and image frequency
• Oscillators, filters, and amplifiers
• Antennas, transmission lines, and matching
• Laboratory measurement of modulation and bandwidth
• Spectrum analyser use
• Systematic troubleshooting

Optional Topics

• Error detection and correction
• Spread spectrum
• Satellite and microwave links
• Optical fibre systems
• Software-defined radio
• Spectrum regulation and licensing

Resources & Tools

• The programme's laboratory and its instruments — the reason to take these courses in person. Oscilloscope competence in particular is built only by using one.
• LTspice, Multisim, or Falstad's circuit simulator — LTspice and Falstad are free; simulate before you build and after it fails.
• The Art of Electronics (Horowitz & Hill) — the reference practising engineers keep, and unusually readable.
• Electronic Devices and Circuit Theory (Boylestad & Nashelsky) — the standard course text.
• Manufacturer datasheets and application notes — free, and the primary source; learning to read a datasheet properly is a genuine professional skill.
• IPC standards (ipc.org) — the electronics assembly and soldering standards industry actually works to; IPC certification is recognised by employers.
• BICSI (bicsi.org) — structured cabling standards and installer credentials.
• A decent multimeter of your own — and know its limitations; a cheap meter lies confidently.
• ABET (abet.org) — free accreditation lookup; check which commission a programme is accredited under.
• A software-defined radio receiver — inexpensive USB units cost very little and make the entire spectrum visible on a laptop. Nothing makes modulation and bandwidth concrete faster than watching real signals.
• ARRL (arrl.org) — the amateur radio body; its handbook is an outstanding practical reference on RF, and an amateur licence is an inexpensive way to get hands-on transmitter experience lawfully.
• FCC (fcc.gov) — free; spectrum allocation, licensing, and the rules governing transmission.

Career Pathways

• Electrical and electronics engineering technologist or technician — SOC 17-3023.
• Electronics assembly and test technician — a common entry route.
• Field service and maintenance technician — instrumentation, medical devices, industrial equipment.
• Structured cabling and network infrastructure installation — a distinct and steady trade.
• Communications and RF technician — broadcast, telecommunications, and avionics.
• Controls and instrumentation technician — process industries and building systems.
• Aerospace and defence electronics — a large Florida sector on the Space Coast; ⚠ many roles require U.S. citizenship and some a security clearance.
• Test engineering and quality.
• Manufacturing engineering support.
• Continue to a bachelor's or master's — ⚠ see the note on engineering technology and professional licensure.

Special Information

⚠⚠ You may not simply transmit — radio spectrum is regulated

• Radiating a signal is a regulated activity. Spectrum is allocated by the FCC, and transmitting outside what you are licensed or authorised to do is unlawful — not merely discouraged.
• Laboratory work should be conducted into a dummy load or a shielded enclosure, not into an antenna, unless the arrangement is explicitly authorised.
• Interference has real consequences. Aviation, emergency services, and maritime bands are safety-of-life services, and interference with them is treated extremely seriously.
• Even low-power unlicensed operation is bounded by specific technical rules on power, bandwidth, and band.
• ⚠ An amateur radio licence is an inexpensive and entirely lawful route to hands-on transmitter experience, and it is genuinely useful for anyone in this field.
• Equipment intended for sale must be authorised, which is why compliance testing is part of product development.
• Know the RF exposure limits for any transmitter you work with, and treat high-power RF with the same caution as any other energy source.
• ⚠ Rule 11 applies — spectrum rules change; verify with the FCC rather than relying on a course guide.

⚠ Everything in this subject is a trade against noise

• Noise sets the floor, and no amount of amplification improves signal-to-noise ratio — amplifying a weak signal amplifies its noise equally, and the amplifier adds its own.
• That is why the first stage of a receiver matters most. Noise added early is amplified by everything after it, which is the reason low-noise front ends exist.
• Bandwidth costs noise. A wider receiver admits more noise power, so filtering to the minimum bandwidth the signal needs is a design decision with direct benefit.
• Modulation schemes trade bandwidth against noise performance. Wideband FM resists noise better than AM and pays for it in spectrum — that trade is the core of the subject.
• Power, bandwidth, and data rate are linked by physical limits, not by engineering cleverness.
• Measure signal-to-noise rather than eyeballing it, and learn to use a spectrum analyser properly — it shows you what an oscilloscope cannot.
• Real channels distort as well as adding noise, and equalisation exists because of that.
• Think about the whole link — transmitter, channel, and receiver together — rather than optimising one stage in isolation.

⚠⚠ Electronics laboratory safety — low voltage is not no voltage

• Bench voltages can injure and kill. The assumption that electronics work is inherently safe because it is not mains voltage is wrong — and equipment on the bench is frequently mains-powered regardless.
• ⚠ Capacitors store charge after power is removed. Power supply filter capacitors in particular can hold a dangerous charge for a long time. Discharge before touching, and treat every large capacitor as charged.
• De-energise before rewiring. Build the circuit, check it, then apply power — not the reverse.
• Check polarity and voltage before switching on. Reversed electrolytic capacitors vent violently, and over-voltage destroys semiconductors instantly.
• Current-limit the supply when testing a new build; it converts a destroyed board into a puzzle to solve.
• ⚠ Oscilloscope grounds are usually earthed. Connecting a scope ground clip to a point that is not at earth potential creates a short circuit through the instrument — this destroys equipment and can be dangerous, and it is one of the most common laboratory accidents.
• Eye protection when cutting leads. Clipped component legs travel at speed.
• Soldering irons burn and they do not look hot. Return them to the stand every time and never pass one hand to hand.
• Report damaged leads, cracked cases, and equipment faults rather than working around them.

⚠⚠ Engineering technology is not engineering for licensure purposes

• This distinction matters for anyone who may want to become a licensed Professional Engineer, and students frequently discover it too late.
• An engineering technology degree and an engineering degree are different qualifications, accredited under different criteria, and state licensing boards treat them differently.
• Requirements for PE licensure vary by state, and a technology degree may mean additional experience, a different pathway, or in some states no pathway at all.
• ⚠ If professional licensure is a goal, establish the pathway before you invest years in a programme — ask the Florida Board of Professional Engineers directly, and ask about any state you might move to.
• This is not a criticism of engineering technology. It is a distinct and valuable discipline oriented to application and implementation, and most graduates never need a PE licence — but the ones who do need to have planned for it.
• ABET accredits both, under different commissions; check which one a programme holds.
• ⚠ Rule 11 applies — licensure requirements change; verify with the board rather than relying on any course guide.

How Florida course levels affect transfer

The first digit of an SCNS number denotes the year of offering, not transferability. Courses at the 1000 and 2000 levels transfer transparently between Florida public institutions, and 3000 to 4000 is unproblematic since both are upper division. The boundary that actually matters is 2000 to 3000, where lower-division credit generally cannot satisfy an upper-division requirement — and it is live in these prefixes, where Daytona State offers both associate-level and bachelor of applied science coursework.

EET4329C is 4 credits and approximately 80 contact hours with a $21.00 lab fee, offered spring at Daytona State, with EET3716 as prerequisite.

See this repository's EET2323C, EET2325C, EET2326C, and EET2351C guides for the lower-division communications sequence.