Electrical and Electronic Engineering MSc

In this module a student will be assigned to an individual supervisor who will be a staff member in the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering. The student will carry out a practical, theoretical or simulation based project chosen from the current interests of the staff member concerned. The student will be expected to conduct a literature survey, undertake practical, theoretical or simulation work and write a dissertation on this work.

The module aims to give experience of completing a major investigation within the topic area of their MSc course, including planning the work to meet a final deadline and reporting on the work both in a structured written report (worth 80% of the module) and by an informal oral presentation (worth 20% of the module).

The Holistic Engineering Design module is vital for future engineers as it equips them with the skills and mindset needed to address the complex and multifaceted challenges of the modern engineering landscape. It encourages students to consider ethical, environmental, and societal aspects of engineering design, making them well-prepared to create sustainable and innovative solutions in their future careers. This course fosters creativity, critical thinking, and effective communication, which are essential skills for successful engineers.

The Project Design and Development module equips students with the skills and knowledge needed to design, plan, and implement research projects – the module is essential for MSc students in the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering that will commence their individual project in the summer. Students will learn about the importance of developing proposals, time plans and project management, as well as the necessity to adequately explain the context and backgrounds of projects through critiquing literature. Students will engage with their assigned project supervisors to aid in this module.

This module covers the development of advanced engineering software projects, spanning a range of application areas. Generic Topics to be discussed include: Large-scale software management, robust design and coding techniques, accurate and efficient numerical computing for technological simulations, parallel computing techniques applicable to several classes of parallel computer e.g. multicore, distributed and graphics processing unit (GPU) based systems, database design and implementation; distributed network based computing; hardware interfacing.

This module covers a range of advanced control techniques used in a wide range of engineering applications. Typical topics include multivariable state space modelling, linear and nonlinear systems, continuous and discrete domains and observer theory.

This module covers a range of advanced power electronic techniques and implementations for a variety of applications.

The principles, major algorithms, methods of implementation and applications of digital signal processing.

This module introduces students to the concepts and operating principles of fixed and variable speed electric machine and drive systems. The module will use a number of system examples to demonstrate how machines and drive systems are specified, designed, controlled and operated.

This module is an introduction to the principles and practice of instrumentation and measurement systems in an engineering context. The module will cover the generally applicable basic principles and then look at specific classes of instrument and associated electronics and signal processing methods. Topics covered include:

• Basic principles and instrument characteristics
• Measurement errors, basic statistics, noise and its control
• Dynamic characteristics of instruments
• Amplifiers, filters, ADCs and DACs
• Position, strain, pressure and motion sensors (resistive, capacitive, inductive, optical)
• Electronic and optical measurement instrumentation

The module introduces CMOS integrated circuit design and internal operating mechanisms of semiconductor electronics and opto-electronic devices.

This module provides students with an understanding of the operational principles of power electronic converters and their associated systems and enables students to design both analogue and digital controllers for linear single-input single-output systems.

This module provides an introduction to artificial intelligence (AI) for engineers who are curious about AI. The module considers what AI is, what it is used for and why it is used in engineering. The module avoids the mathematics of the subject and instead focusses on the concepts and application of AI in the context of AI as an engineering tool.

The module introduces the core concepts of AI (what is meant by AI, machine learning and deep learning), supervised vs unsupervised learning and examples of AI applied in engineering. This is then followed by a closer look at supervised learning and the data source/type requirements of AI. The core concepts will be reinforced through a number of case studies arising out of the field of electrical and electronic engineering for example intelligent manufacturing, autonomous robotics, computer vision and energy optimisation.

The module will consider the challenges associated with current AI and explore issues related to ethics and bias.

This module covers the control of AC drives, covering drives for a variety of machine types and control strategies, for example, vector control.

This module introduces advanced electrical machine concepts and applications in the area of more electric transport, renewable generation and industrial automation.

Selected topics from the field of artificial intelligence with particular focus on the interface with electronic systems.

This module is an introduction to the operation of modern digital communication systems. Topics covered include:

• communication systems
• information content and channel capacity
• digital modulation techniques
• data compression techniques
• error-correcting and line coding techniques
• digital signal regeneration techniques
• system examples, telephone, digital television and CD technologies

This module covers the operation of modern power systems, including deregulated power systems, distributed generation, microgrids, the energy storage as well as technologies for producing clean energy.

The module introduces both the syntax and application of HDL for the design of modern electronics. That would typically cover Xilinx, Mentor Graphics, and combinational and sequential circuits design.

To provide knowledge of the fundamentals of mobile communications and its application to real systems. Typical subjects might be 3rd and 4th generation systems, OFDM and MIMO and how 5th generation systems are likely to develop.

This module considers the design and operation of Power Systems in a range or transport related applications.

This module covers the analysis and design of renewable and sustainable energy systems. It covers the various types of renewable energy and the resources available. It uses an understanding of the physical principles of various types of energy resources in order to develop analytical models which can be applied to the design of renewable energy systems, including energy conversion and storage, especially for electrical power generation. It includes:

• Wind power: wind probability distributions, wind turbine performance and control, comparison of generator types
• Hydro and tidal power: resource assessment, turbine types and principles
• Solar power, including PV cell equivalent circuit, analysis of losses, matching to DC and AC power systems
• Wave power systems, including wave energy characteristics, types of energy converter
• Characteristics of synchronous and induction generators
• Embedded generation; types of generator and operation of RE within the power system
• Economic and environmental assessment of energy conversion technologies

This module gives and Introduction to fundamentals of robotics, and introduces students to: Direct Kinematics, Inverse Kinematics, Workspace analysis and specifying appropriate robotic manipulators for industrial processes.

This module introduced the main concepts related to optical devices, systems and networks. Topics typically include characteristics of optical fibres and a range of active and passive optical devices such as for example transmitters, detectors, amplifiers, multiplexers, filters and couplers.

This module provides students with an understanding of power system apparatus and their behaviour under normal and fault conditions. This module covers:

• concept and analysis of load flow
• voltage/current symmetrical components
• computation of fault currents
• economic optimisation
• power-system control and stability
• power system protection

This module covers a selection of topics where information is acquired from sensors and subsequently electronically processed. Applications will typically include, optical, acoustic, non-destructive evaluation, medical and bio-photonics.

This module introduces typical analytical, computational and experimental tools used in the study of Radio Frequency (RF) and high frequency devices and systems. This module will detail the fundamentals of electromagnetic wave propagation and typical RF devices such as antennas, antenna arrays, amplifiers, mixers and metal wave guides.

Optics and photonics technology is used widely in modern life, this module starts with the basics of light and how we can manipulate it with optical components, building up to a practical understanding of optical systems. It covers the design of optical systems and the types of sources and detectors that can be used. Applications cover material processing, bio-photonics and optical imaging.