| Category | Difficulty |
|---|---|
| Homeworks | 6 |
| Labs | 4 |
| Quizzes | 6 |
This course explores RF (radio-frequency) systems design from several perspectives. It discusses transmission lines, antennas, transceiver design, modulation techniques, information theory, SDRs (software-defined radios), phased arrays, MIMO (multiple-input multiple-output), and more. It's a great way to get an overview of various topics related to wireless systems design.
If you're more interested in circuit-level (i.e. transistors) design for wireless systems, 18-723 is a good course to look into. If you're interested in more of the software and theory behind wireless systems, then courses like 18-741 or 18-750 can be good instead. This course is somewhere in-between, not quite going into IC-level design nor looking at the network layer, but instead exploring systems-level design. Check out the Prerequisites section for more information on what you need going into 18-729.
The course has lectures twice per week and a lab or recitation once per week. Labs and recitations usually alternate weeks, with recitations intended to help review for quizzes. Be aware that Fall 2022 was the first time that the course was offered; thus, a lot of the course structure (labs, lectures, etc.) may change in the next iteration. The course itself may also be renumbered from 18-429/729 to something else in Fall 2023.
Nominally, the course requires 18-290 and 18-320 as prerequisites. Signal processing is indeed a key component in RF design, so having a strong background (and perhaps having taken 18-491 as well) can prove very helpful. Regarding 18-320, the content in that course might be overkill for understanding 18-729. 18-729 does not go into transistor-level design, since 18-723 explores this. Thus, you only need the fundamentals from 18-220 to understand 18-729 -- RLC circuits and basic electromagnetics, for example. 18-729 explores transmission lines and antenna design from first principles, so you don't need to be an expert in circuits to do well in the course. The prerequisite of 18-320 may change to 18-220 in the next iteration of the course.
There were 6 homeworks in the course, each spaced roughly even apart from each other (besides the gap in the middle of the semester due to the break). The homeworks were largely reflective of concepts covered in lecture, with some problems pointing students to the textbook to help solve them. They were generally not too intensive, compared to problem sets in other graduate circuits courses. You have up to one week to submit the homework late (with a 10% flat penalty), so be sure to make an attempt on each homework.
There were 4 quizzes in the course; 3 of them were during class, and the final quiz was made a take-home quiz during finals season. The lowest quiz grade was dropped, so the take-home quiz was optional if students were content with their score. The quizzes were largely reflective of homework problems; Quiz 1 covered HW1/HW2/HW3, Quiz 2 covered HW4/HW5, and Quiz 3 covered HW6. The take-home quiz was cumulative. As long as you keep up with the homeworks and review relevant problems from lecture, you should be set for the quizzes.
There were 6 labs in the course, again spaced roughly even apart throughout the semester. The topics were:
- RF Boards and VNAs: learning how to use a vector network analyzer (VNA) to take measurements of RF PCBs
- Antenna Design: designing your own antenna in MATLAB, to be milled out by the teaching staff
- Antenna Measurements: measuring your antenna's radiation pattern
- SDRs and Simulink: familiarizing yourself with the RTL-SDR and exploring modulation patterns in Simulink
- Antenna Arrays: simulating dipole and patch antenna arrays in MATLAB
- Beamsteering and MIMO: using a patch antenna array with a USRP radio to transmit and steer signals in the classroom
The labs are very hands-on -- the course staff gives you the necessary equipment, and they help guide you through the lab. Since Fall 2022 was the first iteration of the course, some of the labs were rough around the edges. The teaching staff helps you during the lab, and you can work in teams, so the labs tend to be relatively straightforward. The teaching staff hopes to work on the labs and improve them for the next iteration, but they should hopefully be a fun and interactive way to understand concepts discussed in lecture!