Digital Systems: From Logic Gates to Processors

Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona via Coursera

Go to Course: https://www.coursera.org/learn/digital-systems

Introduction

### Course Review: Digital Systems: From Logic Gates to Processors If you’ve ever been curious about the inner workings of digital systems, then the Coursera course “Digital Systems: From Logic Gates to Processors” is a highly recommended starting point. This course presents a comprehensive overview of modern digital system designs while focusing on practical applications. It is an ideal fit for aspiring engineers and programmers who want to bridge the gap between theoretical knowledge and real-world applications. #### Course Overview "Digital Systems: From Logic Gates to Processors" offers a structured, methodical approach to understanding the fundamentals of digital systems. Unlike traditional courses that may delve deeply into the electronics of circuits, this course emphasizes the holistic design of digital systems. By focusing on the systems themselves rather than just the underlying electronics, participants will develop a more robust foundation for creating complex digital systems. Throughout the course, students will employ a variety of educational computer-aided design (CAD) tools, giving learners hands-on experience that is invaluable in both academic and professional settings. #### Course Syllabus Highlights The course consists of several key modules, each designed to build on the previous one: 1. **Introduction to Digital Systems**: This initial module is a primer, offering a foundational understanding of digital systems, including comprehensive video tutorials on processors and essential tools like the VerilUOC_Desktop software. 2. **Combinational Circuits**: There are two modules dedicated to combinational circuits. These sections introduce the concepts of logic gates and boolean algebra necessary for designing simple circuits, while also touching on computer-aided design tools. 3. **Arithmetic Components and VHDL**: Students will explore fundamental arithmetic operations in digital circuits and are introduced to VHDL, a hardware description language that plays a pivotal role in modeling digital systems. 4. **Sequential Circuits**: Spanning three modules, this section dives into circuits that include memory such as registers and counters. It sheds light on the connections between programming algorithms and digital circuit design. 5. **Finite State Machines**: This module explores the definition and modeling of finite state machines using VHDL, which is essential for more advanced digital system design. 6. **Implementation of Digital Systems**: The course wraps up by discussing manufacturing technologies and implementation strategies, equipping students with the knowledge necessary to synthesize and implement their designs effectively. #### User Experience and Tools A standout feature of this course is the use of the VerilUOC_Desktop tool, which is tailored for educational purposes. It facilitates the design and verification of digital circuits, making it an essential component of the course. The ongoing support through forums for troubleshooting and peer interaction enhances the learning experience and helps maintain engagement. #### Recommendations This course is highly suitable for individuals who have a basic understanding of programming concepts and wish to deepen their knowledge of digital systems. Whether you are a beginner or someone who has dabbled in electronics and wants to formalize your knowledge, you'll find value here. It’s also an excellent fit for those pursuing degrees in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or related fields. Furthermore, the practical design methodologies introduced can provide a competitive edge in the job market, particularly for roles that involve hardware design and system architecture. #### Conclusion In conclusion, "Digital Systems: From Logic Gates to Processors" on Coursera is a well-structured, informative course that effectively combines theory and practical application. The comprehensive syllabus, user-friendly tools, and engaging content make this course a must-take for anyone looking to venture into the field of digital systems. Whether for personal enrichment or professional advancement, I wholeheartedly recommend this course to learners eager to unravel the complexities of digital design.

Syllabus

All you need to know to start the course

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We have collected here everything you need to know before starting the course.

This week is divided into three sections:

• The first is the one you're reading about now and includes a number of general explanations about how the course will run and about the virtual machine you should install on your computer to answer the different quizzes .
• The second (Previous knowledge: A review) presents a series of tests you can use to check your level of knowledge about numbering systems and the use of pseudocode to describe algorithms.
• The third block contains the first real topic of the course: What Digital Systems are?

Previous knowledge: A review

Check your knowledge about binary and hexadecimal numbering systems, and the description of algorithms using a pseudocode

What Digital Systems are?

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This module is an introduction to Digital Systems. Here you will find:

1. A set of videos_L covering issue 1 and the corresponding exercises,
2. Two videos_P introducing the processor that we will design along the course, and
3. Some video-based explanations; a wiki and some FAQs about how VerilUOC_Desktop tool functions.
   You will have to use VerilUOC_Desktop in the next module

Read the "Lesson Index" in the "Index and PDF files" section and the "README" in the VerilUOC_Desktop section for more information.

Combinational Circuits (I)

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This module introduces combinational circuits, logic gates and boolean algebra, all of them items necessary to design simple combinational circuits.
Read the "Index of lessons" for more information.

To solve the exercises in this module you will need to use VerilUOC_Desktop. Look at the module "VerilUOC_Desktop tools" to learn how to use it.

VerilUOC_Desktop tools

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From this week you will need to use VerilUOC_Desktop to do some of the exercises in the quizzes. VerilUOC_Desktop is a software package based on Logisim, enhanced with a number of modules to enable:

• Enter Boolean equations (BoolMin),
• Enter digital circuits and check them according the problem statement (VerilCirc), and
• Enter chronograms (time-charts) and check that they are correct (VerilChart).

This section contains two videos explaining how these three tools work. By now you only need to use VerilCirc and BoolMin, so if you are pushed for time, you might postpone VerilChart for later. Obviously, it is impossible to cover in these two videos all eventualities you can find while working with VerilUOC_Desktop tools. In case of doubt, look at the VerilUOC_Desktop wiki, look at the FAQs or post your problems in the forums. There are specific forums for VerilCirc, BoolMin and VerilChart.

Combinational circuits (II)

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We continue the study of combinational circuits. While in the previous module we were working on the classical design techniques of combinational circuits, this one is focused on other issues such as a brief introduction to computer aided design tools (CAD tools), or the direct synthesis of combinational circuits from its algorithmic description.
Read the "Lesson index" for more information.

To solve the exercises in this module VerilUOC_Desktop is needed. Remember that the "VerilUOC_Desktop" section in module 2 contains all the information you need about this tool.

Arithmetic components + Introduction to VHDL

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Arithmetic circuits are an essential part of many digital circuits and thus deserve a particular treatment.

• The first part of this module presents some implementations of the basic arithmetic operations. Only operations with naturals (non-negative integers) are considered.
• The second part of this module introduces the basics of VHDL with the goal of providing enough knowledge to understand its usage throughout this course and start developing basic hardware models.

Sequential circuits (I)

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This is the first module dedicated to Sequential Circuits (Digital Systems with Memory).
To solve the quizzes you will need VerilUOC_Desktop. Remember that the first week includes a complete description of VerilUOC_Desktop. In particular, VerilChart is presented in the second video.

Sequential circuits (II)

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This second module dedicated to Sequential Circuits deals with particular sequential circuits that are building blocks of larger circuits, namely registers, counters and memory blocks.

Sequential circuits III and Finite State Machines

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This module deals with two topics:

1. In previous lessons, the relation between algorithms (programming language structures) and combinational circuits has been commented. This relation also exists between algorithms and sequential circuits. We will explore this relation in the current module.
2. The second topic we will see is the definition and VHDL modelling of Finite State Machines.

Implementation of digital systems

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This last module presents some basic information about manufacturing technologies, as well as about implementation strategies, and synthesis and implementation tools.

COURSE SUMMARY AND FAREWELL

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