This page is a curriculum outline. Detailed lessons are still being developed.
Prerequisites: Dynamics, transfer functions and control
Purpose
This stage connects textbook-style converter knowledge to real engineering constraints.
It should make learners respect hardware without making them afraid of it.
Core Topics
- magnetic component design: inductors, transformers, saturation, core loss, copper loss, leakage
- gate driving, dead time, bootstrap supplies, level shifting, and isolation
- PCB layout, current loops, grounding, parasitic inductance, ringing, and measurement artifacts
- EMI, input filters, shielding, and regulatory awareness
- thermal design, heatsinks, airflow, thermal resistance, and junction temperature
- protection: overcurrent, overvoltage, undervoltage, short circuit, temperature, and fault recovery
- safety: high voltage, stored energy, isolation, discharge paths, fusing, and safe lab habits
- documentation, design reviews, and test plans
Must-Know Ideas
- Layout is part of the circuit.
- Heat is a design signal.
- Protection is not optional in real systems.
- EMI problems are easier to prevent than to debug.
- Safety must appear before hardware ambition.
Practice Projects
- Review a converter PCB layout and mark high di/dt loops.
- Estimate junction temperature from power loss and thermal resistance.
- Design a simple input filter conceptually and discuss stability risk.
- Write a test plan before powering a circuit.
- Ask an AI tutor to perform a design review on your schematic assumptions.
Exit Criteria
Before moving on, the learner should be able to:
- explain why layout changes converter behavior
- estimate whether a device may overheat
- identify basic protection needs
- describe common EMI sources
- write a cautious first-power-up checklist
Continue: Systems and applications