Electronics for the
Electrical FE Exam

by Justin Kauwale, P.E.

Introduction

Electronics accounts for approximately 7 to 11 questions on the Electrical FE exam. These questions can cover solid state fundamentals, which includes tunneling, diffusion current, drift current, energy bands, doping bands and p-n theory. Also included are the discrete devices that make up electronics circuits. These devices include diodes, transistors, bipolar junction transistors (BJT) and complementary metal oxide semiconductors (CMOS, MOSFET). Other devices used in electronics have their own subtopics like amplifiers, operational amplifiers, bias circuits and instrumentation. The last subtopic is power electronics which would include rectifier circuits.

The NCEES FE Reference Handbook Statics section has an operational amplifiers section with only inverted, non-inverted and common mode op-amps. The solid state electronics devices has brief information on the solid state fundamentals, but a lot more on differential amplifiers, diodes, thyristors, silicon controlled rectifiers, BJTs, JFETs and MOSFETs. It appears that the questions on this section will focus primarily on these devices used in electronics as opposed to the solid state theory. Finally, there are only a few lines on the power side of electronics and this seems to overlap with the next Section 11.0 Power. So the power electronics will be briefly covered in this section and for more information, you should read the following Section 11.0 Power.



2.0 SOLID STATE FUNDAMENTALS



This section is continued in more detail in the technical study guide . Also included are many more practice exam problems.

3.0 DISCRETE DEVICES



This section is continued in more detail in the technical study guide . Also included are many more practice exam problems.

4.0 BIAS CIRCUITS



This section is continued in more detail in the technical study guide . Also included are many more practice exam problems.

5.0 AMPLIFIERS



This section is continued in more detail in the technical study guide . Also included are many more practice exam problems.

6.0 OPERATIONAL AMPLIFIERS



This section is continued in more detail in the technical study guide . Also included are many more practice exam problems.

7.0 INSTRUMENTATION



This section is continued in more detail in the technical study guide . Also included are many more practice exam problems.

8.0 POWER ELECTRONICS



This section is continued in more detail in the technical study guide . Also included are many more practice exam problems.

9.0 Practice Problems

9.1 PRACTICE PROBLEM 1 –



9.2 PRACTICE PROBLEM 2 –



9.3 PRACTICE PROBLEM 3 -



Practice Problems 4 through 11 and all solutions are included in the technical study guide, along with many more practice exam problems.

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