IITM BS Digital Systems (EE1102): Syllabus and Tips

Digital Systems (EE1102) is a 4 credit foundation course in the IITM BS in Electronic Systems. It starts with logic gates and Boolean algebra and ends with a simple microprocessor and putting designs on an FPGA. On the way you learn a hardware description language, timing and state machines. Its prerequisite is unclear: the handbook names ESTC in one table and Introduction to C Programming in another.

The syllabus lists Prof. Janakiraman Viraraghavan and Prof. Ramprasath S of the Department of Electrical Engineering, IIT Madras, as instructors.

What you need before Digital Systems

• The handbook's main course table lists ESTC (EE1101) as the prerequisite.
• Its prerequisite section lists Introduction to C Programming (CS1101) instead.
• The syllabus itself lists no prerequisite.

All three suggested study plans put both ESTC and the C course before Digital Systems. Follow that and the question does not matter. The ESTC course page covers ESTC.

What you learn in Digital Systems

The syllabus runs over 9 weeks.

• Weeks 1 and 2: the basics. Boolean algebra, logic gates, truth tables and the main theorems. Then binary and hexadecimal numbers.
• Weeks 3 and 4: describing hardware in code. Hardware description languages, structural and behavioural styles, and building combinational circuits from small modules.
• Weeks 5 and 6: memory and time. Sequential elements, state, timing parameters and timing analysis. Then finite state machines, used to detect or produce sequences and to generate control signals.
• Weeks 7 to 9: towards a processor. Datapath and control, a simple microprocessor and programmable systems. Then basic instruction sets and assembly programming, and finally turning HDL into hardware on an FPGA.

By the end you should be able to explain a microprocessor as a datapath with programmable control, connected to memory. The suggested books are Digital Logic and Computer Design by M. Mano and Digital Design and Computer Architecture by Harris and Harris.

Worked-out sheets, lab and kit

• Digital Systems is one of four foundation courses where you upload photos of your rough working with each assignment. The sheets are not graded. See worked-out assignment submissions.
• The Electronics Laboratory (EE1105) lists Digital Systems as a corequisite. Its weeks 5 to 8 cover gates, datapath and sequential circuits.
• The handbook names Digital Systems as one of the courses where the ES lab kit is used most.

The syllabus does not give a grading formula for this course.

Who finds it hard and how to prepare

Gates and truth tables are the easy start. The harder parts are HDL, timing and state machines, because each needs a new way of thinking.

• HDL code does not run line by line like C. It describes hardware that works all at once. Draw the circuit first, then write the code for it.
• For every state machine, draw the state diagram and the state table on paper before any code.
• Revise binary and hex from ESTC before week 2, so the number work feels easy.
• Do the timing questions with real numbers for delays and clock period. Reading alone is not enough.
• Set up the simulation tool the course uses by week 3, so the HDL weeks do not start with installation trouble.

What to take before and after

Before: ESTC and Introduction to C Programming. With it or after: the Electronics Laboratory. At the diploma level, Digital Systems is the prerequisite for Digital System Design (EE2103). It is also the prerequisite that Data Science students need for the VLSI Design and Testing minor.

Common questions

Is Digital Systems the same as Digital System Design?

No. Digital Systems (EE1102) is the foundation course. Digital System Design (EE2103) is a diploma course that builds on it with Verilog, FPGAs and CPU design.

Do I program a real FPGA board in this course?

Week 9 covers HDL synthesis and implementing a design on an FPGA. The syllabus does not say whether you use a physical board or only software tools. Check the course page once you register.

Why does a digital course need worked-out sheets?

The handbook says the sheets are not graded. The team samples them at random, and you can go over your mistakes after the deadline. Boolean algebra and state tables need written steps, so the habit helps anyway.