| Unit name | Future Connectivity: From Optical to Quantum |
|---|---|
| Unit code | EEMEM0002 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | M/7 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Joshi |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | School of Electrical, Electronic and Mechanical Engineering |
| Faculty | Faculty of Engineering |
Why is this unit important?
The internet is largely based on signals of light travelling across the globe, often with intensities brighter than the sun. The unit starts with a discussion about how we produce light and then modulate it to encode digital signals. This could be as simple as blinking the light on and off, but in reality even that quickly becomes complex. The next challenge involves getting the signal from A to B and being able to decode the information after receiving a very noisy and faint signal. Even then, a single communication link is not enough: it must be so reliable and so fast that billions of us can communicate from sending daily messages to streaming 4K videos simultaneously without interruption. To achieve this, complex networks must be built, requiring systems to organise and control their functionality. This unit looks at how contemporary systems take advantage of the ground-breaking nature of quantum technologies, which offer ultimate security for the future Internet using physical laws.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study?
This unit is mandatory for the relevant PGT programmes of study and optional on some undergraduate programmes. In all programmes of study, the unit narrates the role of both classical and quantum devices within the broader network, and readies students for an engineering future aligned to the future internet.
An overview of content
This unit will cover the fundamentals of communications and networking systems and will include:
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit
Students who successfully engage with this unit will learn how to design and analyse communication systems on the physical (hardware) layer and control plane. They will be aware of future developments and be able to plan for the impact of emerging disruptive technologies.
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of the unit the student will be able to:
You will learn by a problem-centred approach, focusing on industry-linked problems around the current and future internet. A blend of live lectures and pre-recorded asynchronous videos will be used to cover the content of the unit. The asynchronous material will allow students on the unit to virtually visit our laboratories and testbeds, and the live lectures will build a sense of community together in solving the problems. The independent study of the regular problem sheets is accompanied by the drop-in sessions which continuous feedback and improvement for your studies.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
You will have a regular problem sheet, which will use real-world examples drawn from the lectures. There will be a mixture of the classic pen-and-paper problems to support you in developing a quantitative sense of the design of networks; wider problems which capture the qualitative role of the network engineer in the current and future internet. There will also be a research paper to read some weeks, providing guided reading to develop your knowledge of the discipline and questions that relate to this. The problems will grow in scope over the extent of the course in line with your developing knowledge and skills. Extensive formative feedback will be provided during regular optional “drop-in” sessions.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
The unit will be assessed by a single exam in the TB2 assessment period. The exam will assess all Learning Outcomes.
When assessment does not go to plan
In the event of unsatisfactory performance in the examinations, there may be an opportunity to resit an exam of a similar nature during the reassessment period.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. EEMEM0002).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The assessment methods listed in this unit specification are designed to enable students to demonstrate the named learning outcomes (LOs). Where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, schools will make reasonable adjustments to support a student to demonstrate the LO by an alternative method or with additional resources.
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
