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Summary
Grades are based on four quizzes (15% each) and one final exam (40%). Exam material comes directly from lectures and reading assignments. An optional research paper may be written to make up one quiz.

General
The course is divided into four sections, each covering a different topic in microsystems. These can roughly be divided into (1) MEMS fabrication, (2) Sensors and actuators, (3) Biomedical (fluidic) microdevices, and (4) Optical microdevices. Readings from the textbook and other sources will be assigned relating to each section. A quiz is given at the end of each section and covers material from the lectures and from the reading assignments. The textbook for this course is An Introduction to Microelectromechanical Systems Engineering by Nadim Maluf. Other textbooks that may be of interest (but are not required) are Micromachined Transducers Sourcebook by Gregory Kovacs and Fundamentals of Microfabrication by Marc Madou.

Homework
Grades are determined by quizzes and the final exam only. Reading assignments are considered your homework. Readings will be assigned, taken from the course textbook, or other sources available on the WWW or from the UCI library.

Quizzes
All tests are multiple choice, and multiple versions of the tests are used simultaneously to discourage cheating. Please show up for the quizzes! Too many car accidents, funerals, disasters, etc. tend to make me become cynical. If you miss an exam, see me right away (within a day) so we can figure out what to do. If you don't get in touch with me right away you will have to accept a zero for that test and do the research paper to make it up.

Graded tests will be returned to students within approximately one week. Solutions to quizzes, individual grades, and grade distributons will be posted on the course website.

Final grade calculation
Your final grade will be determined by the results of four quizzes, each worth 15%, and a final exam, worth 40%. Scores are not usually graded on a curve.

Research paper (optional)
A student may turn in a research paper to replace his or her lowest test score. The paper should be approximately 5-7 pages long (single space, typed) and relate to new MEMS applications or research. The instructor will assign a grade to the paper of 0, 70, 75, 80, 85, 90, 95, 100 depending on the quality of the paper. The intructor's assessment of the paper will be the final grade for the paper, and the score will not be open to renegotiation. Grammar, spelling, punctuation, and readability will affect the final grade, so take care to do a good job and use your spell checker. My apologies in advance, but I cannot lower the writing standards for non-native speakers. Plagiarized work will not be accepted! Due to the unfortunate incidents of plagiarism in the past, I am particularly sensitive to work that is not original. Be sure to use your own words, and reference work that is not your own. You will have to take a brief quiz a few days after turning in the paper to verify that you understood what you wrote. The quiz will consist of five questions taken directly from your paper. If you wrote and understand the material in the paper, the quiz will be easy. Incorrect answers will result in points taken off from the reserch paper (-5 points per incorrect answer). If the paper is not your original work, it will be assigned a zero, regardless of your performance on the small quiz.

Borderline grades
In the case of a borderline grade, I will provide reconsideration ONLY if it is clear that the student's score is not reflective of their true performance, for example, one very poor quiz performance ruins an otherwise solid grade. If you grade is not borderline, don't bother asking for reconsideration.

Web site
All lectures will be available on the course website identified in the syllabus. Lectures are provided in PDF format. The website is NOT a replacement for coming to class. I will try to post the reading assignments on the web site, however, I do not promise this. Come to lectures to make sure you get the assignment, to find out about course changes and other timely information. In addition, I tend to give emphasis in my lectures to topics that are likely to be on the quizzes, so it is in your best interest show up.

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