What is Signals & Systems?

Signals & Systems is the study of how to effectively send and process information.  Information can be sent as 0s and 1s on an electrical device, or it can be sent through the air as an electromagnetic wave, like radiowaves or microwaves.  Signal & systems engineers design communication protocols for everything from cell phones to satellites in space.  The electrical signal being sent can represent many different types of information, like a human voice, written text, or an image.  Signals & systems engineers also have to find effective ways to interpret signals from sensors, like a heart rate monitor or air quality sensor.  One exciting, but difficult, problem our faculty are working on is computer vision, which is the study of how to enable computers to “see” and process information from pictures like humans do.  As the world becomes more and more interconnected with wireless devices and sensors, it will become increasingly important to have effective and efficient ways to exchange, collect and store data in our technology-driven world.

Research

Explore Signals & Systems Research at the U

Courses

ECE X5xx = Signal Processing/Communication

ECE 3500 Signals and Systems is a foundational course for this area.

ECE 3530, Probability and Statistics and ECE 3300 Electromagnetics are also requirements for some of these courses.

Fundamental Electives

Fall

  • 5510 Random Processes
    • Online

Spring

  • 5520 Digital Communication Systems
    • Online
  • 5530/6530 Digital Signal Processing
    • Hybrid
  • 5325 Wireless Communications
    • Odd Years only
    • Online

Advanced Electives

Most of these classes require the above classes as prerequisites.

Fall

  • 6532 Digital Image Processing
    • Prerequisite: 5530
    • Online
  • 6590 Software Radio
    • Prerequisite: 5510, 5530
  • 6550 Adaptive Filters
    • Prerequisite: 5510, 5530
    • Odd Year only
  • 5960/6960 Advanced Optimization Methods for Machine Learning
    • Hybrid, IVC
  • 5960/6960 Special Topics: Analyzing Neural Data
    • Online / IVC

Fall

  • 6521 Error Control Coding
    • Prerequisite: 5510, 5520
    • Odd Years only
  • 6520 Information Theory
    • Prerequisite: 5510, 5530
    • Odd Years only
  • 6540 Estimation Theory
    • Prerequisite: 5510, 5530
    • Even Years only
  • 5960/6960 Deep Learning

Sample 4 Year Course Plans