DATE:        February 24, 2014

TO:    Dave Michelson, Ph.D, P.Eng.

FROM:        Mohammad Amirian, EECE 380 Team L2B2

SUBJECT:     Spectrum Analyzer Project Update – Week of Feb 24.

In the week of reading break, we were able to meet and work on the full spectrum analyzer circuit. Due to a setback with our IF filter, we were put further back in our schedule but still managed to stay ahead of our goal. It was clear that our main focus was to design a fully functioning precision peak that would work when connected with the rest of the circuit.

Many different topologies were implemented and yet there were problems with all of them.  There were issues such as oscillations and no output or very weak output when connected to the rest of the circuit. After many attempts, it became obvious that any more time spent on developing a fully functioning peak detector would only stop us from achieving our other objectives and so it was decided that a regular peak detector would suffice for our purposes.

The rest of the circuit is on par with the requirements set for us. We are looking at another two sessions of lab time to fully meet the requirements and even manage to add some extra functionality. We have also managed to start our report earlier than expected.

For the upcoming week our main priority is to fully implement an amplified signal from the output of the IF filter going into the peak detector. On top of that, we also want to add some extra features to the software component and to reduce noise in our circuits. Another update regarding our progress will be provided next Monday (March 3) morning.