BENG 216 Neuromorphic Integrated Bioelectronics

BENG 216 | Fall 2024

Computational Lab and Assignments

The computational laboratory serves as a hands-on review with exercises and practice design, layout and simulation using electronic design automation (EDA) tools, and interactive design reviews on the projects. It also serves to get you started with the homework.

Each homework will have a design component, involving use of the EDA tools. You are expected to complete every homework problem on your own but are encouraged to consult with classmates before completing a problem. Please turn in your homework on time to facilitate timely feedback. You are welcome to resubmit improved versions of your work for regrades.

Week	Date	Instructions and Background Material	Assignment
1-2	10/04	Readings from Carver's book: Chapter 2: Eclectronics Chapter 3: Transistor Physics Chapter 4: Neurons Lecture notes from BENG 260 (Neurodynamics): Week 1: Biophysical Foundations Week 2: Single-Compartment Neural Models EDA tutorial and circuit exercises Remote Access Tutorial: Connecting UCSD ECE-LINUX account for Cadence access Tutorial 1: Opening a schematic, running a simulation Tutorial 2: Ring-oscillator schematic and simulation state	Homework 1, due 10/14/2024
3	10/11	Readings from Carver's book: Chapter 15: Silicon Retina Readings and videos spanning the evolution of silicon (and biological) retinas: Misha Mahowald's Scientific American article on the silicon retina (1991) Kareem A Zaghloul and Kwabena Boahen, A Silicon Retina that Reproduces Signals in the Optic Nerve (2006) Bruno Olshausen's talk on the Neural Mechanisms of Vision (2018) Tobi Delbrück's tutorial on event cameras (2020) EDA tutorial and circuit exercises Tutorial 3: Layout, DRC, extraction, and LVS SKY 130 PDK Documentation	Homework 2, due 10/21/2024
4	10/18	Readings from Carver's book: Chapter 5: Transconductance Amplifier Chapter 11: Second-Order Section Chapter 16: Electronic Cochlea Shih-Chii Liu's lecture on silicon cochlea and auditory signal processing Transfer function analysis of linear time-invariant systems BENG 122A Biosystems and Control online reference materials Bode plot of log amplitude and phase frequency response in MATLAB and Simulink	Homework 3, due 10/25/2024
5	10/25	520.492 Mixed-Signal VLSI Systems lecture notes and online reference materials Memory and logic including binary and Gray code address decoders Structured and testable design with hierarchical scalable modular architecture	Homework 4, due 11/8/2024
6	11/1	Bioelectronics and noise readings: Reid R. Harrison and C. Charles, “A low-power low-noise CMOS amplifier for neural recording applications,” IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits, vol. 38, no. 6, pp. 958–965, Jun. 2003, doi: 10.1109/JSSC.2003.811979. Rahul Sarpeshkar, Tobi Delbrück, and Carver A. Mead, "White Noise in MOS Transistors and Resistors," IEEE Circuits and Devices, Nov. 1993, pp. 23-29.	Midterm, due 11/15/2024
7-10	11/8-	Tutorial: Shared Project Libraries (from Canvas) Project-related readings: See project sign-up sheet on Canvas. On synapses: J. Park, S. Ha, T. Yu, E. Neftci, and G. Cauwenberghs, "A 22-pJ/spike 73-Mspikes/s 130k-compartment neural array transceiver with conductance-based synaptic and membrane dynamics," Frontiers in Neuroscience, vol. 17, 2024.	Final projects

Week

Date

Instructions and Background Material

Assignment

1-2

10/04

Readings from Carver's book:
Lecture notes from BENG 260 (Neurodynamics):
- Week 1: Biophysical Foundations
- Week 2: Single-Compartment Neural Models
EDA tutorial and circuit exercises

Remote Access Tutorial: Connecting UCSD ECE-LINUX account for Cadence access
Tutorial 1: Opening a schematic, running a simulation
Tutorial 2: Ring-oscillator schematic and simulation state

Homework 1, due 10/14/2024

10/11

Readings from Carver's book:
- Chapter 15: Silicon Retina
Readings and videos spanning the evolution of silicon (and biological) retinas:
- Misha Mahowald's Scientific American article on the silicon retina (1991)
- Kareem A Zaghloul and Kwabena Boahen, A Silicon Retina that Reproduces Signals in the Optic Nerve (2006)
- Bruno Olshausen's talk on the Neural Mechanisms of Vision (2018)
- Tobi Delbrück's tutorial on event cameras (2020)
EDA tutorial and circuit exercises

Tutorial 3: Layout, DRC, extraction, and LVS
SKY 130 PDK Documentation

Homework 2, due 10/21/2024

10/18

Readings from Carver's book:
Shih-Chii Liu's lecture on silicon cochlea and auditory signal processing
Transfer function analysis of linear time-invariant systems
- BENG 122A Biosystems and Control online reference materials
- Bode plot of log amplitude and phase frequency response in MATLAB and Simulink

Homework 3, due 10/25/2024

10/25

520.492 Mixed-Signal VLSI Systems lecture notes and online reference materials
- Memory and logic including binary and Gray code address decoders
- Structured and testable design with hierarchical scalable modular architecture

Homework 4, due 11/8/2024

11/1

Bioelectronics and noise readings:
- Reid R. Harrison and C. Charles, “A low-power low-noise CMOS amplifier for neural recording applications,” IEEE Journal of Solid-State Circuits, vol. 38, no. 6, pp. 958–965, Jun. 2003, doi: 10.1109/JSSC.2003.811979.
- Rahul Sarpeshkar, Tobi Delbrück, and Carver A. Mead, "White Noise in MOS Transistors and Resistors," IEEE Circuits and Devices, Nov. 1993, pp. 23-29.

Midterm, due 11/15/2024

7-10

11/8-

Tutorial: Shared Project Libraries (from Canvas)
Project-related readings:
- See project sign-up sheet on Canvas.
- On synapses: J. Park, S. Ha, T. Yu, E. Neftci, and G. Cauwenberghs, "A 22-pJ/spike 73-Mspikes/s 130k-compartment neural array transceiver with conductance-based synaptic and membrane dynamics," Frontiers in Neuroscience, vol. 17, 2024.

Final projects