Electronics Foundations is a practical FermiLabs learning path for students who want to understand how circuits behave rather than only copy wiring diagrams. The course starts with voltage, current, resistance, power and safe breadboard practice, then moves through components, sensors, transistors, microcontrollers and measurement.
Each topic follows the same engineering loop: predict, build or simulate, measure, compare, explain the difference and improve the design. Simulators may be used as optional tools, but the underlying circuit model and measured behaviour remain the learning objective.
What you will learn
- Read simple schematics and identify circuit nodes, sources, loads and reference ground.
- Use Ohm’s law and power equations to predict circuit behaviour.
- Build and debug breadboard circuits safely.
- Use a multimeter and data-acquisition tools to measure voltage, current and signals.
- Work with LEDs, resistors, switches, sensors, transistors and basic actuators.
- Program a microcontroller to interact with real hardware.
- Compare physical measurements with simulation or a digital twin.
FermiLabs connection
The same foundations are used in SpeedCircuits, Arduino EFBus, OpenDAQ and RoboCup projects, where reliable measurements and explicit failure analysis matter as much as making a circuit work once.
FermiLabs course review brief
Learning objective:Build, simulate and measure Arduino circuits while explaining failure modes.
Content update:Pin Arduino/TinkerCAD assumptions and connect simulation results to measured behaviour.
Suggested activity:Debug a circuit, predict one signal, then compare it with a measurement.
Evidence to produce:Schematic, code/configuration, measurement capture and diagnosis.
Review status:Draft editorial integration; verify source curriculum ownership before public promotion.
Curriculum
- 13 Sections
- 111 Lessons
- 60 Days
Expand all sectionsCollapse all sections
- ⚡ IntroductionLearning focus: 🟢👉 SKS Online Course guide, tips, and emojis meaning list; 🆕⚡🎧 History of electronics and its applications. Lessons are preserved in source order (14 mapped).14
- 1.1🟢👉 FermiLabs Online Course guide, tips, and emojis meaning list
- 1.2🆕⚡ 📮 History of electronics and its applications
- 1.3👩🔬🎓🔬🧵⚡💡 📮 The maker movement in Education STEM STEAM
- 1.4💼👨🎓🛠️🧵⚡ 📮 Tinkering and the maker movement: Learning is an active process
- 1.5💼👨🎓🛠️⚡ 📮 The (Italian) Arduino revolution
- 1.6⚡ 📮 Arduino, how does it work, components, IDE 2 Tutorial (Integrated Development Environment)
- 1.7⚡🥼 📮 Choose the right Arduino Student Kit to start and an example project
- 1.8📐🎲 📮 Introduction to TinkerCAD and how to sign up for Students and 🎓Teachers
- 1.9📐🎲⚡ Tinkercad Circuits Design for simulating and testing electronic circuits and Arduino projects
- 1.10📐🎲🔑 TinkerCAD Glossary and ⌨ Keyboard Shortcuts
- 1.11📐🎲 📮 TinkerCAD Community Gallery for 3D Designs, Circuits and Codeblocks
- 1.12📐🎲🧵🎓 📮 How to Use Tinkercad for PBL Project-based Learning
- 1.13📐🎲📱 📮 TinkerCAD iPad app and Augmented Reality 3D
- 1.14👾💡👉 Join our Open Discord Server to share your progress, engage with other and peer review your activities
- 💻 Programming basics with ArduinoLearning focus: 💻 Introduction to the C programming language used by Arduino; 💻 Understanding Arduino sketches and their structure. Lessons are preserved in source order (6 mapped).6
- 2.1💻 Introduction to the C programming language used by Arduino
- 2.2💻 Understanding Arduino sketches and their structure
- 2.3💻 Working with variables and data types in Arduino
- 2.4💻 Using loops and control structures
- 2.5💻 Making Functions to reuse code and make your program more organized and readable
- 2.6💻 Debugging and troubleshooting techniques in Arduino and TinkerCAD
- ⚡ Electrical and Electronic Fundamentals and LABSLearning focus: 🆕🔌⚡ Basic concepts of electricity and electronics; 🍎🔌⚡💡🥽 LAB: Ohm’s Law – Circuits Current Resistance Voltage. Lessons are preserved in source order (13 mapped).13
- 3.1🆕🔌⚡ Basic concepts of electricity and electronics
- 3.2🍎🔌⚡💡🥽 LAB: Ohm’s Law – Circuits Current Resistance Voltage
- 3.3🍎🔌⚡ 📮 Electric Current, Alessandro volta voltaic cells, resistance, ohms law, equation for voltage, ampere and James watt power
- 3.4🍎🔌⚡💡🥽 LAB: Static Electricity
- 3.5🍎🔌⚡💡🥽 LAB: DC Direct Current Circuit Construction Kit Virtual
- 3.6📮 DC Circuits: Voltage, Current, Resistance and Ohm’s Law
- 3.7🍎🔌⚡🔑💡 📮 Voltage, Electric Energy, and Capacitors
- 3.8🍎🔌⚡ 📮 Capacitors explained, Kirchhoff, KCL and KVL
- 3.9🍎🔌⚡💡🥽 LAB: Basics Capacitor – Parallel Plate Capacitor Capacitance RC Circuit Circuits
- 3.10🔌⚡💡🥽 LAB: Resistance in a Electric-Wire Resistivity Resistance Circuits
- 3.11⚡🧰🎲🥼 Understanding Circuit Analysis and Ammeter and TinkerCAD Circuits activity
- 3.12🍎🔌⚡ 📮 Alternating Currents AC Circuits, Impedance, frequency and Hertz
- 3.13🍎🔌💡🥽 LAB: AC Alternating Currents Circuit Construction Kit
- ⚡ Basic Electronic: Component – Sensors – Circuits – 🧰 ToolsLearning focus: ⚡🎧🔑💡 How Electricity Work: Atoms, Conductors and Insulators, Electric Current, Voltage and…; ⚡🎧🔑💡 Electric Current AC/DC, basic Electronic components and their functions. Lessons are preserved in source order (19 mapped).19
- 4.1⚡🔑💡 📮 How Electricity Work: Atoms, Conductors and Insulators, Electric Current, Voltage and Resistance
- 4.2⚡🔑💡 📮 Electric Current AC/DC, basic Electronic components and their functions
- 4.3⚡ 📮 Voltage the electricity potential difference AC/DC
- 4.4📮 Breadboards: Prototyping Circuits Without Soldering
- 4.5⚡ 📮 LED How they work and the anode -cathode
- 4.6📮 Resistors: Value, Tolerance, Power and Measurement
- 4.7⚡💡 📮 Basic components and features of TinkerCAD circuits, and learn how to build and troubleshoot simple circuits
- 4.8📮 Transistors as Switches: Driving Loads Safely
- 4.9⚡ Introduction to input and output in Arduino
- 4.10⚡📎 Arduino UNO Pinout Diagram
- 4.11⚡ Sensors for your projects and prototypes
- 4.12📮 Batteries: Capacity, Power, Safety and Measurement
- 4.13⚡💡 📮 How DC SERIES circuits work, voltage, current, resistance, power consumption and using a multimeter
- 4.14⚡ How DC PARALLEL circuits work, voltage, current, resistance, power consumption
- 4.15⚡ 📮 How DIODES work, where and why they are used, different types, and convert AC to DC
- 4.16⚡ 📮 RELAYS electrically operated switch and their various applications
- 4.17🆕⚡ 📮 MOSFET a type of transistor that can be used as a switch or an amplifier
- 4.18⚡📐🥼 📮 Ohm’s Law applied to circuit design.
- 4.19⚡📐🎲🥼 📮 Circuit Symbols and Diagrams. Create
- 🧰 Tools and equipment for electronics / 🧰 Basic tools and equipment for electronicsLearning focus: ⚡🧰🎧💡 Electric-Wire type; ⚡🧰 Pliers, Tweezers and hand tools used to grip and manipulate objects. Lessons are preserved in source order (6 mapped).6
- 5.1⚡🧰💡 📮 Electric-Wire type
- 5.2⚡🧰 Pliers, Tweezers and hand tools used to grip and manipulate objects
- 5.3📮 Using a Multimeter: Voltage, Current, Resistance and Continuity
- 5.4📮 Oscilloscopes: Voltage, Time, Frequency and Triggering
- 5.5⚡🧰💡 📮 Soldering iron, solder and some tips and advice for soldering
- 5.6⚡🧰🎲🥼 TinkerCAD Simulated Function Generator and the Oscilloscope instruments activity
- 🎲⚡ TinkerCAD Circuits Arduino Projects and ActivitiesLearning focus: 🎲⚡ Simulating digital and analog inputs and outputs in Tinkercad; 🎲⚡ Using pulse width modulation to control the intensity of LEDs and…. Lessons are preserved in source order (16 mapped).16
- 6.1🎲⚡ Simulating digital and analog inputs and outputs in Tinkercad
- 6.2🎲⚡ Using pulse width modulation to control the intensity of LEDs and motors
- 6.3🎲⚡🚨 📮 the Power and Current Limits of Arduino Microcontrollers and the Limitations of the Tinkercad Simulator
- 6.4🎲⚡ 📮 First Circuit Arduino Breadboard, zoom, center and how to create wired connections
- 6.5🎲⚡ 📮 File management, duplicate projects and using LED
- 6.6🎲⚡ 📮 How to use Pushbuttons (switches) to control the flow of electricity in a circuit
- 6.7🎲⚡💻 📮 Using the Serial monitor tool to view and send data to the Arduino board
- 6.8🎲⚡💻 📮 Wiring a light sensor photo resistor, to an Arduino in TinkerCAD and check the serial monitor
- 6.9🎲⚡💻 📮 The IF ELSE condition statement for an Arduino night light using a photocell
- 6.10📮 Microcontroller Digital Output: Blink an LED and Measure It
- 6.11📮 Multiple Digital Outputs: Drive and Sequence LEDs
- 6.12📮 PWM: Duty Cycle, Frequency and Average Power
- 6.13🎲⚡💻💡 📮 RGB LEDs TinkerCAD Circuits Arduino Projects
- 6.14📮 Digital Inputs: Switches, Pull Resistors and Debouncing
- 6.15📮 Analog Inputs and ADCs: Sampling, Scaling and Calibration
- 6.16🎲⚡💡 📮 How to connect a Solenoid Magnet to an Arduino using a transistor as a switch.
- 💻 Intermediate and Advanced Arduino techniquesLearning focus: 🎲⚡📎💻 What is the Atmel ATmega328P and the technical datasheet; 🎲⚡🎧💻 How to use software while loop, DDR. Lessons are preserved in source order (15 mapped).15
- 7.1🎲⚡📎💻 What is the Atmel ATmega328P and the technical datasheet
- 7.2🎲⚡💻 📮 How to use software while loop, DDR
- 7.3🎲⚡💻 📮 Logic state of an INPUT pin on an Arduino, Pull-up
- 7.4🎲⚡💻 📮 External Interrupts to execute a specific code in response to a change on a digital input pin
- 7.5🎲⚡💻 📮 Using pin change interrupts, set up the PCICR (Pin Change Interrupt Control Register) and PCMSK (Pin Change Mask Register) registers
- 7.6🎲⚡💻 📮 Using timers and counters to schedule taFermiLabs
- 7.7🎲⚡💻 📮 Set up an output compare interrupt using a timer
- 7.8🎲⚡💻 📮 Measure duration pulse using timers and pin change interrupts
- 7.9⚡💻 Arduino Creating custom functions and libraries
- 7.10⚡💻 Arduino Working with libraries and external resources
- 7.11⚡💻 Arduino Using EEPROM to store data on the board
- 7.12🎲⚡💻💡 📮 How to use a PIR (passive infrared) sensor to control a motor using an Arduino microcontroller
- 7.13📮 H-Bridges and DC Motor Control: Direction, PWM and Protection
- 7.14🆕🦾⚡ 📮 What are PLC and use in Mechatronics and Robotics
- 7.15🆕🦾⚡ 📮 Arduino PRO PLC and the IEC 61131-3 standard languages
- Working with communication protocolsLearning focus: 🔴 Introduction to communication protocols and their uses in Arduino projects; 🔴 Using serial communication to send and receive data. Lessons are preserved in source order (4 mapped).4
- Real-world projects with Arduino and TinkercadLearning focus: 🔴 Developing a weather station using sensors and a display; 🔴 Creating a home automation system using relays and a remote control. Lessons are preserved in source order (5 mapped).5
- 9.1🆕 Developing a weather station using sensors and a display
- 9.2🆕 Creating a home automation system using relays and a remote control
- 9.3🆕 Building a robotic arm using servo motors and control buttons
- 9.4🆕 Designing and programming an interactive game or art installation
- 9.5🆕 Using Arduino in Internet of Things (IoT) applications
- 🛠 Tinkering ProjectsLearning focus: 🆕🧵🚀⚡🎧🥼💡🔗🔑🔬🎨🧰🅰 How to make a Test Stand for Water Rockets. Lessons are preserved in source order (1 mapped).1
- Analog ElectronicsLearning focus: Introduction to analog electronics; Amplifiers and gain analog electronics. Lessons are preserved in source order (5 mapped).5
- Troubleshooting and Project CompletionLearning focus: Troubleshooting electronic circuits; Identifying and diagnosing common problems in circuits. Lessons are preserved in source order (3 mapped).3
- FermiLabs Common Core — Evidence, Safety & Engineering Method
Curated FermiLabs evidence, safety and engineering-method lessons. Existing course curriculum is preserved; this section is additive and independently owned.
FermiLabs connections:SpeedCircuits Lab·Arduino OpenDAQ project
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Instructor
Free
