A new permanent exhibit, unveiled November 12 on the fourth floor of the Myhal Centre for Engineering Innovation & Entrepreneurship, marks the ongoing legacy of a seminal textbook written by two former U of T Engineering professors.
Professor Emeritus Adel Sedra co-authored Microelectronic Circuits along with his former PhD supervisor, the late Professor Emeritus K.C. Smith.
“When they first sat down in 1982 to create the first draft, I don’t think either of the two co-authors fully realized that it would become the gold standard in the field,” said Christopher Yip, Dean of U of T Engineering.
“But thanks to the comprehensiveness of their vision, the expressiveness of their prose, and the richness of the sample problems they set, that’s exactly what it became.”
At different times, both Sedra and Smith served as the chair of what is now The Edward S. Rogers Sr. Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering. Sedra later went on to join the University of Waterloo’s Faculty of Engineering, serving as its dean from 2003 until 2012.
Learn more about the history of the Microelectronic Circuits in this interview with Adel Sedra, produced by the University of Waterloo
First published in 1982, Microelectronic Circuits is a classic of its genre, receiving widespread praise for the richness of its problems and the expressiveness of its prose. To date, it has gone through eight editions, sold more than a million copies and been translated into nearly a dozen different languages.
It is estimated that over three quarters of engineers who have studied electronic circuits since 1982 have done so at least in part using the book, which is widely known simply as ‘Sedra/Smith’ after its authors.
The unveiling ceremony honoured the legacy of this achievement, and was attended by Sedra himself, as well as Laura Fujino, widow of K.C. Smith and a longtime volunteer with U of T Engineering. Fujino brought with her congratulations sent by Anantha P. Chandrakasan Dean of MIT’s School of Engineering, MIT’s Chief Innovation and Strategy Officer.
“This is a classic textbook which is used worldwide to introduce students to microelectronics,” wrote Chandrakasan.
“As you know, semiconductors and design have come back to the forefront in a big way, with many countries pushing for semiconductor acceleration programs. I have absolutely no doubt that Sedra/Smith will have a tremendous impact on developing and supporting the expanded workforce of the future in semiconductor circuits.”
Also in attendance were Professor Tony Chan Carusone (ECE) and University of Waterloo Professor Vincent Gaudet (ECE MASc 9T7, PhD 0T3). Both professors joined the editorial team for the book starting with the eighth edition — the first to be available as an enhanced e-book — and will carry the tradition forward for future generations.
A similar exhibit at the University of Waterloo was unveiled November 1, 2024.
“Many years ago, one of my professors at Cairo University gave me some great advice,” said Sedra at the event.
“He said, ‘If you want to understand a subject, teach it.’ Today, I want to extend that a little further: if you want to understand a subject deeply, write about it.”
Learn more about the book in the September 2024 issue of IEEE Solid-State Circuits Magazine
