Practice Exam

E5B04

1. What is the time constant of a circuit having two 220 microfarad capacitors and two 1 megohm resistors, all in parallel?

• A. 55 seconds
• B. 110 seconds
• C. 220 seconds
• D. 440 seconds

E7E03

2. How does an analog phase modulator function?

• A. By varying the tuning of a microphone preamplifier to produce PM signals
• B. By varying the tuning of an amplifier tank circuit to produce PM signals
• C. By varying the tuning of a microphone preamplifier to produce AM signals
• D. By varying the tuning of an amplifier tank circuit to produce AM signals

E9D01

3. How does the gain of an ideal parabolic dish antenna change when the operating frequency is doubled?

• A. Gain increases by 6 dB
• B. Gain does not change
• C. Gain is multiplied by 0.707
• D. Gain increases by 3 dB

E7G01

4. What is the typical output impedance of an integrated circuit op-amp?

• A. 100 ohms
• B. Very low
• C. Very high
• D. 1000 ohms

E1E13

5. Which of these choices is an acceptable method for monitoring the applicants if a VEC opts to conduct an exam session remotely?

• A. Have each applicant sign an affidavit stating that all session rules were followed
• B. Use a real-time video link and the Internet to connect the exam session to the observing VEs
• C. The exam proctor observes the applicants and reports any violations
• D. Record the exam session on video tape for later review by the VE team

E9C14

6. How does the performance of a horizontally polarized antenna mounted on the side of a hill compare with the same antenna mounted on flat ground?

• A. The main lobe takeoff angle decreases in the downhill direction
• B. The horizontal beam width increases in the uphill direction
• C. The main lobe takeoff angle increases in the downhill direction
• D. The horizontal beam width decreases in the downhill direction

E0A08

7. What does SAR measure?

• A. The rate at which RF energy is absorbed by the body
• B. Signal Amplification Rating
• C. Synthetic Aperture Ratio of the human body
• D. The rate of RF energy reflected from stationary terrain

E1B10

8. What frequencies are authorized to an amateur station operating under RACES rules?

• A. Specific local government channels
• B. All amateur service frequencies authorized to the control operator
• C. Specific segments in the amateur service MF, HF, VHF and UHF bands
• D. Military Auxiliary Radio System (MARS) channels

E6D17

9. Why should core saturation of a conventional impedance matching transformer be avoided?

• A. Harmonics and distortion could result
• B. RF susceptance would increase
• C. Magnetic flux would increase with frequency
• D. Temporary changes of the core permeability could result

E6A04

10. What is the name given to an impurity atom that adds holes to a semiconductor crystal structure?

• A. Insulator impurity
• B. N-type impurity
• C. Acceptor impurity
• D. Donor impurity

E8B07

11. Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing is a technique used for which type of amateur communication?

• A. OFDM signals are not allowed on amateur bands
• B. EME
• C. High speed digital modes
• D. Extremely low-power contacts

E5D04

12. Why are short connections necessary at microwave frequencies?

• A. To reduce noise figure
• B. To increase neutralizing resistance
• C. Because of ground reflections
• D. To reduce phase shift along the connection

E2B19

13. What special operating frequency restrictions are imposed on slow scan TV transmissions?

• A. They are not permitted above 54 MHz
• B. They are restricted to 7.245 MHz, 14.245 MHz, 21.345 MHz, and 28.945 MHz
• C. None; they are allowed on all amateur frequencies
• D. They are restricted to phone band segments and their bandwidth can be no greater than that of a voice signal of the same modulation type

E6E12

14. Why are high-power RF amplifier ICs and transistors sometimes mounted in ceramic packages?

• A. Enhanced sensitivity to light
• B. Better dissipation of heat
• C. To provide a low-pass frequency response
• D. High-voltage insulating ability

E4E08

15. What type of signal is picked up by electrical wiring near a radio antenna?

• A. Harmonics of the AC power line frequency
• B. A common-mode signal at the frequency of the radio transmitter
• C. An electrical-sparking signal
• D. A differential-mode signal at the AC power line frequency

E9G03

16. Which of the following is often determined using a Smith chart?

• A. Beam headings and radiation patterns
• B. Satellite azimuth and elevation bearings
• C. Impedance and SWR values in transmission lines
• D. Trigonometric functions

E7D09

17. What is the main reason to use a charge controller with a solar power system?

• A. Prevention of battery damage due to overcharge
• B. Matching of day and night charge rates
• C. Prevention of battery undercharge
• D. Control of electrolyte levels during battery discharge

E4B11

18. How should an antenna analyzer be connected when measuring antenna resonance and feed point impedance?

• A. Loosely couple the analyzer near the antenna base
• B. Connect the analyzer via a high-impedance transformer to the antenna
• C. Loosely couple the antenna and a dummy load to the analyzer
• D. Connect the antenna feed line directly to the analyzer's connector

E6B04

19. What type of semiconductor device is designed for use as a voltage-controlled capacitor?

• A. Zener diode
• B. Varactor diode
• C. Silicon-controlled rectifier
• D. Tunnel diode

E7B16

20. What is the effect of intermodulation products in a linear power amplifier?

• A. Creation of parasitic oscillations
• B. Transmission of spurious signals
• C. All of these choices are correct
• D. Low efficiency

E2A12

21. What is one way to predict the location of a satellite at a given time?

• A. By subtracting the mean anomaly from the orbital inclination
• B. By calculations using the Keplerian elements for the specified satellite
• C. By adding the mean anomaly to the orbital inclination
• D. By means of the Doppler data for the specified satellite

E6F03

22. What is the most common configuration of an optoisolator or optocoupler?

• A. A lens and a photomultiplier
• B. A frequency modulated helium-neon laser
• C. An amplitude modulated helium-neon laser
• D. An LED and a phototransistor

E1C06

23. Which of the following statements concerning remotely controlled amateur stations is true?

• A. Repeater and auxiliary stations may not be remotely controlled
• B. A control operator must be present at the control point
• C. A control operator need not be present at the control point
• D. Only Extra Class operators may be the control operator of a remote station

E1A14

24. What is the maximum bandwidth for a data emission on 60 meters?

• A. 1.5 kHz
• B. 60 Hz
• C. 2.8 kHz
• D. 170 Hz

E2E05

25. Which type of digital mode does not support keyboard-to-keyboard operation?

• A. RTTY
• B. PSK31
• C. MFSK
• D. Winlink

E1F04

26. Which of the following geographic descriptions approximately describes "Line A"?

• A. A line roughly parallel to and south of the U.S.-Canadian border
• B. A line roughly parallel to and west of the U.S. Atlantic coastline
• C. A line roughly parallel to and north of the U.S.-Mexican border and Gulf coastline
• D. A line roughly parallel to and east of the U.S. Pacific coastline

E7A12

27. What type of logic defines "0" as a high voltage?

• A. Assertive Logic
• B. Positive Logic
• C. Reverse Logic
• D. Negative logic

E4C13

28. How does a narrow-band roofing filter affect receiver performance?

• A. It improves dynamic range by attenuating strong signals near the receive frequency
• B. It improves sensitivity by reducing front end noise
• C. It improves intelligibility by using low Q circuitry to reduce ringing
• D. All of these choices are correct

E2D06

29. Which of the following describes a method of establishing EME contacts?

• A. Storing and forwarding digital messages
• B. High speed CW identification to avoid fading
• C. Time synchronous transmissions alternately from each station
• D. Judging optimum transmission times by monitoring beacons reflected from the Moon

E1D01

30. What is the definition of the term telemetry?

• A. Two-way single channel transmissions of data
• B. Two-way radiotelephone transmissions in excess of 1000 feet
• C. One-way transmission that initiates, modifies, or terminates the functions of a device at a distance
• D. One-way transmission of measurements at a distance from the measuring instrument

E9F10

31. What impedance does a 1/8 wavelength transmission line present to a generator when the line is shorted at the far end?

• A. An inductive reactance
• B. The same as the input impedance to the final generator stage
• C. A capacitive reactance
• D. The same as the characteristic impedance of the line

E5C08

32. What coordinate system is often used to display the phase angle of a circuit containing resistance, inductive and/or capacitive reactance?

• A. Elliptical coordinates
• B. Faraday grid
• C. Maidenhead grid
• D. Polar coordinates

E2C07

33. What is the Cabrillo format?

• A. A standard for submission of electronic contest logs
• B. The most common set of contest rules
• C. A method of exchanging information during a contest QSO
• D. The rules of order for meetings between contest sponsors

E4D11

34. Why are third-order intermodulation products created within a receiver of particular interest compared to other products?

• A. Third-order intermodulation produces three products for every input signal within the band of interest
• B. The third-order product of two signals which are in the band of interest is also likely to be within the band
• C. Third-order products are an indication of poor image rejection
• D. The third-order intercept is much higher than other orders

E9H11

35. What characteristic of a cardioid pattern antenna is useful for direction finding?

• A. Broad band response
• B. A very sharp single null
• C. A very sharp peak
• D. High-radiation angle

E3C02

36. What is indicated by a rising A or K index?

• A. An increase in the critical frequency
• B. Decreasing disruption of the geomagnetic field
• C. Increasing disruption of the geomagnetic field
• D. Higher levels of solar UV radiation

E9A17

37. What is the effective radiated power of a repeater station with 200 watts transmitter power output, 2 dB feed line loss, 2.8 dB duplexer loss, 1.2 dB circulator loss, and 7 dBi antenna gain?

• A. 252 watts
• B. 159 watts
• C. 632 watts
• D. 63.2 watts

E8D10

38. What are some of the differences between the Baudot digital code and ASCII?

• A. Baudot uses 6 data bits per character, ASCII uses 7 or 8; Baudot has no letters/figures shift code, ASCII uses 2 letters/figures shift codes
• B. Baudot uses 4 data bits per character, ASCII uses 7 or 8; Baudot uses 1 character as a letters/figures shift code, ASCII has no letters/figures code
• C. Baudot uses 7 data bits per character, ASCII uses 8; Baudot has no letters/figures shift code, ASCII uses 2 letters/figures shift codes
• D. Baudot uses 5 data bits per character, ASCII uses 7 or 8; Baudot uses 2 characters as letters/figures shift codes, ASCII has no letters/figures shift code

E7H13

39. Which of the following is a technique for providing highly accurate and stable oscillators needed for microwave transmission and reception?

• A. Use a GPS signal reference
• B. All of these choices are correct
• C. Use a rubidium stabilized reference oscillator
• D. Use a temperature-controlled high Q dielectric resonator

E7F02

40. What kind of digital signal processing audio filter is used to remove unwanted noise from a received SSB signal?

• A. An adaptive filter
• B. A phase-inverting filter
• C. A crystal-lattice filter
• D. A Hilbert-transform filter

E8C03

41. When performing phase shift keying, why is it advantageous to shift phase precisely at the zero crossing of the RF carrier?

• A. This results in the least possible transmitted bandwidth for the particular mode
• B. All of these choices are correct
• C. It improves carrier suppression
• D. It is easier to demodulate with a conventional, non-synchronous detector

E9B08

42. How can the approximate beam-width in a given plane of a directional antenna be determined?

• A. Draw two imaginary lines through the ends of the elements and measure the angle between the lines
• B. Measure the ratio of the signal strengths of the radiated power lobes from the front and side of the antenna
• C. Measure the ratio of the signal strengths of the radiated power lobes from the front and rear of the antenna
• D. Note the two points where the signal strength of the antenna is 3 dB less than maximum and compute the angular difference

E5A13

43. What is an effect of increasing Q in a resonant circuit?

• A. Phase shift can become uncontrolled
• B. Internal voltages and circulating currents increase
• C. Parasitic effects are minimized
• D. Fewer components are needed for the same performance

E3A16

44. Which of the following best describes electromagnetic waves traveling in free space?

• A. Changing electric and magnetic fields propagate the energy
• B. Electric and magnetic fields become aligned as they travel
• C. The energy propagates through a medium with a high refractive index
• D. The waves are reflected by the ionosphere and return to their source

E6C12

45. What is BiCMOS logic?

• A. A logic device with two CMOS circuits per package
• B. A logic family based on bismuth CMOS devices
• C. An integrated circuit logic family using both bipolar and CMOS transistors
• D. A FET logic family based on bimetallic semiconductors

E8A08

46. Why would a direct or flash conversion analog-to-digital converter be useful for a software defined radio?

• A. All of these choices are correct
• B. Immunity to out of sequence coding reduces spurious responses
• C. Very high speed allows digitizing high frequencies
• D. Very low power consumption decreases frequency drift

E3B14

47. What happens to linearly polarized radio waves that split into ordinary and extraordinary waves in the ionosphere?

• A. They become elliptically polarized
• B. Their polarization is randomly modified
• C. They become phase-locked
• D. They are bent toward the magnetic poles

E9E04

48. What is the purpose of the series capacitor in a gamma-type antenna matching network?

• A. To provide DC isolation between the feed line and the antenna
• B. To transform the antenna impedance to a higher value
• C. To provide a rejection notch that prevents the radiation of harmonics
• D. To cancel the inductive reactance of the matching network

E4A04

49. What determines the upper frequency limit for a computer soundcard-based oscilloscope program?

• A. Amount of memory on the soundcard
• B. Analog-to-digital conversion speed of the soundcard
• C. Q of the interface of the interface circuit
• D. All of these choices are correct

E7C02

50. Which of the following is a property of a T-network with series capacitors and a parallel shunt inductor?

• A. It is a notch filter
• B. It is a high-pass filter
• C. It is a low-pass filter
• D. It is a band-pass filter