Practice Exam

E2B01

1. In digital television, what does a coding rate of 3/4 mean?

• A. 1/4 of the time interval is used as a guard interval
• B. Three, four-bit words are used to transmit each pixel
• C. Data compression reduces data rate by 3/4
• D. 25% of the data sent is forward error correction data

E6E01

2. Why is gallium arsenide (GaAs) useful for semiconductor devices operating at UHF and higher frequencies?

• A. Lower transconductance
• B. Higher noise figures
• C. Higher electron mobility
• D. Lower junction voltage drop

E9D10

3. How does radiation resistance of a base-fed whip antenna change below its resonant frequency?

• A. Radiation resistance decreases
• B. Radiation resistance does not depend on frequency
• C. Radiation resistance increases
• D. Radiation resistance becomes imaginary

E6D01

4. What is piezoelectricity?

• A. A characteristic of materials that generate a voltage when stressed and that flex when a voltage is applied
• B. A characteristic of materials that have an index of refraction which depends on the polarization of the electromagnetic wave passing through it
• C. The ability of materials to generate voltage when an electromagnetic wave of a certain frequency is applied
• D. The ability of materials to generate electromagnetic waves of a certain frequency when voltage is applied

E8A10

5. What is the purpose of a low-pass filter used at the output of a digital-to-analog converter?

• A. Improve accuracy by removing out-of-sequence codes from the input
• B. All these choices are correct
• C. Remove spurious sampling artifacts from the output signal
• D. Lower the input bandwidth to increase the effective resolution

E3A11

6. What is a typical range for tropospheric duct propagation of microwave signals?

• A. 2,500 miles
• B. 1,200 miles
• C. 100 miles to 300 miles
• D. 10 miles to 50 miles

E9B09

7. What type of analysis is commonly used for modeling antennas?

• A. Graphical analysis
• B. Mutual impedance analysis
• C. Method of Moments
• D. Calculus differentiation with respect to physical properties

E9H07

8. What is the function of a Beverage antenna's termination resistor?

• A. Increase the front-to-side ratio
• B. Absorb signals from the reverse direction
• C. Decrease SWR bandwidth
• D. Eliminate harmonic reception

E4D13

9. What is the received signal level with a transmit power of 10 W (+40 dBm), a transmit antenna gain of 6 dBi, a receive antenna gain of 3 dBi, and a path loss of 100 dB?

• A. -60 dBm
• B. -57 dBm
• C. -51 dBm
• D. -54 dBm

E1C03

10. How long must an operator wait after filing a notification with the Utilities Technology Council (UTC) before operating on the 2200-meter or 630-meter band?

• A. Operations may commence immediately, and may continue unless interference is reported by the UTC
• B. Operators may not operate until a test signal has been transmitted in coordination with the local power company
• C. Operators must not operate until approval is received
• D. Operators may operate after 30 days, providing they have not been told that their station is within 1 kilometer of PLC systems using those frequencies

E1F08

11. Which of the following types of amateur station communications are prohibited?

• A. Communications that have religious content
• B. Communications transmitted for hire or material compensation, except as otherwise provided in the rules
• C. Communications in a language other than English
• D. Communications that have political content, except as allowed by the Fairness Doctrine

E5B09

12. What is the relationship between the AC current through a capacitor and the voltage across a capacitor?

• A. Current leads voltage by 90 degrees
• B. Voltage leads current by 90 degrees
• C. Voltage and current are 180 degrees out of phase
• D. Voltage and current are in phase

E7H13

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

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

E2C05

14. What is the function of a DX QSL Manager?

• A. Communicate to a DXpedition about propagation, band openings, pileup conditions, etc.
• B. Run a net to allow many stations to contact a rare DX station
• C. Handle the receiving and sending of confirmations for a DX station
• D. Allocate frequencies for DXpeditions

E1B10

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

• A. Specific local government channels
• B. Specific segments in the amateur service MF, HF, VHF, and UHF bands
• C. All amateur service frequencies authorized to the control operator
• D. All these choices are correct

E8D10

16. 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 7 data bits per character, ASCII uses 8; Baudot has no letters/figures shift code, ASCII uses 2 letters/figures shift codes
• C. 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
• 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

E5D04

17. Why are short connections used at microwave frequencies?

• A. To reduce noise figure
• B. To increase compensating capacitance
• C. To reduce phase shift along the connection
• D. To increase neutralizing resistance

E7A05

18. Which of the following circuits continuously alternates between two states without an external clock signal?

• A. J-K flip-flop
• B. T flip-flop
• C. Astable multivibrator
• D. Monostable multivibrator

E8C13

19. What is described by the constellation diagram of a QAM or QPSK signal?

• A. The number of bits used for error correction in the protocol
• B. The possible phase and amplitude states for each symbol
• C. How many carriers may be present at the same time
• D. Frequency response of the signal stream

E7B08

20. Why are switching amplifiers more efficient than linear amplifiers?

• A. Switching amplifiers use push-pull circuits
• B. Linear amplifiers have high gain resulting in higher harmonic content
• C. The switching device is at saturation or cutoff most of the time
• D. Switching amplifiers operate at higher voltages

E7D01

21. How does a linear electronic voltage regulator work?

• A. The conduction of a control element is varied to maintain a constant output voltage
• B. It has a ramp voltage as its output
• C. The control element duty cycle is proportional to the line or load conditions
• D. It eliminates the need for a pass transistor

E4B02

22. What is the significance of voltmeter sensitivity expressed in ohms per volt?

• A. The full scale reading in amps divided by ohms per volt rating will determine the size of shunt needed
• B. The full scale reading of the voltmeter multiplied by its ohms per volt rating is the input impedance of the voltmeter
• C. The reading in volts multiplied by the ohms per volt rating will determine the power drawn by the device under test
• D. The reading in ohms divided by the ohms per volt rating will determine the voltage applied to the circuit

E0A05

23. What hazard is created by operating at microwave frequencies?

• A. The extremely high frequency energy can damage the joints of antenna structures
• B. Microwaves are ionizing radiation
• C. The high gain antennas commonly used can result in high exposure levels
• D. Microwaves are in the frequency range where wave velocity is higher

E9G03

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

• A. Impedance and SWR values in transmission lines
• B. Point-to-point propagation reliability as a function of frequency
• C. Beam headings and radiation patterns
• D. Satellite azimuth and elevation bearings

E3C03

25. Which of the following signal paths is most likely to experience high levels of absorption when the A-index or K-index is elevated?

• A. Through the auroral oval
• B. Sporadic-E
• C. Transequatorial
• D. NVIS

E6A02

26. Which of the following semiconductor materials contains excess free electrons?

• A. N-type
• B. Insulated gate
• C. Bipolar
• D. P-type

E6B04

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

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

E3B05

28. Which of the following paths is most likely to support long-distance propagation on 160 meters?

• A. Paths at high latitudes
• B. A path entirely in sunlight
• C. A path entirely in darkness
• D. A direct north-south path

E9F08

29. Which of the following is a significant difference between foam dielectric coaxial cable and solid dielectric coaxial cable, assuming all other parameters are the same?

• A. Foam dielectric coaxial cable has lower loss per unit of length
• B. Foam dielectric coaxial cable has lower safe maximum operating voltage
• C. All these choices are correct
• D. Foam dielectric coaxial cable has higher velocity factor

E1D06

30. What is the maximum permitted transmitter output power when operating a model craft by telecommand?

• A. 100 watts
• B. 5 watts
• C. 1 watt
• D. 2 watts

E6C02

31. What happens when the level of a comparator's input signal crosses the threshold voltage?

• A. The IC input can be damaged
• B. The feedback loop becomes unstable
• C. The comparator changes its output state
• D. The reference level appears at the output

E2E03

32. To what does the "4" in FT4 refer?

• A. Four transmit/receive cycles per minute
• B. Four-tone continuous-phase frequency shift keying
• C. All these choices are correct
• D. Multiples of 4 bits of user information

E1A05

33. Who must be in physical control of the station apparatus of an amateur station aboard any vessel or craft that is documented or registered in the United States?

• A. Only a person named in an amateur station license grant
• B. Only a person with an FCC Marine Radio license grant
• C. Any person named in an amateur station license grant or a person holding an unrestricted Radiotelephone Operator Permit
• D. Any person holding an FCC issued amateur license or who is authorized for alien reciprocal operation

E1E11

34. What must the VE team do if an examinee scores a passing grade on all examination elements needed for an upgrade or new license?

• A. All these choices are correct
• B. Issue the examinee the new or upgrade license
• C. Three VEs must certify that the examinee is qualified for the license grant and that they have complied with the administering VE requirements
• D. Photocopy all examination documents and forward them to the FCC for processing

E7F09

35. Why is an anti-aliasing filter required in a decimator?

• A. It peaks the response of the decimator, improving bandwidth
• B. It notches out the sampling frequency to avoid sampling errors
• C. It removes low-frequency signal components to eliminate the need for DC restoration
• D. It removes high-frequency signal components that would otherwise be reproduced as lower frequency components

E5C01

36. Which of the following represents pure capacitive reactance of 100 ohms in rectangular notation?

• A. 0 - j100
• B. 100 - j0
• C. 100 + j0
• D. 0 + j100

E7E06

37. Why is de-emphasis used in FM communications receivers?

• A. To remove third-order distortion products
• B. For higher efficiency
• C. For compatibility with transmitters using phase modulation
• D. To reduce impulse noise reception

E5A10

38. What is the resonant frequency of an RLC circuit if R is 33 ohms, L is 50 microhenries, and C is 10 picofarads?

• A. 7.12 MHz
• B. 23.5 kHz
• C. 7.12 kHz
• D. 23.5 MHz

E7C03

39. What is the purpose of adding an inductor to a Pi-network to create a Pi-L-network?

• A. Greater transformation range
• B. Higher efficiency
• C. To eliminate one capacitor
• D. Greater harmonic suppression

E2A06

40. What are Keplerian elements?

• A. Parameters that define the orbit of a satellite
• B. High-emission heater filaments used in magnetron tubes
• C. Phase reversing elements in a Yagi antenna
• D. Encrypting codes used for spread spectrum modulation

E9A07

41. What is the effective isotropic radiated power (EIRP) 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. 159 watts
• B. 63.2 watts
• C. 632 watts
• D. 252 watts

E2D11

42. How do APRS stations relay data?

• A. By DMR repeaters
• B. By C4FM repeaters
• C. By packet ACK/NAK relay
• D. By packet digipeaters

E9C14

43. How does the radiation pattern of a horizontally-polarized antenna mounted above a long slope compare with the same antenna mounted above flat ground?

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

E4A05

44. What is the purpose of using a prescaler with a frequency counter?

• A. Prevent oscillation in a low-frequency counter circuit
• B. Reduce the signal frequency to within the counter's operating range
• C. Multiply a higher frequency signal so a low-frequency counter can display the operating frequency
• D. Amplify low-level signals for more accurate counting

E9E08

45. What is a use for a Wilkinson divider?

• A. To divide the frequency of the input to a counter to increase its frequency range
• B. To feed high-impedance antennas from a low-impedance source
• C. To divide the operating frequency of a transmitter signal so it can be used on a lower frequency band
• D. To divide power equally between two 50-ohm loads while maintaining 50-ohm input impedance

E8B05

46. What is the deviation ratio of an FM phone signal having a maximum frequency swing of plus or minus 5 kHz if the highest modulation frequency is 3 kHz?

• A. 1.67
• B. 0.167
• C. 6
• D. 0.6

E4C08

47. An SDR receiver is overloaded when input signals exceed what level?

• A. The reference voltage of the analog-to-digital converter
• B. One-half of the maximum sample rate
• C. One-half of the maximum sampling buffer size
• D. The maximum count value of the analog-to-digital converter

E7G12

48. What is an operational amplifier?

• A. A digital audio amplifier whose characteristics are determined by components external to the amplifier
• B. An amplifier used to increase the average output of frequency modulated amateur signals to the legal limit
• C. A RF amplifier used in the UHF and microwave regions
• D. A high-gain, direct-coupled differential amplifier with very high input impedance and very low output impedance

E4E01

49. What problem can occur when using an automatic notch filter (ANF) to remove interfering carriers while receiving CW signals?

• A. All these choices are correct
• B. Removal of the CW signal as well as the interfering carrier
• C. Excessive ringing
• D. Any nearby signal passing through the DSP system will overwhelm the desired signal

E6F04

50. What is the photovoltaic effect?

• A. The conversion of light to electrical energy
• B. The effect that causes a phototransistor's beta to decrease when exposed to light
• C. The conversion of voltage to current when exposed to light
• D. The effect that causes a photodiode to emit light when a voltage is applied