Practice Exam

E9D10

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

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

E7B08

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

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

E2D11

3. How do APRS stations relay data?

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

E7H10

4. What information is contained in the lookup table of a direct digital synthesizer (DDS)?

• A. Frequently used receiver and transmitter frequencies
• B. The phase relationship between a voltage-controlled oscillator and the output waveform
• C. Amplitude values that represent the desired waveform
• D. The phase relationship between a reference oscillator and the output waveform

E2E09

5. Which of the following HF digital modes uses variable-length character coding?

• A. PACTOR
• B. RTTY
• C. PSK31
• D. MT63

E2B02

6. How many horizontal lines make up a fast-scan (NTSC) television frame?

• A. 60
• B. 525
• C. 1080
• D. 30

E7C07

7. Which describes a Pi-L network?

• A. A Pi-network with an additional output series inductor
• B. A matching network in which all components are isolated from ground
• C. A Phase Inverter Load network
• D. A network with only three discrete parts

E9A10

8. Which of the following improves the efficiency of a ground-mounted quarter-wave vertical antenna?

• A. Installing a ground radial system
• B. Shortening the radiating element
• C. All these choices are correct
• D. Isolating the coax shield from ground

E8C07

9. What is the bandwidth of a 4,800-Hz frequency shift, 9,600-baud ASCII FM transmission?

• A. 9.6 kHz
• B. 15.36 kHz
• C. 4.8 kHz
• D. 5.76 kHz

E9G09

10. What third family of circles is often added to a Smith chart during the process of designing impedance matching networks?

• A. Constant-SWR circles
• B. Coaxial-length circles
• C. Transmission line length circles
• D. Radiation-pattern circles

E9E11

11. What is the purpose of using multiple driven elements connected through phasing lines?

• A. To allow single-band antennas to operate on other bands
• B. To prevent harmonic radiation from the transmitter
• C. To create a low-angle radiation pattern
• D. To control the antenna's radiation pattern

E1B08

12. What limitations may the FCC place on an amateur station if its signal causes interference to domestic broadcast reception, assuming that the receivers involved are of good engineering design?

• A. The amateur station must cease operation
• B. The amateur station must cease operation on all frequencies above 30 MHz
• C. The amateur station must cease operation on all frequencies below 30 MHz
• D. The amateur station must avoid transmitting during certain hours on frequencies that cause the interference

E1D10

13. Which amateur stations are eligible to be telecommand stations of space stations, subject to the privileges of the class of operator license held by the control operator of the station?

• A. Any amateur station so designated by the space station licensee
• B. Any amateur station so designated by the ITU
• C. All these choices are correct
• D. Any amateur station approved by AMSAT

E9C02

14. What type of radiation pattern is created by two 1/4-wavelength vertical antennas spaced 1/4- wavelength apart and fed 90 degrees out of phase?

• A. Cardioid
• B. Omni-directional
• C. A figure-eight broadside to the axis of the array
• D. A figure-eight end-fire along the axis of the array

E4D08

15. What causes intermodulation in an electronic circuit?

• A. Negative feedback
• B. Lack of neutralization
• C. Positive feedback
• D. Nonlinear circuits or devices

E2C12

16. What indicates the delay between a control operator action and the corresponding change in the transmitted signal?

• A. Latency
• B. Anti-VOX
• C. Jitter
• D. Hang time

E6C06

17. Why do CMOS digital integrated circuits have high immunity to noise on the input signal or power supply?

• A. Bandwidth is very limited
• B. The input switching threshold is about twice the power supply voltage
• C. Large bypass capacitance is inherent
• D. The input switching threshold is about half the power supply voltage

E3C08

18. Which of the following is the space-weather term for an extreme geomagnetic storm?

• A. M9
• B. B9
• C. G5
• D. X5

E6B08

19. Which of the following is a Schottky barrier diode?

• A. PIN junction
• B. Electrolytic rectifier
• C. Metal-semiconductor junction
• D. Thermionic emission diode

E3A05

20. How are the component fields of an electromagnetic wave oriented?

• A. They are parallel
• B. They are tangential
• C. They are 90 degrees out of phase
• D. They are at right angles

E7A09

21. What logical operation is performed by a two-input exclusive NOR gate?

• A. It produces a 0 at its output only if all inputs are 0
• B. It produces a 1 at its output if one and only one input is 1
• C. It produces a 1 at its output only if all inputs are 1
• D. It produces a 0 at its output if one and only one of its inputs is 1

E4E13

22. Where should a station AC surge protector be installed?

• A. At an AC outlet
• B. On the single point ground panel
• C. On a ground rod outside the station
• D. At the AC service panel

E5A13

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

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

E1F09

24. Which of the following cannot be transmitted over an amateur radio mesh network?

• A. Messages encoded to obscure their meaning
• B. Third party traffic
• C. Email
• D. All these choices are correct

E5B11

25. What is the phase angle between the voltage across and the current through a series RLC circuit if XC is 25 ohms, R is 100 ohms, and XL is 75 ohms?

• A. 63 degrees with the voltage lagging the current
• B. 63 degrees with the voltage leading the current
• C. 27 degrees with the voltage leading the current
• D. 27 degrees with the voltage lagging the current

E6A10

26. In Figure E6-1, which is the schematic symbol for an N-channel dual-gate MOSFET?

• A. 2
• B. 6
• C. 4
• D. 5

E4C08

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

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

E4B07

28. What do the subscripts of S parameters represent?

• A. Frequency order of the measurements
• B. The port or ports at which measurements are made
• C. Relative quality of the data
• D. The relative time between measurements

E9H05

29. What challenge is presented by a small wire-loop antenna for direction finding?

• A. It is practical for use only on VHF and higher bands
• B. All these choices are correct
• C. It has a bidirectional null pattern
• D. It does not have a clearly defined null

E7E07

30. What is meant by the term "baseband" in radio communications?

• A. The frequency range occupied by a message signal prior to modulation
• B. The lowest frequency band that the transmitter or receiver covers
• C. The unmodulated bandwidth of the transmitted signal
• D. The basic oscillator frequency in an FM transmitter that is multiplied to increase the deviation and carrier frequency

E5D02

31. Why is it important to keep lead lengths short for components used in circuits for VHF and above?

• A. To maintain component lifetime
• B. To minimize inductive reactance
• C. To increase the thermal time constant
• D. All these choices are correct

E6D10

32. What is a primary advantage of using a toroidal core instead of a solenoidal core in an inductor?

• A. Toroidal cores make it easier to couple the magnetic energy into other components
• B. Toroidal cores have lower Q characteristics
• C. Toroidal cores confine most of the magnetic field within the core material
• D. Toroidal cores exhibit greater hysteresis

E7D11

33. What is the purpose of an inverter connected to a solar panel output?

• A. Convert the panel's output from DC to AC
• B. Prevent discharge when panel is not illuminated
• C. Reduce AC ripple on the output
• D. Maintain voltage with varying illumination levels

E8D05

34. What is the most common method of reducing key clicks?

• A. Increase keying waveform rise and fall times
• B. Reduce keying waveform rise and fall times
• C. Insert low-pass filters at the transmitter output
• D. Insert high-pass filters at the transmitter output

E9B04

35. What is the front-to-back ratio of the radiation pattern shown in Figure E9-2?

• A. 3 dB
• B. 15 dB
• C. 38 dB
• D. 28 dB

E7F03

36. What type of digital signal processing filter is used to generate an SSB signal?

• A. An elliptical filter
• B. A notch filter
• C. An adaptive filter
• D. A Hilbert-transform filter

E3B13

37. What type of polarization is supported by ground-wave propagation?

• A. Circular
• B. Elliptical
• C. Horizontal
• D. Vertical

E0A11

38. To what should lanyards be attached while climbing?

• A. Antenna mast
• B. Guy brackets
• C. Tower legs
• D. Tower rungs

E6F02

39. What happens to photoconductive material when light shines on it?

• A. Reflectivity decreases
• B. Resistance decreases
• C. Reflectivity increases
• D. Resistance increases

E8A03

40. Which of the following describes a signal in the time domain?

• A. Amplitude at different times
• B. Frequency at different times
• C. Discrete impulses in time order
• D. Power at intervals of phase

E2A07

41. Which of the following types of signals can be relayed through a linear transponder?

• A. SSB and SSTV
• B. PSK and packet
• C. FM and CW
• D. All these choices are correct

E6E11

42. What is a characteristic of DIP packaging used for integrated circuits?

• A. Extremely low stray capacitance (dielectrically isolated package)
• B. Extremely high resistance between pins (doubly insulated package)
• C. Two rows of connecting pins on opposite sides of package (dual in-line package)
• D. Two chips in each package (dual in package)

E1C07

43. What notifications must be given before transmitting on the 630- or 2200-meter bands?

• A. Operators must inform the Utilities Technology Council (UTC) of their call sign and coordinates of the station
• B. Operators must inform the FAA of their intent to operate, giving their call sign and distance to the nearest runway
• C. A special endorsement must be requested from the FCC
• D. An environmental impact statement must be filed with the Department of the Interior

E1E11

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

E4A06

45. What is the effect of aliasing on a digital oscilloscope when displaying a waveform?

• A. Excessive blanking occurs, which prevents display of the waveform
• B. Calibration of the vertical scale is no longer valid
• C. The waveform DC offset will be inaccurate
• D. A false, jittery low-frequency version of the waveform is displayed

E9F11

46. What impedance does a 1/8-wavelength transmission line present to an RF generator when the line is open at the far end?

• A. A capacitive reactance
• B. The same as the characteristic impedance of the line
• C. An inductive reactance
• D. Infinite

E5C01

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

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

E7G03

48. What is the typical input impedance of an op-amp?

• A. Very low
• B. Very high
• C. 100 ohms
• D. 10,000 ohms

E1A07

49. What is the maximum power permitted on the 2200-meter band?

• A. 100 watts PEP (peak envelope power)
• B. 1 watt EIRP (equivalent isotropic radiated power)
• C. 50 watts PEP (peak envelope power)
• D. 5 watts EIRP (equivalent isotropic radiated power)

E8B05

50. 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. 0.167
• B. 6
• C. 1.67
• D. 0.6