The theory of radio

waves was
originated by:
A. Marconi
B. Bell
C. Maxwell
D. Hertz

The person who

sent the first radio
signal across the
Atlantic ocean was:
A. Marconi
B. Bell
C. Maxwell
D. Hertz

The transmission
of radio waves was
first done by:
A. Marconi
B. Bell
C. Maxwell
D. Hertz

A complete communication
system must include:
A. a transmitter and receiver
B. a transmitter, a receiver,
and a channel
C. a transmitter, a receiver,
and a spectrum analyzer
D. a multiplexer, a
demultiplexer, and a
channel

A.
B.
C.
D.

The bandwidth
required for a
modulated carrier
on:
thedepends
carrier frequency
the signal-to-noise
ratio
the signal-plus-noise
to noise ratio
the baseband

When two or more signals

share a common channel,
it is called:
A.
B.
C.
D.

sub-channeling
signal switching
SINAD
multiplexing

TDM stands for:

A. Time-Division
Multiplexing
B. Two-level Digital
Modulation
C. Time Domain
Measurement

FDM stands for:

A. Fast Digital Modulation
B. Frequency Domain
Measurement
C. Frequency-Division
Multiplexing
D. None of the above

Distortion is caused by:

A. creation of harmonics of
baseband frequencies
B. baseband frequencies
"mixing" with each other
C. shift in phase
relationships between
baseband frequencies
D. all of the above

The collection of
sinusoidal frequencies
present in a modulated
carrier is called its:
A. frequency-domain
representation
B. Fourier series
C. spectrum
D. all of the above

The baseband bandwidth

for a voice-grade
(telephone) signal is:
A. approximately 3 kHz
B. 20 Hz to 15,000 Hz
C. at least 5 kHz
D. none of the above

Noise in a communication
system originates in:
A. the sender
B. the receiver
C. the channel
D. all of the above

"Man-made" noise can

come from:
A. equipment that sparks
B. temperature
C. static
D. all of the above

Thermal noise is
generated in:
a. transistors and diodes
b. resistors
c. copper wire
d. all of the above

dependent on
temperature and its
frequency content is
spread equally
throughout the usable
spectrum. It is also called
Brownian noise, Johnson
noise, White noise, and
Gaussian noise.
Resistive components are
the primary source of

Noise power formula

k Boltzman constant (1.38 x 10-23 J/

T Noise temperature
B Bandwidth

Noise voltage formula

R Resistance generating the noise

A 300-ohm resistor is connected

across the 300-ohm antenna input
of a television receiver. The
bandwidth of the receiver is 6 MHz,
and the resistor is at room
temperature (290 K or 20oC) . Find
the noise power and noise voltage
applied to the receiver input.
a. 24.2 fW and 5.4 uV
b. 18.6 fW and 4.9 uV
c. 18.6 fW and 8.2 uV
d. 24.2 fW and 4.9 uV

Shot noise is generated

in:
a. transistors and diodes
b. resistors
c. copper wire
d. none of the above

Shot noise consists of

random fluctuations of
the electric current in an
electrical conductor
which is caused by the
fact that the current is
carried by carried by
discrete charges
(electrons)

In electronic devices,
shot noise is due to shot
effect, caused by random
variations in the arrival of
electrons or holes at the
output electrode of an
amplifying device and
appearing as a randomly
varying noise current
superimposed on the
output.

The name shot noise is

derived from the fact that
when amplified, it is
supposed to sound as
though a shower of lead
shots were falling on a
metal sheet.

Shot noise formulas for a

diode:

rms shot noise current of a diode

charge of an electron (1.602x10-19

direct diode current

reverse saturation current

required to produce 10 uV of
noise in a receiver with an
input impedance of 75 ohms,
resistive and a noise power
bandwidth of 200 kHz (these
values are typical of FM
broadcast receivers.) What
must the current through the
a. 230be?
mA
diode
b. 276 mA
c. 320 mA
d. 440 mA

The power density of

"flicker" noise is:
a. the same at all
frequencies
b. greater at high
frequencies
c. greater at low
frequencies

Flicker noise is inversely

proportional to frequency
and may be completely
negligible at about above
500 Hz. It is sometimes
considered as lowfrequency noise,
modulation noise, excess
noise, 1/f noise or pink
noise.

So called "1/f" noise is

also called:
a. random noise
b. pink noise
c. white noise
d. partition noise

Light is pink when it

contains more red than it
does other colors, and
red is at the low end of
the visible
spectrum. Likewise, pink
noise has higher power
density at lower
frequencies.

"Pink" noise has:

a. equal power per Hertz
b. equal power per
octave
c. constant power
d. none of the above

In pink noise - a
reduction of 50% (or
6dB ) of energy as
you go up one
octave

When two noise

voltages, V1 and V2, are
combined, the total
voltage VT is:
a. VT = sqrt(V1 x V1 + V2 x
V2)
b. VT = (V1 + V2)/2
c. VT = sqrt(V1 x V2)
d. VT = V1 + V2

from one noise source

that is combined with 40
mV from another noise
source.
Calculate the total noise
a.
20
mV
voltage.
b. 35 mV
c. 45 mV
d. 50 mV

Signal-to-Noise ratio is
calculated as:
a. signal voltage divided by
noise voltage
b. signal power divided by
noise power
c. first add the signal power to
the noise power, then divide
by noise power

If you have 100 mV of

signal and 10 mV of noise,
both across the same 100ohm load, what is the
signalto-noise ratio in dB?
a. 10 dB
b. 20 dB
c. 30 dB
d. 40 dB

SINAD is calculated as:

a. signal voltage divided by
noise voltage
b. signal power divided by
noise power
c. first add the signal power to
the noise power, then divide
by noise power

SINAD is a measurement
that can be used for any
radio communication device
to look at the degradation
of the signal by unwanted
or extraneous signals
including noise and
distortion.

A receiver produces a noise

power of 200 mW with no
signal. The output level
increases to 5 W when a
signal is applied. Calculate
(S+N)/N.
a. 25
b. 30
c. 35
d. 40

Noise figure is a measure

of:
a. how much noise is in a
communications system
b. how much noise is in the
channel
c. how much noise an amplifier
adds to a signal
d. signal-to-noise ratio in dB

Noise Factor is used to

specify how noisy a device
is. It is defined as the ratio
of the input S/N to the
output S/N usually
determined at the standard
noise temperature of 290K.

The input to an amplifier

has a signal-to-noise ratio
of 100 dB and an output
signal-to-noise ratio of 80
dB. Find the noise figure.
a. 10 dB
b. 20 dB
c. 30 dB
d. 40 dB

A microwave receiver has

a noise temperature of
145 K. Find its noise
factor.
a. 1.5
b. 2.0
c. 2.5
d. 3.0

An amplifier has a noise

figure of 2 dB. What is its
equivalent noise
temperature?
a. 345.6 K
b. 169.6 K
c. 230.8 K
d. 168.9 K

The formula used to calculate

the totalnoise factorof a
cascade of stages, each with
its ownnoise
factorandgain(assuming
that the impedances are
matched
at each
stage).
a. Johnsons
Formula
b. Friss Formula
c. Brownians Formula
d. Shockleys Formula

The formula used to calculate

the totalnoise factorof a
cascade of stages, each with
its ownnoise
factorandgain(assuming
that the impedances are
matched at each stage).

Two cascaded amplifiers each

have a noise factor of 5 and a
gain of 10. Find the total NF
for the pair.
a. 3.2
b. 5.4
c. 6.9
d. 8.5

A three-stage amplifier has the

following specifications:
Stage

Power Gain

Noise Factor

10

25

30

Calculate the power gain, noise

figure, and noise temperature for
the entire amplifier, assuming
matched conditions:

a. 3400, 2.316, 144

b. 7500, 5.216, 382
c. 7500, 2.316, 382
d. 2800, 2.316, 382

The part, or parts, of a

sinusoidal carrier that can
be modulated are:
a. its amplitude
b. its amplitude and frequency
c. its amplitude, frequency,
and direction
d. its amplitude, frequency,
and phase angle

IDENTIFICAT
ION

One-way communications
simplex
is called
_______.

Simultaneous two-way
communications is called
full duplex
______________.

Transmission Modes
Generally, the mode of
communication can be divided
into 3 types :
Simplex System: the system
capable of sending information in
one direction only. (e.g. TV & radio
broadcasting) Also called receiveonly, transmit-only, or one-way
only lines.
Half-duplex System: the system
capable to carry information in
both direction, but only one
50

 Full-duplex System:
Information can be carried in
both direction at the same
time. The 2 directions of
information travel are
independent of each other.
(e.g. ordinary/mobile phone
systems, computer systems)
Also called two-way
simultaneous, duplex or bothway lines.
Full/full duplex System:
51

The frequency band used

to modulate the carrier is
base the _____band.
called

The original electrical

information signal to be
transmitted is called the
baseband signal
_______________.

The process of modifying

a high frequency carrier
with the information to
be transmitted
is
called
modulation
____________.

The process of
transmitting two or more
information signals
simultaneously over the
same channel is called
multiplexing
_______________.

Continuous voice or
video signals are
baseband
referred to as ___________
signals.

Recovering information
from a carrier is known
as detection
_____________.

Transmission of graphical
information over the
telephone network is
accomplished by
facsimile
_________________.

Measuring physical
conditions at some
remote location and
transmitting this data for
analysis is the process of
telemetry
__________.

Receiving
electromagnetic
emissions from stars is
astronomy
called radio ____________.

A personal
communications hobby
for individualsham
is ________
radio.

A frequency of 27MHz
has a wavelength of
approximately
11m
______________.

Radio signals are made

up of electric and
magnetic
____________ fields.

The voice frequency

range
is ________________.
300
to 3000 Hz

EM spectrum

ELF 30-300
VF 300-3
VLF 3-30 navy/submarines
aeronautical and marine,
LF 30-300 subcarriers
MF 300-3 AM
HF 3-30 amateur radio, CB radio
VH
30-300 FM, TV (channels 2-13)
UH
F
300-3 TV (channels 14-83)
SH
F
3-30 satellites and radars
F
EH
satellites and some
30-300 specialized radars
0.7F
IR
8000 -4000
100m
VISIBLE

ELF
VF
VLF
LF
MF
HF
VH
UH
F
SH
F
F
EH
F

30-300
300-3
3-30 Myriametric
30-300 Kilometric
300-3 Hectometric
3-30 Decametric
30-300 Metric
300-3 Decimetric
3-30 Centimetric
30-300 Millimetric

My
Kitten
Has
D
Most
Decent
S...
mell

High frequencies are

generally known as
shortwaves
_____________.

Frequencies above 1 GHz

range are called
microwaves
_____________.

The audio frequency

range
20isto________________.
20,000 Hz

The sound above the

audio frequency range is
calledultrasound
________________.

Another name for signals

in the HF range is
shortwaves
_____________.

Television broadcasting
occurs in which
frequency bands?
VHF and UHF

The range of
frequencies used for
AM?
535-1605 kHz

What is that band

called?
MF

The range of
frequencies used for
FM?
88-108 MHz

What is that band

called?
VHF

Electromagnetic waves
produced primarily by
heat are called _________
infrared
rays.

One __________ is
micron
equivalent to onemillionth of a meter.

The frequency range of

infrared rays is
approximately
____________.
0.7 to 100m

IR Classifications
Long infrared 0.01 mm to
1000
nm
Short infrared 1000 nm to
700 nm

A unit of length
equivalent to 1 x 10
-10
meter.
Angstrom ()

The range of
wavelength of visible
8000 (red)
light to
is 4000
(violet)
________________________.

In the united states,

the electromagnetic
spectrum is regulated
and managed by
FCC
____.

What is the
threshold of
hearing?

A. 0 dB SPL
B. 10 dB SPL
C. 120 dB SPL
D. None of the
choices

The sound of
leaves
rustling is 10
dB SPL

What is the
threshold of
pain?

A. 0 dB SPL
B. 10 dB SPL
C. 120 dB SPL
D. None of the
choices

What is the
frequency of
visible light

A. 0.3 PHz to 3
PHz
B. 0.4 PHz to 4
PHz
C. 0.5 PHz to 5

Flicker noise or excess

noise, or 1/f noise is
insignificant
A. Above 1 kHz
B. Above 10 kHz
C. Above 100
kHz
D. Above 1 MHz

Atmospheric noise is
insignificant above
A. 1 MHz
B. 30 MHz
C. 50 MHz
D. 80 MHz

1 Neper is equal to
A. 2.232 dB
B. 8.686 dB
C. 5.232 dB
D. 10.454 dB

The fundamental
frequency of
typical human
voice
500 Hz

The bandwidth to
propagate voicequality analog
3 kHz

The bandwidth to
propagate voicequality digital
telephone
32 kHz

Noise Representation, Types

& Source

Two General Categories of Noise :

Correlated noise noise that exists
only when a signal is present.
Uncorrelated noise noise that
presents all the time whether
there is a signal or not

96

Uncorrelated noise
Two General Categories of Uncorrelated Noise :
1. External noise noise that generated outside the device or
circuit.
Atmospheric noise
- naturally occurring electrical disturbances that originate within
earths atmosphere such as lightning.
- also known as static electricity.

Extraterrestrial noise
- consists of electrical signal that originate from outside earths
atmosphere and therefore also known as deep-space noise.
- 2 categories of extraterrestrial noise.
i solar noise noise that generated directly from the suns
heat.
Sunspot activity follows a cyclic pattern that repeats every
11 years.
ii cosmic noise / black-body noise noise that is distributed
throughout the galaxies.

Man-made noise
- noise that is produced by mankind.
- source : spark-producing mechanism (commutators
in electrical
97
motors, automobile ignition

Uncorrelated noise
2. Internal noise noise that generated within
the device or circuit.
Shot noise
- described mathematically by W. Schottky and is
sometimes called transistor noise

caused by the random arrival of carriers (holes

and electrons) at the output element of an electronic
device.
- shot noise is randomly varying and is superimposed
onto any signal present.

Transit-time noise
- irregular, random variation due to any modification
to a stream of carriers as they pass from the input
to the output of a device.
- this noise become noticeable when the time delay
takes for a carrier to propagate through a device is
excessive.
98

Correlated noise
A form of internal noise that is correlated to the
signal and cannot be present in a circuit unless
there is a signal.
Produced by a nonlinear amplification resulting in
nonlinear distortion.
There are 2 types of nonlinear distortion that
create unwanted frequencies that interfere with
the signal and degrade the performance :
1. Harmonic distortion
occurs when unwanted harmonics of a signal
are produced through nonlinear amplification.
harmonics are integer multiples of the original
signal. The original signal is the first harmonic
(fundamental harmonic), a frequency two
times the fundamental frequency is the
99
second harmonic, three times is the
third

Correlated noise
1. Harmonic distortion
distortion measurements :
- Nth harmonic distortion = ratio of the rms amplitude of
Nth harmonic to the rms amplitude of the fundamental.
- Total Harmonic Distortion (THD)

%THD
where

vhigher

vhigher

vfundamental

100

v 2 2 v 33 v 4 4 .... vn 2

all in rms value.

100

Correlated noise
2. Intermodulation distortion
intermodulation distortion is the generation of
unwanted sum and difference frequencies
produced when two or more signals mix in a
nonlinear device (cross products).
unwanted !

101

Other type of noise

1. Impulse noise
characterized by high amplitude peaks of short duration (sudden burst of irregularly
shaped pulses) in the total noise spectrum.
common source of impulse noise : transient produced from electromechanical
switches (relays and solenoids), electric motors, appliances, electric lights, power
lines, poor-quality solder joints and lightning.

2. Interference
electrical interference occurs when information signals from one source produces
frequencies that fall outside their allocated bandwidth and interfere with information
signal from another source.
most occurs in the radio frequency spectrum.

102