General Circuit Design MCQs

1. The numerical values of what circuit elements are typically represented using colored stripes?

2. What does a Colpitts Oscillator use to produce an oscillating frequency?

3. Why does an "L pad" impedance-matching network bear that name?

4. Which of the following is a linear circuit element?

5. What is the approximate impedance of a universal serial bus (USB) computer connection?

6. The typical schematic representation of a transistor carries what one-letter abbreviation?

7. How does the breakdown voltage of a dielectric depend upon its thickness?

8. Which of these variable resistors is non-ohmic?

9. Which of these is NOT an electromechanical component?

10. If in a circuit the input voltage (Vin) is applied across the series impedances Z1 and Z2 and the output is taken across Z2, what is the output voltage (Vout) given by?

11. True or False: Reactance is the opposition of a circuit element to a change of electric current or voltage.

12. Which logic operation yield a high output for two high inputs?

13. An audio tuning circuit is an application of a:

14. Which of the following is a nonlinear circuit element?

15. Which of the following circuit elements is NOT likely to be found in a 120 VAC to 12 VDC adapter?

16. True or False? Lightbulb power ratings are only correct for the rated voltage.

17. A string of decorative holiday lights is lit except for two burnt-out bulbs. Are the bulbs of the string wired in parallel or series with each other?

18. Which of these can function as an electromagnet?

19. If A = 1 and B = 1 then A XOR B =

20. Which of these is NOT a method used for electric circuit analysis?

21. Of what safety device is this a description: A magnetic or thermal stage that engages an opening of the circuit above a critical value of current?

22. According to Kirchoff's voltage law, the sum of the EMFs in any closed loop is equal to:

23. True or False: An op-amp configured as an inverting integrator can function as a low pass filter.

24. Which of the following devices can replace a fuse in a circuit and perform the same safety function?

25. How many diodes are required to build the bridge in a full-wave rectifier that does not employ a transformer?

26. What kind of relationship is described for impedences Z1 through Zn in a circuit, by the following equation? Z(eq) = Z1 + Z2 + … + Zn

27. What are the names of the three terminals on a BJT transistor?

28. In an 8-bit encoding, how many different values can be represented?

29. A resistor is an element that obstructs the flow of current in a circuit in accordance with

30. Three-phase alternating-current power is typically distributed on how many independent conductors?

31. Which model is generally used for transmission lines?

32. Which of these is a passive electronic component?

33. Which of these is an active electronic component?

34. Which of these is NOT a part of a regular DC power supply?

35. True or False? Differential signalling can be employed in both analog circuits and digital circuits.

36. To what does the "sample rate" of a signal refer?

37. A type of logic gate with outputs high, low, and high impedance is called:

38. Which of these is generally used to measure electrical resistance?

39. True or False? A Fourier-transform spectrometer is suscueptible to Gibbs ringing.

40. Which of these is used as a construction base for prototyping of a circuit?

41. A "Schmitt trigger" is a simple circuit that employs what distinctive element?

42. What do you call a theoretical circuit used in analysis, that retains all of the electrical characteristics of a given circuit?

43. On an alternating-current appliance with a three-prong plug, on which lead should the power switch be connected?

44. In which of the following configurations do the capacitor(s) have the smallest individual voltages?

45. Consider an npn and a pnp transistor connected in series between the positive and negative terminals of a voltage supply. A signal is input to the base of each and output to ground from their collector-emitter connection. What is the common name for this configuration?

46. What standard circuit network often manifests as a "trim" potentiometer?

47. Consider a switch on a high-voltage circuit that is unsafe to operate manually. How might the switch be safely actuated?

48. A kilowatt-hour is a typical unit for what quantity?

49. What kind of feedback does a thermostat employ?

50. Which of the following is a primary disadvantage of a vacuum-tube amplifier compared with a solid-state amplifier?

51. One 120-VAC circuit has two 60-W light bulbs in parallel and another 120-VAC circuit has a single 100-W bulb. In which circuit is more power dissipated?

52. A JK flip-flop circuit can be assembled entirely from four of which type of digital gate?

53. What is the term to describe a multivibrator circuit with two outputs, both of which are stable in time?

54. A high-voltage primary circuit is isolated with the use of an optocoupler on a secondary circuit. Does the addition of the optocoupler add inductance to either circuit?

55. What is the name for the configuration in which an operational amplifier (op-amp) has its output connected to the non-inverting input?

56. In a low-pass filter consisting of a resistor and a capacitor, how will the cut-off frequency change if the capacitance is increased?

57. In a high-pass filter consisting of a resistor and a capacitor, how will the cut-off frequency change if the capacitance is increased?

58. Which of the following is a primary disadvantage of a solid-state amplifier compared with a vacuum-tube amplifier?

59. Which of these inductors exhibits more energy losses at higher frequencies?

60. How is the Nyquist rate for a signal related to the bandwidth of the signal?

61. True or False: A multiplexer has multiple outputs.

62. Which of these uses high frequency transformers?

63. True or False? XOR and XNOR are both associative.

64. In which equivalent circuit can you replace a linear two-terminal circuit by a current source and a parallel impedance?

65. What is the name for the process of splitting a signal, inverting one of the two resulting signals, transmitting both signals, inverting one of the signals upon reception of both, then summing the two signals?

66. How many diodes are in the bridge of a three-phase rectifier?

67. How many diodes are required to a half-wave rectifier?

68. In a series RLC circuit, a larger series resistance will result in a

69. The time between the change in a gate's input to the corresponding change in its output is called:

70. To what do the "rails" of an operational amplifier refer?

71. Which of the following statements about phase-locked loops is NOT true?

72. What standard logic operation is represented by a household "three-way switch" in which two different switches operate the same light fixture?

73. What is the function of a diode clamp?

74. Which of these statements expresses De Morgan's theorem?

75. What artifact results from a failure to low-pass filter a signal before analog-to-digital conversion?

76. In a differentiator circuit, the output is approximately:

77. What is the term to describe a multivibrator circuit with two outputs, one of which is stable in time?

78. The number of gate inputs that can be driven by a particular logic gate's output is called that gate's:

79. An electrical circuit that converts AC electrical power from a lower voltage to a higher DC voltage is called a:

80. Which power supply takes its power from more than one source?

81. What is the term to describe a multivibrator circuit with two outputs, neither of which is stable in time?

82. On a printed circuit board that supports several different inductors in different circuits, are there any constraints to the layout of the inductors?

83. The minimum root-mean-square magnitude of alternating currents that are likely to cause uncontrollable muscle contraction and heart fibrillation in a human are in what range?

84. How many diodes are required to build a full-wave rectifier that employs a center-tapped transformer?

85. On a printed circuit board, what is a flux capacitor?

86. A milliAmpere-hour is a typical unit for what quantity?

87. True or False? The presence of the ground lead on a three-prong alternating-current appliance plug alleviates the need for a ground-fault interruptor.

88. One 50-Ohm resistor and two parallel 100-Ohm resistors have the same impedance. In which system do the resistors have lower current when dissipating 1 kW?

89. A group of branches in a circuit forming a complete loop is called a

90. Consider a push-pull follower amplifier: an npn and a pnp transistor connected in series between the positive and negative terminals of a voltage supply to which signal is input to the base of each and output to ground from their collector-emitter connection. In which class is such an amplifier?

91. Which kind of filter is produced by placing an input voltage across the series combination of a capacitor and a resistor and using the voltage across the resistor as an output?

92. Of the following four types of digital latches, which one can be configured (with cross-couplings) to operate as the other three?

93. Which model makes the simplifying assumption that all components in a circuit are ideal and all wires conduct perfectly?

94. Of what safety device is this a description: A primary circuit that is magnetically coupled to a secondary circuit in which imbalance of hot and neutral current is measured?

95. What is the typical low-voltage cutoff for a "high" signal in transistor-transistor logic (TTL)?

96. Consider a typical household AC circuit that is protected by both a circuit breaker and a ground-fault interruptor. A person accidentally shorts the hot lead to ground, drawing a lethal current of 100 mA. Which of the two safety devices will trip?

97. Two cross-coupled (the output of one gate serves as one of the other gate's inputs) NOR gates constitutes what type of digital circuit?

98. Which of the following combinations of gates could be used to realize the XOR function?

99. For which values of inputs A and B would a NAND gate and an XOR gate NOT have the same output?

100. What is the chacteristic feature of heterodyne processing compared with homodyne processing?

101. In a high-pass filter consisting of a resistor and an inductor, how will the cut-off frequency change if the inductance is increased?

102. How can a led and a basic diode be connected to an ac source for correct operation?

103. True or False? Any phase delay between two analog signals is lost after both signals have been three-level Nyquist sampled.

104. To which of the inputs will the feedback be routed for an operational amplifier (op-amp) employed as a non-inverting amplifier?

105. When we connect germanium diode with silicon diode in parallel, the over all voltage drop is :

106. For inputs A = 1 and B = 1, which of these logic operations between A and B will yield output 1?

107. True or False? Race conditions can only occur in digital circuits.

108. True or False? The neutral lead of a polarized alternating-current plug is suitable for use as a chassis ground.

109. True or False: The lumped element model is used whenever the circuit's length is greater than the circuit's operating wavelength.

110. A "bias tee" consists of a single output that is capacitively coupled to a radiofrequency signal and inductively coupled to a DC signal. What is the primary purpose of this device?

111. Dithering of an audiofrequency signal typically occurs at what stage?

112. The self-induced back voltage in a circuit that occurs when an inductive DC circuit is opened may be safely routed away from the switch with a diode connected across the inductor and against the DC voltage. What is the main disadvantage of this practice?

113. What is Wein Bridge used for?

114. In a system with a transmission multiplexer and a reception demultiplexer, how many outputs is it typical for the multiplxer to possess?

115. A high-voltage primary circuit is isolated with the use of a relay switch on a secondary circuit. Does the addition of the relay circuit add inductance to either circuit?

116. Which of the following statements can be made concerning A XNOR (B XNOR C) = (A XNOR B) XNOR C ?

117. Dithering of a digital signal is a common method for combating what underisable phenomenon?

118. A transformer in which the windings are surrounded by the core is called

119. What is the term for the amount by which a signal exceeds the minimum amount for a circuit's proper operation?

120. In the coil stage prior to rectification, an automobile alternator typically generates which type of electricity?

121. Digital latches may be constructed by cross-coupling (the output of one gate serves as one of the other gate's inputs) two of the same gates. What configuration is equivalent to an SR NOR latch for which the two inputs act as Set and Reset?

122. A differential amplifier made to produce two outputs of equal amplitude but opposite polarity is called

123. In a low-noise block downconverter (LNB), at what frequency is the amplification typically executed?

124. Which of these is the equivalent of a farad, the unit of capacitance?

125. ____ is an example of a circuit-switched network.