How can the UTF-8 encoding without BOM be ensured in PHP files to prevent unexpected output that may lead to header modification errors?

To ensure UTF-8 encoding without a BOM in PHP files, you can use the `header()` function to set the content type before any output is sent to the browser. This will prevent unexpected output that may lead to header modification errors. Additionally, you can save your PHP files with UTF-8 encoding without a BOM using a code editor that allows you to specify the encoding.

<?php
header('Content-Type: text/html; charset=utf-8');
// Your PHP code goes here
?>