US Amateur Radio - Amateur Extra (Element 4, 2020-2024) Practice Test

Logging in (or registering) will help the system to select questions that you need to focus on.

1. - E0A08

What does SAR measure?

Select	Answer
A	Signal Amplification Rating
B	The rate at which RF energy is absorbed by the body
C	Synthetic Aperture Ratio of the human body
D	The rate of RF energy reflected from stationary terrain

2. - E1A08

If a station in a message forwarding system inadvertently forwards a message that is in violation of FCC rules, who is primarily accountable for the rules violation?

Select	Answer
A	The control operators of all the stations in the system not authenticating the source from which they accept communications
B	The control operator of the packet bulletin board station
C	The control operator of the originating station
D	The control operators of all the stations in the system

3. - E1B05

What is the National Radio Quiet Zone?

Select	Answer
A	An area in New Mexico surrounding the White Sands Test Area
B	An area surrounding the National Radio Astronomy Observatory
C	An area in Puerto Rico surrounding the Arecibo Radio Telescope
D	An area in Florida surrounding Cape Canaveral

4. - E1C01

What is the maximum bandwidth for a data emission on 60 meters?

Select	Answer
A	60 Hz
B	1.5 kHz
C	170 Hz
D	2.8 kHz

5. - E1D11

Which amateur stations are eligible to operate as Earth stations?

Select	Answer
A	Only those of Amateur Extra Class operators
B	Only those of General, Advanced or Amateur Extra Class operators
C	Any amateur station whose licensee has filed a pre-space notification with the FCC's International Bureau
D	Any amateur station, subject to the privileges of the class of operator license held by the control operator

6. - E1E03

What is a Volunteer Examiner Coordinator?

Select	Answer
A	A person who has volunteered to prepare amateur operator license examinations
B	The person who has entered into an agreement with the FCC to be the VE session manager
C	An organization that has entered into an agreement with the FCC to coordinate, prepare, and administer amateur operator license examinations
D	A person who has volunteered to administer amateur operator license examinations

7. - E1F11

Which of the following best describes one of the standards that must be met by an external RF power amplifier if it is to qualify for a grant of FCC certification?

Select	Answer
A	It must satisfy the FCC's spurious emission standards when operated at the lesser of 1500 watts or its full output power
B	It must produce full legal output when driven by not more than 5 watts of mean RF input power
C	It must be capable of external RF switching between its input and output networks
D	It must exhibit a gain of 0 dB or less over its full output range

8. - E2A13

Which of the following techniques is normally used by low Earth orbiting digital satellites to relay messages around the world?

Select	Answer
A	Multi-satellite relaying
B	Store-and-forward
C	Digipeating
D	Node hopping

9. - E2B07

What is the name of the signal component that carries color information in NTSC video?

Select	Answer
A	Spectral intensity
B	Hue
C	Chroma
D	Luminance

10. - E2C08

Which of the following contacts may be confirmed through the U.S. QSL bureau system?

Select	Answer
A	Contacts between a U.S. station and a non-U.S. station
B	Contacts using tactical call signs
C	Special event contacts between stations in the U.S.
D	Repeater contacts between U.S. club members

11. - E2D07

What digital protocol is used by APRS?

Select	Answer
A	AMTOR
B	AX.25
C	PACTOR
D	802.11

12. - E2E11

What is the difference between direct FSK and audio FSK?

Select	Answer
A	Only direct FSK can be decoded by computer
B	Direct FSK applies the data signal to the transmitter VFO, while AFSK transmits tones via phone
C	Direct FSK occupies less bandwidth
D	Direct FSK can transmit faster baud rates

13. - E3A04

What do Hepburn maps predict?

Select	Answer
A	Locations of auroral reflecting zones
B	Likelihood of rain scatter along cold or warm fronts
C	Probability of tropospheric propagation
D	Sporadic E propagation

14. - E3B10

Why is chordal hop propagation desirable?

Select	Answer
A	The signal experiences less loss compared to multi-hop using Earth as a reflector
B	Signals travel faster along ionospheric chords
C	The MUF for chordal hop propagation is much lower than for normal skip propagation
D	Atmospheric noise is lower in the direction of chordal hop propagation

15. - E3C09

How does the intensity of an X3 flare compare to that of an X2 flare?

Select	Answer
A	50 percent greater
B	10 percent greater
C	Twice as great
D	Four times as great

16. - E4A01

Which of the following limits the highest frequency signal that can be accurately displayed on a digital oscilloscope?

Select	Answer
A	Q of the circuit
B	Sampling rate of the analog-to-digital converter
C	Amount of memory
D	All these choices are correct

17. - E4B10

Which of the following methods measures intermodulation distortion in an SSB transmitter?

Select	Answer
A	Modulate the transmitter using two RF signals having non-harmonically related frequencies and observe the RF output with a spectrum analyzer
B	Modulate the transmitter using two AF signals having harmonically related frequencies and observe the RF output with a peak reading wattmeter
C	Modulate the transmitter using two AF signals having non-harmonically related frequencies and observe the RF output with a spectrum analyzer
D	Modulate the transmitter using two RF signals having harmonically related frequencies and observe the RF output with a logic analyzer

18. - E4C10

What is an advantage of having a variety of receiver IF bandwidths from which to select?

Select	Answer
A	Receiver power consumption can be reduced when wider bandwidth is not required
B	Receive bandwidth can be set to match the modulation bandwidth, maximizing signal-to-noise ratio and minimizing interference
C	The noise figure of the RF amplifier can be adjusted to match the modulation type, thus increasing receiver sensitivity
D	Multiple frequencies can be received simultaneously if desired

19. - E4D10

What does a third-order intercept level of 40 dBm mean with respect to receiver performance?

Select	Answer
A	A pair of 40 dBm input signals will theoretically generate a third-order intermodulation product that has the same output amplitude as either of the input signals
B	A pair of 1 mW input signals will produce a third-order intermodulation product that is 40 dB stronger than the input signal
C	The receiver can tolerate signals up to 40 dB above the noise floor without producing third-order intermodulation products
D	Signals less than 40 dBm will not generate audible third-order intermodulation products

20. - E4E10

What might be the cause of a loud roaring or buzzing AC line interference that comes and goes at intervals?

Select	Answer
A	All these choices are correct
B	A defective doorbell or doorbell transformer inside a nearby residence
C	A malfunctioning illuminated advertising display
D	Arcing contacts in a thermostatically controlled device

21. - E5A04

What is the magnitude of the impedance of a parallel RLC circuit at resonance?

Select	Answer
A	Approximately equal to inductive reactance
B	High compared to the circuit resistance
C	Approximately equal to circuit resistance
D	Low compared to the circuit resistance

22. - E5B03

How is impedance in polar form converted to an equivalent admittance?

Select	Answer
A	Take the square root of the magnitude and add 180 degrees to the angle
B	Take the reciprocal of the magnitude and change the sign of the angle
C	Take the reciprocal of the angle and change the sign of the magnitude
D	Square the magnitude and subtract 90 degrees from the angle

23. - E5C08

What coordinate system is often used to display the phase angle of a circuit containing resistance, inductive and/or capacitive reactance?

Select	Answer
A	Faraday grid
B	Polar coordinates
C	Maidenhead grid
D	Elliptical coordinates

24. - E5D08

How many watts are consumed in a circuit having a power factor of 0.6 if the input is 200VAC at 5 amperes?

Select	Answer
A	200 watts
B	600 watts
C	1600 watts
D	1000 watts

25. - E6A12

Why do many MOSFET devices have internally connected Zener diodes on the gates?

Select	Answer
A	To keep the gate voltage within specifications and prevent the device from overheating
B	To reduce the chance of static damage to the gate
C	To provide a voltage reference for the correct amount of reverse-bias gate voltage
D	To protect the substrate from excessive voltages

26. - E6B11

What is used to control the attenuation of RF signals by a PIN diode?

Select	Answer
A	Reverse voltage larger than the RF signal
B	Capacitance of an RF coupling capacitor
C	Forward DC bias current
D	A sub-harmonic pump signal

27. - E6C06

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

Select	Answer
A	The input switching threshold is about two times the power supply voltage
B	The input switching threshold is about one-half the power supply voltage
C	Bandwidth is very limited
D	Large bypass capacitance is inherent

28. - E6D13

What is the primary cause of inductor self-resonance?

Select	Answer
A	Inter-turn capacitance
B	The skin effect
C	Inductive kickback
D	Non-linear core hysteresis

29. - E6E10

What advantage does surface-mount technology offer at RF compared to using through-hole components?

Select	Answer
A	All these choices are correct
B	Shorter circuit-board traces
C	Components have less parasitic inductance and capacitance
D	Smaller circuit area

30. - E6F05

Which describes an optical shaft encoder?

Select	Answer
A	A device that detects rotation of a control by interrupting a light source with a patterned wheel
B	A device that measures the strength of a beam of light using analog to digital conversion
C	A device for generating RTTY signals by means of a rotating light source
D	A digital encryption device often used to encrypt spacecraft control signals

31. - E7A03

Which of the following can divide the frequency of a pulse train by 2?

Select	Answer
A	A flip-flop
B	An XOR gate
C	A multiplexer
D	An OR gate

32. - E7B18

What is a characteristic of a grounded-grid amplifier?

Select	Answer
A	Low bandwidth
B	High filament voltage
C	Low input impedance
D	High power gain

33. - E7C01

How are the capacitors and inductors of a low-pass filter Pi-network arranged between the network's input and output?

Select	Answer
A	Two capacitors are in series between the input and output, and an inductor is connected between the two capacitors and ground
B	An inductor is connected between the input and ground, another inductor is connected between the output and ground, and a capacitor is connected between the input and output
C	A capacitor is connected between the input and ground, another capacitor is connected between the output and ground, and an inductor is connected between input and output
D	Two inductors are in series between the input and output, and a capacitor is connected between the two inductors and ground

34. - E7D08

What type of circuit is shown in Figure E7-2?

Select	Answer
A	Switching voltage regulator
B	Monostable multivibrator
C	Linear voltage regulator
D	Grounded emitter amplifier

35. - E7E10

How does a diode envelope detector function?

Select	Answer
A	By mixing signals with noise in the transition region of the diode
B	By sensing the change of reactance in the diode with respect to frequency
C	By rectification and filtering of RF signals
D	By breakdown of the Zener voltage

36. - E7F02

What kind of digital signal processing audio filter is used to remove unwanted noise from a received SSB signal?

Select	Answer
A	A phase-inverting filter
B	An adaptive filter
C	A crystal-lattice filter
D	A Hilbert-transform filter

37. - E7G12

What is an operational amplifier?

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

38. - E7H07

How can an oscillator's microphonic responses be reduced?

Select	Answer
A	Increase the bias voltage
B	Reduce noise on the oscillator's power supply
C	Use NP0 capacitors
D	Mechanically isolate the oscillator circuitry from its enclosure

39. - E8A08

Why would a direct or flash conversion analog-to-digital converter be useful for a software defined radio?

Select	Answer
A	Very low power consumption decreases frequency drift
B	All these choices are correct
C	Very high speed allows digitizing high frequencies
D	Immunity to out-of-sequence coding reduces spurious responses

40. - E8B01

What is the modulation index of an FM signal?

Select	Answer
A	The ratio of frequency deviation to modulating signal frequency
B	The bandwidth of the transmitted signal divided by the modulating signal frequency
C	The ratio of modulating signal amplitude to frequency deviation
D	The type of modulation used by the transmitter

41. - E8C06

What is the bandwidth of a 170-hertz shift, 300-baud ASCII transmission?

Select	Answer
A	0.5 kHz
B	0.1 Hz
C	1.0 kHz
D	0.3 kHz

42. - E8D05

What is the most common method of reducing key clicks?

Select	Answer
A	Increase keying waveform rise and fall times
B	Low-pass filters at the transmitter output
C	Reduce keying waveform rise and fall times
D	High-pass filters at the transmitter output

43. - E9A09

What is antenna efficiency?

Select	Answer
A	Radiation resistance divided by total resistance
B	Effective radiated power divided by transmitter output
C	Radiation resistance divided by transmission resistance
D	Total resistance divided by radiation resistance

44. - E9B07

How does the total amount of radiation emitted by a directional gain antenna compare with the total amount of radiation emitted from a theoretical isotropic antenna, assuming each is driven by the same amount of power?

Select	Answer
A	They are the same
B	The radiation from the isotropic antenna is 2.15 dB stronger than that from the directional antenna
C	The total amount of radiation from the directional antenna is stronger by its front-to-back ratio
D	The total amount of radiation from the directional antenna is increased by the gain of the antenna

45. - E9C09

Which of the following describes a G5RV antenna?

Select	Answer
A	A multi-band dipole antenna fed with coax and a balun through a selected length of open wire transmission line
B	A phased array antenna consisting of multiple loops
C	A wide band dipole using shorted coaxial cable for the radiating elements and fed with a�4:1 balun
D	A multi-band trap antenna

46. - E9D10

What happens to feed-point impedance at the base of a fixed length HF mobile antenna when operated below its resonant frequency?

Select	Answer
A	The radiation resistance increases and the capacitive reactance decreases
B	The radiation resistance decreases and the capacitive reactance increases
C	The radiation resistance decreases and the capacitive reactance decreases
D	The radiation resistance increases and the capacitive reactance increases

47. - E9E08

What is a use for a Wilkinson divider?

Select	Answer
A	It is used to feed high-impedance antennas from a low-impedance source
B	It is used to feed low-impedance loads from a high-impedance source
C	It divides the operating frequency of a transmitter signal so it can be used on a lower frequency band
D	It is used to divide power equally between two 50-ohm loads while maintaining 50-ohm input impedance

48. - E9F02

Which of the following has the biggest effect on the velocity factor of a transmission line?

Select	Answer
A	The termination impedance
B	Dielectric materials used in the line
C	The line length
D	The center conductor resistivity

49. - E9G07

On the Smith chart shown in Figure E9-3, what is the only straight line shown?

Select	Answer
A	The voltage axis
B	The reactance axis
C	The resistance axis
D	The current axis

50. - E9H04

What is an advantage of placing a grounded electrostatic shield around a small loop direction-finding antenna?

Select	Answer
A	It adds capacitive loading, increasing the bandwidth of the antenna
B	It eliminates unbalanced capacitive coupling to the surroundings, improving the nulls
C	It increases signal strength by providing a better match to the feed line
D	It eliminates tracking errors caused by strong out-of-band signals

Figure E7-2

Figure E9-3