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

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1. - E0A03

Over what range of frequencies are the FCC human body RF exposure limits most restrictive?

Select	Answer
A	30 to 300 MHz
B	300 kHz to 3 MHz
C	300 to 3000 MHz
D	3 to 30 MHz

2. - E1A04

With your transceiver displaying the carrier frequency of phone signals, you hear a DX station calling CQ on 3.601 MHz LSB. Is it legal to return the call using lower sideband on the same frequency?

Select	Answer
A	No, U.S. stations are not permitted to use phone emissions below 3.610 MHz
B	Yes, because the displayed frequency is within the 75 meter phone band segment
C	Yes, because the DX station initiated the contact
D	No, the sideband will extend beyond the edge of the phone band segment

3. - E1B01

Which of the following constitutes a spurious emission?

Select	Answer
A	Any transmitted signal that unintentionally interferes with another licensed radio station
B	An emission outside the signal's necessary bandwidth that can be reduced or eliminated without affecting the information transmitted
C	An amateur station transmission made without the proper call sign identification
D	A signal transmitted to prevent its detection by any station other than the intended recipient

4. - E1C10

What is the permitted mean power of any spurious emission relative to the mean power of the fundamental emission from a station transmitter or external RF amplifier installed after January 1, 2003 and transmitting on a frequency below 30 MHz?

Select	Answer
A	At least 73 dB below
B	At least 53 dB below
C	At least 63 dB below
D	At least 43 dB below

5. - E1D01

What is the definition of telemetry?

Select	Answer
A	One-way transmission that initiates, modifies, or terminates the functions of a device at a distance
B	Two-way transmissions in excess of 1000 feet
C	Two-way transmissions of data
D	One-way transmission of measurements at a distance from the measuring instrument

6. - E1E10

What must the administering VEs do after the administration of a successful examination for an amateur operator license?

Select	Answer
A	They must submit the application document to the coordinating VEC according to the coordinating VEC instructions
B	They must collect and send the documents to the NCVEC for grading
C	They must collect and send the documents to the FCC according to instructions
D	They must collect and submit the documents to the coordinating VEC for grading

7. - E1F08

Which of the following types of amateur station communications are prohibited?

Select	Answer
A	Communications in a language other than English
B	Communications transmitted for hire or material compensation, except as otherwise provided in the rules
C	Communications that have political content, except as allowed by the Fairness Doctrine
D	Communications that have religious content

8. - E2A11

What type of antenna can be used to minimize the effects of spin modulation and Faraday rotation?

Select	Answer
A	A linearly polarized antenna
B	An isotropic antenna
C	A log-periodic dipole array
D	A circularly polarized antenna

9. - E2B11

What is the function of the Vertical Interval Signaling (VIS) code sent as part of an SSTV transmission?

Select	Answer
A	To provide vertical synchronization
B	To identify the call sign of the station transmitting
C	To lock the color burst oscillator in color SSTV images
D	To identify the SSTV mode being used

10. - E2C12

What technique do individual nodes use to form a mesh network?

Select	Answer
A	Acting as store-and-forward digipeaters
B	Custom code plugs for the local trunking systems
C	Forward error correction and Viterbi codes
D	Discovery and link establishment protocols

11. - E2D08

What type of packet frame is used to transmit APRS beacon data?

Select	Answer
A	Connect
B	Disconnect
C	Acknowledgement
D	Unnumbered Information

12. - E2E10

Which of these digital modes has the narrowest bandwidth?

Select	Answer
A	PSK31
B	170 Hz shift, 45-baud RTTY
C	300-baud packet
D	MFSK16

13. - E3A05

Tropospheric propagation of microwave signals often occurs in association with what phenomenon?

Select	Answer
A	Lightning discharges
B	Sprites and jets
C	Warm and cold fronts
D	Grayline

14. - E3B02

What is the approximate maximum range for signals using transequatorial propagation?

Select	Answer
A	7500 miles
B	2500 miles
C	5000 miles
D	1000 miles

15. - E3C06

By how much does the VHF/UHF radio horizon distance exceed the geometric horizon?

Select	Answer
A	By approximately 50 percent of the distance
B	By approximately twice the distance
C	By approximately four times the distance
D	By approximately 15 percent of the distance

16. - E4A08

Which of the following measures SWR?

Select	Answer
A	An ohmmeter
B	An antenna analyzer
C	A spectrum analyzer
D	A Q meter

17. - E4B02

What is the significance of voltmeter sensitivity expressed in ohms per volt?

Select	Answer
A	When used as an ammeter, the full scale reading in amps divided by ohms per volt rating will determine the size of shunt needed
B	When used as a galvanometer, the reading in volts multiplied by the ohms per volt rating will determine the power drawn by the device under test
C	The full scale reading of the voltmeter multiplied by its ohms per volt rating will indicate the input impedance of the voltmeter
D	When used as an ohmmeter, the reading in ohms divided by the ohms per volt rating will determine the voltage applied to the circuit

18. - E4C10

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

Select	Answer
A	Receive bandwidth can be set to match the modulation bandwidth, maximizing signal-to-noise ratio and minimizing interference
B	Receiver power consumption can be reduced when wider bandwidth is not required
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. - E4D12

What is the term for the reduction in receiver sensitivity caused by a strong signal near the received frequency?

Select	Answer
A	Quieting
B	Cross-modulation interference
C	Squelch gain rollback
D	Desensitization

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	Arcing contacts in a thermostatically controlled device
C	A malfunctioning illuminated advertising display
D	A defective doorbell or doorbell transformer inside a nearby residence

21. - E5A05

What is the result of increasing the Q of an impedance-matching circuit?

Select	Answer
A	It has no effect on impedance matching
B	Matching bandwidth is increased
C	Matching bandwidth is decreased
D	Matching range is increased

22. - E5B07

What is the phase angle between the voltage across and the current through a series RLC circuit if XC is 500 ohms, R is 1 kilohm, and XL is 250 ohms?

Select	Answer
A	68.2 degrees with the voltage lagging the current
B	14.0 degrees with the voltage lagging the current
C	14.0 degrees with the voltage leading the current
D	68.2 degrees with the voltage leading the current

23. - E5C01

Which of the following represents capacitive reactance in rectangular notation?

Select	Answer
A	-jX
B	Omega
C	Delta
D	+jX

24. - E5D06

In what direction is the magnetic field oriented about a conductor in relation to the direction of electron flow?

Select	Answer
A	In a direction opposite to the current
B	In the same direction as the current
C	In a circle around the conductor
D	In all directions; omni-directional

25. - E6A03

Why does a PN-junction diode not conduct current when reverse biased?

Select	Answer
A	Only N-type semiconductor material can conduct current
B	Only P-type semiconductor material can conduct current
C	Excess holes in P-type material combine with the electrons in N-type material, converting the entire diode into an insulator
D	Holes in P-type material and electrons in the N-type material are separated by the applied voltage, widening the depletion region

26. - E6B11

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

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

27. - E6C09

What is a Programmable Logic Device (PLD)?

Select	Answer
A	A logic circuit that can be modified during use
B	Programmable equipment used for testing digital logic integrated circuits
C	A type of transistor whose gain can be changed by digital logic circuits
D	A programmable collection of logic gates and circuits in a single integrated circuit

28. - E6D12

What is inductor saturation?

Select	Answer
A	The inductor's voltage rating is exceeded causing a flashover
B	The ability of the inductor's core to store magnetic energy has been exceeded
C	The inductor windings are over-coupled
D	Adjacent inductors become over-coupled

29. - E6E01

Why is gallium arsenide (GaAs) useful for semiconductor devices operating at UHF and higher frequencies?

Select	Answer
A	Lower transconductance
B	Higher electron mobility
C	Higher noise figures
D	Lower junction voltage drop

30. - E6F09

What is the efficiency of a photovoltaic cell?

Select	Answer
A	The output RF power divided by the input DC power
B	Cost per kilowatt-hour generated
C	The open-circuit voltage divided by the short-circuit current under full illumination
D	The relative fraction of light that is converted to current

31. - E7A08

What logical operation does an OR gate perform?

Select	Answer
A	It produces logic 1 at its output if any or all inputs are logic 1
B	It produces logic 0 at its output if all inputs are logic 1
C	It produces logic 1 at its output if all inputs are logic 0
D	It only produces logic 0 at its output when all inputs are logic 1

32. - E7B17

Why are odd-order rather than even-order intermodulation distortion products of concern in linear power amplifiers?

Select	Answer
A	Because they invert the sidebands causing distortion
B	Because they maintain the sidebands, thus causing multiple duplicate signals
C	Because they are relatively close in frequency to the desired signal
D	Because they are relatively far in frequency from the desired signal

33. - E7C03

What advantage does a series-L Pi-L-network have over a series-L Pi-network for impedance matching between the final amplifier of a vacuum-tube transmitter and an antenna?

Select	Answer
A	Greater harmonic suppression
B	Higher efficiency
C	Does not require a capacitor
D	Greater transformation range

34. - E7D08

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

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

35. - E7E03

What is a frequency discriminator stage in a FM receiver?

Select	Answer
A	A circuit for detecting FM signals
B	An FM generator circuit
C	An automatic band-switching circuit
D	A circuit for filtering two closely adjacent signals

36. - E7F08

What is the function of decimation?

Select	Answer
A	Reducing the effective sample rate by removing samples
B	Converting data to binary code decimal form
C	Attenuating the signal
D	Removing unnecessary significant digits

37. - E7G04

What is meant by the "op-amp input offset voltage"?

Select	Answer
A	The potential between the amplifier input terminals of the op-amp in an open loop condition
B	The output voltage of the op-amp minus its input voltage
C	The differential input voltage needed to bring the open loop output voltage to zero
D	The difference between the output voltage of the op-amp and the input voltage required in the immediately following stage

38. - E7H11

What are the major spectral impurity components of direct digital synthesizers?

Select	Answer
A	Spurious signals at discrete frequencies
B	Nyquist limit noise
C	Broadband noise
D	Digital conversion noise

39. - E8A05

What of the following instruments would be the most accurate for measuring the RMS voltage of a complex waveform?

Select	Answer
A	A true-RMS calculating meter
B	An absorption wave meter
C	A grid dip meter
D	A D'Arsonval meter

40. - E8B05

What is the deviation ratio of an FM-phone signal having a maximum frequency swing of plus-or-minus 5 kHz when the maximum modulation frequency is 3 kHz?

Select	Answer
A	0.6
B	1.67
C	0.167
D	60

41. - E8C01

How is Forward Error Correction implemented?

Select	Answer
A	By the receiving station repeating each block of three data characters
B	By varying the frequency shift of the transmitted signal according to a predefined algorithm
C	By transmitting a special algorithm to the receiving station along with the data characters
D	By transmitting extra data that may be used to detect and correct transmission errors

42. - E8D07

What is a common cause of overmodulation of AFSK signals?

Select	Answer
A	Excessive numbers of retries
B	Excessive transmit audio levels
C	Ground loops
D	Bit errors in the modem

43. - E9A04

Which of the following factors affect the feed point impedance of an antenna?

Select	Answer
A	Transmission line length
B	The input power level
C	The settings of an antenna tuner at the transmitter
D	Antenna height

44. - E9B01

In the antenna radiation pattern shown in Figure E9-1, what is the beamwidth?

Select	Answer
A	75 degrees
B	30 degrees
C	25 degrees
D	50 degrees

45. - E9C07

What is the approximate feed point impedance at the center of a two-wire folded dipole antenna?

Select	Answer
A	72 ohms
B	450 ohms
C	50 ohms
D	300 ohms

46. - E9D08

What happens as the Q of an antenna increases?

Select	Answer
A	SWR bandwidth increases
B	More common-mode current is present on the feed line
C	Gain is reduced
D	SWR bandwidth decreases

47. - E9E03

What is the name of the matching system that uses a section of transmission line connected in parallel with the feed line at or near the feed point?

Select	Answer
A	The stub match
B	The gamma match
C	The omega match
D	The delta match

48. - E9F08

Which of the following is a significant difference between foam dielectric coaxial cable and solid dielectric cable, assuming all other parameters are the same?

Select	Answer
A	Foam dielectric has lower loss per unit of length
B	All these choices are correct
C	Foam dielectric has higher velocity factor
D	Foam dielectric has lower safe operating voltage limits

49. - E9G01

Which of the following can be calculated using a Smith chart?

Select	Answer
A	Impedance along transmission lines
B	Radio propagation
C	Radiation resistance
D	Antenna radiation pattern

50. - E9H07

Why is RF attenuation used when direction-finding?

Select	Answer
A	To narrow the receiver bandwidth
B	To increase receiver sensitivity
C	To prevent receiver overload which reduces pattern nulls
D	To compensate for isotropic directivity and the antenna effect of feed lines

Figure E7-2

Figure E9-1