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

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1. - E0A01

What is the primary function of an external earth connection or ground rod?

Select	Answer
A	Reduce RFI to telephones and home entertainment systems
B	Lightning protection
C	Reduce RF current flow between pieces of equipment
D	Reduce received noise

2. - E1A05

What is the maximum power output permitted on the 60 meter band?

Select	Answer
A	100 watts PEP effective radiated power relative to the gain of a half-wave dipole
B	50 watts PEP effective radiated power relative to an isotropic radiator
C	50 watts PEP effective radiated power relative to a dipole
D	100 watts PEP effective radiated power relative to an isotropic radiator

3. - E1B03

Within what distance must an amateur station protect an FCC monitoring facility from harmful interference?

Select	Answer
A	1 mile
B	30 miles
C	10 miles
D	3 miles

4. - E1C13

What notifications must be given before transmitting on the 630 meter or 2200 meter bands?

Select	Answer
A	A special endorsement must be requested from the FCC
B	An environmental impact statement must be filed with the Department of the Interior
C	Operators must inform the FAA of their intent to operate, giving their call sign and distance to the nearest runway
D	Operators must inform the Utilities Technology Council (UTC) of their call sign and coordinates of the station

5. - E1D08

Which VHF amateur bands have frequencies authorized for space stations?

Select	Answer
A	2 meters
B	2 meters and 1.25 meters
C	6 meters, 2 meters, and 1.25 meters
D	6 meters and 2 meters

6. - E1E03

What is a Volunteer Examiner Coordinator?

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

7. - E1F07

When may an amateur station send a message to a business?

Select	Answer
A	When the control operator is employed by the FCC or another government agency
B	When the total money involved does not exceed $25
C	When neither the amateur nor his or her employer has a pecuniary interest in the communications
D	When transmitting international third-party communications

8. - E2A09

What do the terms L band and S band specify regarding satellite communications?

Select	Answer
A	The 23 centimeter and 13 centimeter bands
B	The 2 meter and 70 centimeter bands
C	FM and Digital Store-and-Forward systems
D	Which sideband to use

9. - E2B09

What hardware, other than a receiver with SSB capability and a suitable computer, is needed to decode SSTV using Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM)?

Select	Answer
A	A special front end limiter
B	No other hardware is needed
C	A special notch filter to remove synchronization pulses
D	A special IF converter

10. - E2C05

What is the function of a DX QSL Manager?

Select	Answer
A	To run a net to allow many stations to contact a rare DX station
B	To relay calls to and from a DX station
C	To allocate frequencies for DXpeditions
D	To handle the receiving and sending of confirmation cards for a DX station

11. - E2D01

Which of the following digital modes is designed for meteor scatter communications?

Select	Answer
A	APRS
B	MSK144
C	WSPR
D	Hellschreiber

12. - E2E07

Which of the following is a possible reason that attempts to initiate contact with a digital station on a clear frequency are unsuccessful?

Select	Answer
A	Your transmit frequency is incorrect
B	Another station you are unable to hear is using the frequency
C	All these choices are correct
D	The protocol version you are using is not supported by the digital station

13. - E3A09

Which of the following frequency ranges is most suited for meteor scatter communications?

Select	Answer
A	10 MHz - 14 MHz
B	28 MHz - 148 MHz
C	220 MHz - 450 MHz
D	1.8 MHz - 1.9 MHz

14. - E3B05

Which amateur bands typically support long-path propagation?

Select	Answer
A	160 meters to 10 meters
B	6 meters to 2 meters
C	Only 160 meters to 40 meters
D	Only 30 meters to 10 meters

15. - E3C11

What does VOACAP software model?

Select	Answer
A	AC current and impedance
B	HF propagation
C	VHF radio propagation
D	AC voltage and impedance

16. - E4A05

What is the purpose of the prescaler function on a frequency counter?

Select	Answer
A	It amplifies low-level signals for more accurate counting
B	It prevents oscillation in a low-frequency counter circuit
C	It divides a higher frequency signal so a low-frequency counter can display the input frequency
D	It multiplies a higher frequency signal so a low-frequency counter can display the operating frequency

17. - E4B11

Which of the following can be measured with a vector network analyzer?

Select	Answer
A	All these choices are correct
B	Input impedance
C	Output impedance
D	Reflection coefficient

18. - E4C15

What is reciprocal mixing?

Select	Answer
A	In-phase signals cancelling in a mixer resulting in loss of receiver sensitivity
B	Two out-of-band signals mixing to generate an in-band spurious signal
C	Local oscillator phase noise mixing with adjacent strong signals to create interference to desired signals
D	Two digital signals combining from alternate time slots

19. - E4D01

What is meant by the blocking dynamic range of a receiver?

Select	Answer
A	The minimum difference in dB between the levels of two FM signals that will cause one signal to block the other
B	The difference in dB between the noise floor and the level of an incoming signal that will cause 1 dB of gain compression
C	The minimum difference in dB between two signals which produce third-order intermodulation products greater than the noise floor
D	The difference in dB between the noise floor and the third-order intercept point

20. - E4E03

Which of the following signals might a receiver noise blanker be able to remove from desired signals?

Select	Answer
A	Signals that appear at one IF but not another
B	Signals that appear across a wide bandwidth
C	Signals that have a sharply peaked frequency distribution
D	Signals that are constant at all IF levels

21. - E5A15

Which of the following increases Q for inductors and capacitors?

Select	Answer
A	Lower self-resonant frequency
B	Higher self-resonant frequency
C	Lower losses
D	Lower reactance

22. - E5B06

What is susceptance?

Select	Answer
A	The magnetic impedance of a circuit
B	The imaginary part of admittance
C	The ratio of magnetic field to electric field
D	A measure of the efficiency of a transformer

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	Polar coordinates
B	Elliptical coordinates
C	Maidenhead grid
D	Faraday grid

24. - E5D04

Why are short connections used at microwave frequencies?

Select	Answer
A	To reduce phase shift along the connection
B	To reduce noise figure
C	To increase neutralizing resistance
D	To increase compensating capacitance

25. - E6A12

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

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

26. - E6B11

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

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

27. - E6C04

Which of the following is an advantage of BiCMOS logic?

Select	Answer
A	It is immune to electrostatic damage
B	Its simplicity results in much less expensive devices than standard CMOS
C	It has the high input impedance of CMOS and the low output impedance of bipolar transistors
D	All these choices are correct

28. - E6D05

What is one reason for using ferrite cores rather than powdered iron in an inductor?

Select	Answer
A	Ferrite toroids generally require fewer turns to produce a given inductance value
B	Ferrite toroids generally have better temperature stability
C	Ferrite toroids are easier to use with surface mount technology
D	Ferrite toroids generally have lower initial permeability

29. - E6E08

How is power supplied to the most common type of MMIC?

Select	Answer
A	MMICs require no operating bias
B	Directly to the bias voltage (VCC IN) lead
C	Through a resistor and/or RF choke connected to the amplifier output lead
D	Through a capacitor and RF choke connected to the amplifier input lead

30. - E6F01

What absorbs the energy from light falling on a photovoltaic cell?

Select	Answer
A	Photons
B	Protons
C	Holes
D	Electrons

31. - E7A09

What logical operation is performed by an exclusive NOR gate?

Select	Answer
A	It produces logic 1 at its output only if all inputs are logic 1
B	It produces logic 1 at its output if only one input is logic 1
C	It produces logic 0 at its output only if all inputs are logic 0
D	It produces logic 0 at its output if only one input is logic 1

32. - E7B11

In Figure E7-1, what is the purpose of R3?

Select	Answer
A	Emitter bypass
B	Self bias
C	Output load resistor
D	Fixed bias

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

34. - E7D03

What device is typically used as a stable voltage reference in a linear voltage regulator?

Select	Answer
A	A Zener diode
B	A varactor diode
C	An SCR
D	A tunnel diode

35. - E7E09

What occurs when an excessive amount of signal energy reaches a mixer circuit?

Select	Answer
A	Automatic limiting occurs
B	A beat frequency is generated
C	Spurious mixer products are generated
D	Mixer blanking occurs

36. - E7F09

Why is an anti-aliasing digital filter required in a digital decimator?

Select	Answer
A	It peaks the response of the decimator, improving bandwidth
B	It removes high-frequency signal components that would otherwise be reproduced as lower frequency components
C	It notches out the sampling frequency to avoid sampling errors
D	It removes low-frequency signal components to eliminate the need for DC restoration

37. - E7G04

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

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

38. - E7H01

What are three oscillator circuits used in amateur radio equipment?

Select	Answer
A	Taft, Hartley and Pierce
B	Taft, Pierce and negative feedback
C	Colpitts, Hartley and Pierce
D	Pierce, Fenner and Beane

39. - E8A03

What type of wave does a Fourier analysis show to be made up of sine waves of a given fundamental frequency plus all its harmonics?

Select	Answer
A	A sawtooth wave
B	A sine wave
C	A square wave
D	A cosine wave

40. - E8B03

What is the modulation index of an FM-phone signal having a maximum frequency deviation of 3000 Hz either side of the carrier frequency when the modulating frequency is 1000 Hz?

Select	Answer
A	3000
B	1000
C	0.3
D	3

41. - E8C07

What is the bandwidth of a 4800-Hz frequency shift, 9600-baud ASCII FM transmission?

Select	Answer
A	4.8 kHz
B	5.76 kHz
C	9.6 kHz
D	15.36 kHz

42. - E8D01

Why are received spread spectrum signals resistant to interference?

Select	Answer
A	The receiver is always equipped with a digital blanker
B	Signals not using the spread spectrum algorithm are suppressed in the receiver
C	If interference is detected by the receiver it will signal the transmitter to change frequencies
D	The high power used by a spread spectrum transmitter keeps its signal from being easily overpowered

43. - E9A08

What is antenna bandwidth?

Select	Answer
A	Antenna length divided by the number of elements
B	The angle between the half-power radiation points
C	The frequency range over which an antenna satisfies a performance requirement
D	The angle formed between two imaginary lines drawn through the element ends

44. - E9B10

What is the principle of a Method of Moments analysis?

Select	Answer
A	A wire is modeled as a single sine-wave current generator
B	A wire is modeled as a single sine-wave voltage source
C	A wire is modeled as a series of segments, each having a uniform value of current
D	A wire is modeled as a series of segments, each having a distinct value of voltage across it

45. - E9C10

Which of the following describes a Zepp antenna?

Select	Answer
A	A vertical array capable of quickly changing the direction of maximum radiation by changing phasing lines
B	An omni-directional antenna commonly used for satellite communications
C	A dipole constructed from zip cord
D	An end-fed dipole antenna

46. - E9D06

What happens to the SWR bandwidth when one or more loading coils are used to resonate an electrically short antenna?

Select	Answer
A	It is decreased
B	It is unchanged if the loading coil is located at the feed point
C	It is unchanged if the loading coil is located at a voltage maximum point
D	It is increased

47. - E9E04

What is the purpose of the series capacitor in a gamma-type antenna matching network?

Select	Answer
A	To provide DC isolation between the feed line and the antenna
B	To provide a rejection notch that prevents the radiation of harmonics
C	To cancel the inductive reactance of the matching network
D	To transform the antenna impedance to a higher value

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	Foam dielectric has lower safe operating voltage limits
C	Foam dielectric has higher velocity factor
D	All these choices are correct

49. - E9G02

What type of coordinate system is used in a Smith chart?

Select	Answer
A	Voltage lines and current chords
B	Resistance circles and reactance arcs
C	Resistance lines and reactance chords
D	Voltage circles and current arcs

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 eliminates tracking errors caused by strong out-of-band signals
D	It increases signal strength by providing a better match to the feed line

Figure E7-1