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

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1. - E0A06

Why are there separate electric (E) and magnetic (H) field MPE limits?

Select	Answer
A	Ground reflections and scattering make the field strength vary with location
B	The body reacts to electromagnetic radiation from both the E and H fields
C	E field and H field radiation intensity peaks can occur at different locations
D	All these choices are correct

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

3. - E1B07

To what type of regulations does PRB-1 apply?

Select	Answer
A	FAA tower height limits
B	Use of wireless devices in vehicles
C	Homeowners associations
D	State and local zoning

4. - E1C07

At what level below a signal's mean power level is its bandwidth determined according to FCC rules?

Select	Answer
A	6 dB
B	26 dB
C	3 dB
D	23 dB

5. - E1D03

What is a space telecommand station?

Select	Answer
A	An amateur station that transmits communications to initiate, modify or terminate functions of a space station
B	An amateur station located in a satellite or a balloon more than 50 kilometers above the surface of the Earth
C	An amateur station that receives telemetry from a satellite or balloon more than 50 kilometers above the surface of the Earth
D	An amateur station located on the surface of the Earth for communication with other Earth stations by means of Earth satellites

6. - E1E07

What should a VE do if a candidate fails to comply with the examiner's instructions during an amateur operator license examination?

Select	Answer
A	Immediately terminate the candidate's examination
B	Warn the candidate that continued failure to comply will result in termination of the examination
C	Immediately terminate everyone's examination and close the session
D	Allow the candidate to complete the examination, but invalidate the results

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 transmitting international third-party communications
C	When the total money involved does not exceed $25
D	When neither the amateur nor his or her employer has a pecuniary interest in the communications

8. - E2A01

What is the direction of an ascending pass for an amateur satellite?

Select	Answer
A	From south to north
B	From west to east
C	From east to west
D	From north to south

9. - E2B04

How is color information sent in analog SSTV?

Select	Answer
A	Color information is sent on a 2.8 kHz subcarrier
B	Color is amplitude modulated on the frequency modulated intensity signal
C	Color lines are sent sequentially
D	Color is sent in a color burst at the end of each line

10. - E2C06

During a VHF/UHF contest, in which band segment would you expect to find the highest level of SSB or CW activity?

Select	Answer
A	In the middle of the band, usually 25 kHz above the national calling frequency
B	At the top of each band, usually in a segment reserved for contests
C	In the middle of each band, usually on the national calling frequency
D	In the weak signal segment of the band, with most of the activity near the calling frequency

11. - E2D01

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

Select	Answer
A	Hellschreiber
B	WSPR
C	MSK144
D	APRS

12. - E2E13

Which of these digital modes has the fastest data throughput under clear communication conditions?

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

13. - E3A03

When scheduling EME contacts, which of these conditions will generally result in the least path loss?

Select	Answer
A	When the MUF is above 30 MHz
B	When the moon is full
C	When the moon is at perigee
D	When the moon is at apogee

14. - E3B11

At what time of day can sporadic E propagation occur?

Select	Answer
A	Only around sunset
B	Any time
C	Only around sunset and sunrise
D	Only in hours of darkness

15. - E3C07

Which of the following descriptors indicates the greatest solar flare intensity?

Select	Answer
A	Class A
B	Class M
C	Class X
D	Class B

16. - E4A08

Which of the following measures SWR?

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

17. - E4B10

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

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

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. - E4D10

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

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

20. - E4E09

What undesirable effect can occur when using an IF noise blanker?

Select	Answer
A	Nearby signals may appear to be excessively wide even if they meet emission standards
B	The audio frequency bandwidth of the received signal might be compressed
C	Received audio in the speech range might have an echo effect
D	FM signals can no longer be demodulated

21. - E5A16

What is the resonant frequency of an RLC circuit if R is 33 ohms, L is 50 microhenries and C is 10 picofarads?

Select	Answer
A	23.5 MHz
B	23.5 kHz
C	7.12 MHz
D	7.12 kHz

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. - E5C09

When using rectangular coordinates to graph the impedance of a circuit, what do the axes represent?

Select	Answer
A	The X axis represents the resistive component and the Y axis represents the reactive component
B	The X axis represents the phase angle and the Y axis represents the magnitude
C	The X axis represents the magnitude and the Y axis represents the phase angle
D	The X axis represents the reactive component and the Y axis represents the resistive component

24. - E5D02

Why is it important to keep lead lengths short for components used in circuits for VHF and above?

Select	Answer
A	To increase the thermal time constant
B	To maintain component lifetime
C	All these choices are correct
D	To avoid unwanted inductive reactance

25. - E6A10

In Figure E6-1, what is the schematic symbol for an N-channel dual-gate MOSFET?

Select	Answer
A	6
B	5
C	2
D	4

26. - E6B07

What is the failure mechanism when a junction diode fails due to excessive current?

Select	Answer
A	Insufficient forward voltage
B	Charge carrier depletion
C	Excessive junction temperature
D	Excessive inverse voltage

27. - E6C10

In Figure E6-3, what is the schematic symbol for a NOR gate?

Select	Answer
A	2
B	1
C	4
D	3

28. - E6D13

What is the primary cause of inductor self-resonance?

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

29. - E6E12

Why are DIP through-hole package ICs not typically used at UHF and higher frequencies?

Select	Answer
A	Too many pins
B	Epoxy coating is conductive above 300 MHz
C	Unsuitable for combining analog and digital signals
D	Excessive lead length

30. - E6F03

What is the most common configuration of an optoisolator or optocoupler?

Select	Answer
A	An amplitude modulated helium-neon laser
B	A frequency modulated helium-neon laser
C	A lens and a photomultiplier
D	An LED and a phototransistor

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 only produces logic 0 at its output when all inputs are logic 1
C	It produces logic 1 at its output if all inputs are logic 0
D	It produces logic 0 at its output if all inputs are logic 1

32. - E7B01

For what portion of the signal cycle does each active element in a push-pull Class AB amplifier conduct?

Select	Answer
A	The entire cycle
B	Less than 180 degrees
C	Exactly 180 degrees
D	More than 180 degrees but less than 360 degrees

33. - E7C11

Which of the following describes a receiving filter's ability to reject signals occupying an adjacent channel?

Select	Answer
A	Noise factor
B	Phase response
C	Passband ripple
D	Shape factor

34. - E7D15

What is the purpose of a step-start circuit in a high-voltage power supply?

Select	Answer
A	To allow for remote control of the power supply
B	To compensate for variations of the incoming line voltage
C	To allow the filter capacitors to charge gradually
D	To provide a dual-voltage output for reduced power applications

35. - E7E05

What circuit is added to an FM transmitter to boost the higher audio frequencies?

Select	Answer
A	A heterodyne suppressor
B	A heterodyne enhancer
C	A de-emphasis network
D	A pre-emphasis network

36. - E7F07

What function is performed by a Fast Fourier Transform?

Select	Answer
A	Converting digital signals to analog form
B	Converting 8-bit data to 16-bit data
C	Converting analog signals to digital form
D	Converting digital signals from the time domain to the frequency domain

37. - E7G11

What absolute voltage gain can be expected from the circuit in Figure E7-3 when R1 is 3300 ohms and RF is 47 kilohms?

Select	Answer
A	7
B	0.07
C	28
D	14

38. - E7H02

What is a microphonic?

Select	Answer
A	Distortion caused by RF pickup on the microphone cable
B	Excess loading of the microphone by an oscillator
C	Changes in oscillator frequency due to mechanical vibration
D	An IC used for amplifying microphone signals

39. - E8A06

What is the approximate ratio of PEP-to-average power in a typical single-sideband phone signal?

Select	Answer
A	1 to 1
B	25 to 1
C	2.5 to 1
D	100 to 1

40. - E8B01

What is the modulation index of an FM signal?

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

41. - E8C09

Which digital code allows only one bit to change between sequential code values?

Select	Answer
A	Extended Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code
B	Excess 3 code
C	Gray code
D	Binary Coded Decimal Code

42. - E8D07

What is a common cause of overmodulation of AFSK signals?

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

43. - E9A13

What term describes station output, taking into account all gains and losses?

Select	Answer
A	Power factor
B	Effective radiated power
C	Half-power bandwidth
D	Apparent power

44. - E9B04

What is the front-to-back ratio of the radiation pattern shown in Figure E92?

Select	Answer
A	15 dB
B	38 dB
C	3 dB
D	28 dB

45. - E9C02

What is the radiation pattern of two 1/4-wavelength vertical antennas spaced 1/4 wavelength apart and fed 90 degrees out of phase?

Select	Answer
A	A figure-8 end-fire along the axis of the array
B	A figure-8 broadside to the axis of the array
C	Cardioid
D	Omni-directional

46. - E9D12

Which of the following would provide the best RF ground for your station?

Select	Answer
A	A 50-ohm resistor connected to ground
B	An electrically short connection to a metal water pipe
C	An electrically short connection to 3 or 4 interconnected ground rods driven into the Earth
D	An electrically short connection to 3 or 4 interconnected ground rods via a series RF choke

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 delta match
B	The stub match
C	The omega match
D	The gamma match

48. - E9F04

What impedance does a 1/2-wavelength transmission line present to a generator when the line is shorted at the far end?

Select	Answer
A	Very high impedance
B	The same as the output impedance of the generator
C	The same as the characteristic impedance of the line
D	Very low impedance

49. - E9G11

How are the wavelength scales on a Smith chart calibrated?

Select	Answer
A	In fractions of transmission line electrical frequency
B	In fractions of transmission line electrical wavelength
C	In fractions of antenna electrical wavelength
D	In fractions of antenna electrical frequency

50. - E9H01

When constructing a Beverage antenna, which of the following factors should be included in the design to achieve good performance at the desired frequency?

Select	Answer
A	It should be configured as a four-sided loop
B	It should be one or more wavelengths long
C	Its overall length must not exceed 1/4 wavelength
D	It must be mounted more than 1 wavelength above ground

Figure E6-1

Figure E6-3

Figure E7-3