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

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1. - E0A09

Which insulating material commonly used as a thermal conductor for some types of electronic devices is extremely toxic if broken or crushed and the particles are accidentally inhaled?

Select	Answer
A	Beryllium Oxide
B	Zinc oxide
C	Uranium Hexafluoride
D	Mica

2. - E1A06

Where must the carrier frequency of a CW signal be set to comply with FCC rules for 60 meter operation?

Select	Answer
A	At the highest frequency of the channel
B	On any frequency where the signal's sidebands are within the channel
C	At the lowest frequency of the channel
D	At the center frequency of the channel

3. - E1B06

Which of the following additional rules apply if you are installing an amateur station antenna at a site at or near a public use airport?

Select	Answer
A	You must submit engineering drawings to the FAA
B	You must obtain a construction permit from the airport zoning authority
C	You may have to notify the Federal Aviation Administration and register it with the FCC as required by Part 17 of the FCC rules
D	You must file an Environmental Impact Statement with the EPA before construction begins

4. - E1C14

How long must an operator wait after filing a notification with the Utilities Technology Council (UTC) before operating on the 2200 meter or 630 meter band?

Select	Answer
A	Operations may commence immediately, and may continue unless interference is reported by the UTC
B	Operators may not operate until a test signal has been transmitted in coordination with the local power company
C	Operators may operate after 30 days, providing they have not been told that their station is within 1 km of PLC systems using those frequencies
D	Operators must not operate until approval is received

5. - E1D11

Which amateur stations are eligible to operate as Earth stations?

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

6. - E1E04

Which of the following best describes the Volunteer Examiner accreditation process?

Select	Answer
A	The prospective VE obtains accreditation from the FCC
B	The procedure by which a VEC confirms that the VE applicant meets FCC requirements to serve as an examiner
C	The amateur operator applying must pass a VE examination administered by the FCC Enforcement Bureau
D	Each General, Advanced and Amateur Extra Class operator is automatically accredited as a VE when the license is granted

7. - E1F03

Under what circumstances may a dealer sell an external RF power amplifier capable of operation below 144 MHz if it has not been granted FCC certification?

Select	Answer
A	It was imported from a manufacturer in a country that does not require certification of RF power amplifiers
B	It was imported from a manufacturer in another country and was certificated by that country's government
C	The equipment dealer assembled it from a kit
D	It was purchased in used condition from an amateur operator and is sold to another amateur operator for use at that operator's station

8. - E2A10

What type of satellite appears to stay in one position in the sky?

Select	Answer
A	LEO
B	Geostationary
C	HEO
D	Geomagnetic

9. - E2B06

What is vestigial sideband modulation?

Select	Answer
A	Amplitude modulation in which one complete sideband and a portion of the other are transmitted
B	Spread spectrum modulation achieved by applying FM modulation following single sideband amplitude modulation
C	A type of modulation in which one sideband is inverted
D	Narrow-band FM modulation achieved by filtering one sideband from the audio before frequency modulating the carrier

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	Special event contacts between stations in the U.S.
C	Contacts using tactical call signs
D	Repeater contacts between U.S. club members

11. - E2D06

Which of the following describes a method of establishing EME contacts?

Select	Answer
A	High-speed CW identification to avoid fading
B	Storing and forwarding digital messages
C	Judging optimum transmission times by monitoring beacons reflected from the moon
D	Time synchronous transmissions alternately from each station

12. - E2E06

What is the most common data rate used for HF packet?

Select	Answer
A	300 baud
B	1200 baud
C	110 baud
D	48 baud

13. - E3A14

What is meant by circularly polarized electromagnetic waves?

Select	Answer
A	Waves produced by a loop antenna
B	Waves that circle the Earth
C	Waves with a rotating electric field
D	Waves with an electric field bent into a circular shape

14. - E3B02

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

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

15. - E3C15

What might be indicated by a sudden rise in radio background noise across a large portion of the HF spectrum?

Select	Answer
A	A temperature inversion has occurred
B	Increased transequatorial propagation is likely
C	A solar flare has occurred
D	Long-path propagation is likely

16. - E4A02

Which of the following parameters does a spectrum analyzer display on the vertical and horizontal axes?

Select	Answer
A	SWR and frequency
B	RF amplitude and time
C	SWR and time
D	RF amplitude and frequency

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 harmonically related frequencies and observe the RF output with a logic 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 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. - E4C06

A CW receiver with the AGC off has an equivalent input noise power density of -174 dBm/Hz. What would be the level of an unmodulated carrier input to this receiver that would yield an audio output SNR of 0 dB in a 400 Hz noise bandwidth?

Select	Answer
A	-174 dBm
B	-164 dBm
C	-148 dBm
D	-155 dBm

19. - E4D03

How can intermodulation interference between two repeaters occur?

Select	Answer
A	When the repeaters are in close proximity and the signals mix in the final amplifier of one or both transmitters
B	When the repeaters are in close proximity and the signals cause feedback in the final amplifier of one or both transmitters
C	When the signals from the transmitters are reflected in phase from airplanes passing overhead
D	When the signals from the transmitters are reflected out of phase from airplanes passing overhead

20. - E4E02

Which of the following types of noise can often be reduced with a digital signal processing noise filter?

Select	Answer
A	Broadband white noise
B	All these choices are correct
C	Power line noise
D	Ignition noise

21. - E5A13

What is an effect of increasing Q in a series resonant circuit?

Select	Answer
A	Parasitic effects are minimized
B	Phase shift can become uncontrolled
C	Internal voltages increase
D	Fewer components are needed for the same performance

22. - E5B05

What happens to the magnitude of a pure reactance when it is converted to a susceptance?

Select	Answer
A	It is shifted by 90 degrees
B	It becomes the reciprocal
C	It is unchanged
D	The sign is reversed

23. - E5C11

Which point in Figure E5-1 best represents the impedance of a series circuit consisting of a 300-ohm resistor and an 18-microhenry inductor at 3.505 MHz?

Select	Answer
A	Point 1
B	Point 7
C	Point 3
D	Point 8

24. - E5D10

How can the true power be determined in an AC circuit where the voltage and current are out of phase?

Select	Answer
A	By multiplying the apparent power by the power factor
B	By dividing the apparent power by the power factor
C	By dividing the reactive power by the power factor
D	By multiplying the reactive power by the power factor

25. - E6A02

Which of the following semiconductor materials contains excess free electrons?

Select	Answer
A	N-type
B	Insulated gate
C	P-type
D	Bipolar

26. - E6B09

What is a common use for point-contact diodes?

Select	Answer
A	As an RF detector
B	As a constant current source
C	As a high-voltage rectifier
D	As a constant voltage source

27. - E6C03

What is tri-state logic?

Select	Answer
A	Logic devices that utilize ternary math
B	Proprietary logic devices manufactured by Tri-State Devices
C	Low-power logic devices designed to operate at 3 volts
D	Logic devices with 0, 1, and high-impedance output states

28. - E6D05

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

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

29. - E6E12

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

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

30. - E6F10

What is the most common type of photovoltaic cell used for electrical power generation?

Select	Answer
A	Cadmium Sulfide
B	Silicon
C	Copper oxide
D	Selenium

31. - E7A11

What type of logic defines "1" as a high voltage?

Select	Answer
A	Assertive Logic
B	Positive Logic
C	Reverse Logic
D	Negative logic

32. - E7B09

Which of the following describes how the loading and tuning capacitors are to be adjusted when tuning a vacuum tube RF power amplifier that employs a Pi-network output circuit?

Select	Answer
A	The tuning capacitor is adjusted for minimum plate current, and the loading capacitor is adjusted for maximum permissible plate current
B	The loading capacitor is adjusted to minimum plate current while alternately adjusting the tuning capacitor for maximum allowable plate current
C	The tuning capacitor is set to maximum capacitance and the loading capacitor is adjusted for minimum plate permissible current
D	The loading capacitor is set to maximum capacitance and the tuning capacitor is adjusted for minimum allowable plate current

33. - E7C04

How does an impedance-matching circuit transform a complex impedance to a resistive impedance?

Select	Answer
A	It cancels the reactive part of the impedance and changes the resistive part to a desired value
B	It introduces negative resistance to cancel the resistive part of impedance
C	It introduces transconductance to cancel the reactive part of impedance
D	Reactive currents are dissipated in matched resistances

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. - E7E01

Which of the following can be used to generate FM phone emissions?

Select	Answer
A	A reactance modulator on the final amplifier
B	A reactance modulator on the oscillator
C	A balanced modulator on the audio amplifier
D	A balanced modulator on the oscillator

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

37. - E7G03

What is the typical input impedance of an op-amp?

Select	Answer
A	Very high
B	1000 ohms
C	Very low
D	100 ohms

38. - E7H13

Which of the following is a technique for providing highly accurate and stable oscillators needed for microwave transmission and reception?

Select	Answer
A	Use a GPS signal reference
B	All these choices are correct
C	Use a rubidium stabilized reference oscillator
D	Use a temperature-controlled high Q dielectric resonator

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

40. - E8B08

What describes Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing?

Select	Answer
A	A frequency modulation technique that uses non-harmonically related frequencies
B	A bandwidth compression technique using Fourier transforms
C	A digital modulation technique using subcarriers at frequencies chosen to avoid intersymbol interference
D	A digital mode for narrow-band, slow-speed transmissions

41. - E8C07

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

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

42. - E8D03

How does the spread spectrum technique of frequency hopping work?

Select	Answer
A	If interference is detected by the receiver it will signal the transmitter to wait until the frequency is clear
B	The frequency of the transmitted signal is changed very rapidly according to a pseudorandom sequence also used by the receiving station
C	If interference is detected by the receiver it will signal the transmitter to change frequencies
D	A binary bit stream is used to shift the phase of an RF carrier very rapidly in a pseudorandom sequence

43. - E9A02

What is the effective radiated power relative to a dipole of a repeater station with 150 watts transmitter power output, 2 dB feed line loss, 2.2 dB duplexer loss, and 7 dBd antenna gain?

Select	Answer
A	286 watts
B	78.7 watts
C	1977 watts
D	420 watts

44. - E9B08

What is the far field of an antenna?

Select	Answer
A	The region where radiated field strengths are constant
B	The region where radiated power dissipates over a specified time period
C	The region of the ionosphere where radiated power is not refracted
D	The region where the shape of the antenna pattern is independent of distance

45. - E9C14

How does the performance of a horizontally polarized antenna mounted on the side of a hill compare with the same antenna mounted on flat ground?

Select	Answer
A	The horizontal beamwidth decreases in the downhill direction
B	The main lobe takeoff angle decreases in the downhill direction
C	The horizontal beamwidth increases in the uphill direction
D	The main lobe takeoff angle increases in the downhill direction

46. - E9D01

How much does the gain of an ideal parabolic dish antenna change when the operating frequency is doubled?

Select	Answer
A	3 dB
B	6 dB
C	4 dB
D	2 dB

47. - E9E06

Which of these feed line impedances would be suitable for constructing a quarter-wave Q-section for matching a 100-ohm loop to 50-ohm feed line?

Select	Answer
A	450 ohms
B	50 ohms
C	62 ohms
D	75 ohms

48. - E9F01

What is the velocity factor of a transmission line?

Select	Answer
A	The velocity of the wave in the transmission line multiplied by the velocity of light in a vacuum
B	The velocity of the wave in the transmission line divided by the velocity of light in a vacuum
C	The ratio of the characteristic impedance of the line to the terminating impedance
D	The index of shielding for coaxial cable

49. - E9G11

How are the wavelength scales on a Smith chart calibrated?

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

50. - E9H08

What is the function of a sense antenna?

Select	Answer
A	It allows DF antennas to receive signals at different vertical angles
B	It modifies the pattern of a DF antenna array to provide a null in one direction
C	It provides diversity reception that cancels multipath signals
D	It increases the sensitivity of a DF antenna array

Figure E5-1

Figure E7-2