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

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1. - E0A05

What is one of the potential hazards of operating in the amateur radio microwave bands?

Select	Answer
A	The extremely high frequency energy can damage the joints of antenna structures
B	Microwaves often travel long distances by ionospheric reflection
C	Microwaves are ionizing radiation
D	The high gain antennas commonly used can result in high exposure levels

2. - E1A13

Who must be in physical control of the station apparatus of an amateur station aboard any vessel or craft that is documented or registered in the United States?

Select	Answer
A	Any person holding an FCC issued amateur license or who is authorized for alien reciprocal operation
B	Any person named in an amateur station license grant or a person holding an unrestricted Radiotelephone Operator Permit
C	Only a person named in an amateur station license grant
D	Only a person with an FCC Marine Radio license grant

3. - E1B02

Which of the following is an acceptable bandwidth for Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) based voice or SSTV digital transmissions made on the HF amateur bands?

Select	Answer
A	15 kHz
B	20 kHz
C	3 kHz
D	10 kHz

4. - E1C11

Which of the following operating arrangements allows an FCC-licensed U.S. citizen to operate in many European countries, and alien amateurs from many European countries to operate in the U.S.?

Select	Answer
A	IARP agreement
B	ITU reciprocal license
C	All these choices are correct
D	CEPT agreement

5. - E1D06

What is the maximum permitted transmitter output power when operating a model craft by telecommand?

Select	Answer
A	2 watts
B	5 watts
C	1 watt
D	100 watts

6. - E1E09

What may be the penalty for a VE who fraudulently administers or certifies an examination?

Select	Answer
A	A sentence of up to one year in prison
B	A fine of up to $1000 per occurrence
C	All these choices are correct
D	Revocation of the VE's amateur station license grant and the suspension of the VE's amateur operator license grant

7. - E1F01

On what frequencies are spread spectrum transmissions permitted?

Select	Answer
A	Only on amateur frequencies above 420 MHz
B	Only on amateur frequencies above 144 MHz
C	Only on amateur frequencies above 50 MHz
D	Only on amateur frequencies above 222 MHz

8. - E2A09

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

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

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

10. - E2C07

What is the Cabrillo format?

Select	Answer
A	The most common set of contest rules
B	A method of exchanging information during a contest QSO
C	The rules of order for meetings between contest sponsors
D	A standard for submission of electronic contest logs

11. - E2D09

What type of modulation is used for JT65 contacts?

Select	Answer
A	Multi-tone AFSK
B	RTTY
C	PSK
D	IEEE 802.11

12. - E2E05

Which of these digital modes does not support keyboard-to-keyboard operation?

Select	Answer
A	PSK31
B	RTTY
C	MFSK
D	PACTOR

13. - E3A13

Which of these emission modes is best for auroral propagation?

Select	Answer
A	RTTY
B	SSB
C	FM
D	CW

14. - E3B07

What happens to linearly polarized radio waves that split into ordinary and extraordinary waves in the ionosphere?

Select	Answer
A	They become depolarized
B	They become phase locked
C	They become elliptically polarized
D	They are bent toward the magnetic poles

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	Four times as great
D	Twice as great

16. - E4A08

Which of the following measures SWR?

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

18. - E4C05

What does a receiver noise floor of -174 dBm represent?

Select	Answer
A	The galactic noise contribution to minimum detectable signal
B	The theoretical noise in a 1 Hz bandwidth at the input of a perfect receiver at room temperature
C	The minimum detectable signal as a function of receive frequency
D	The noise figure of a 1 Hz bandwidth receiver

19. - E4D11

Why are odd-order intermodulation products, created within a receiver, of particular interest compared to other products?

Select	Answer
A	Odd-order products overload the IF filters
B	Odd-order products of two signals in the band of interest are also likely to be within the band
C	Odd-order intermodulation produces three products for every input signal within the band of interest
D	Odd-order products are an indication of poor image rejection

20. - E4E02

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

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

21. - E5A07

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

Select	Answer
A	Minimum
B	Maximum
C	R/L
D	L/R

22. - E5B04

What is the time constant of a circuit having two 220-microfarad capacitors and two 1-megohm resistors, all in parallel?

Select	Answer
A	110 seconds
B	440 seconds
C	55 seconds
D	220 seconds

23. - E5C03

Which of the following represents an inductive reactance in polar coordinates?

Select	Answer
A	A negative phase angle
B	A negative magnitude
C	A positive magnitude
D	A positive phase angle

24. - E5D07

How many watts are consumed in a circuit having a power factor of 0.71 if the apparent power is 500VA?

Select	Answer
A	355 W
B	252 W
C	704 W
D	1.42 mW

25. - E6A12

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

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

26. - E6B05

What characteristic of a PIN diode makes it useful as an RF switch?

Select	Answer
A	Low junction capacitance
B	Extremely high reverse breakdown voltage
C	Reverse bias controls its forward voltage drop
D	Ability to dissipate large amounts of power

27. - E6C07

What best describes a pull-up or pull-down resistor?

Select	Answer
A	A resistor in a keying circuit used to reduce key clicks
B	A resistor connected to an op-amp output that prevents signals from exceeding the power supply voltage
C	A resistor connected to the positive or negative supply line used to establish a voltage when an input or output is an open circuit
D	A resistor that ensures that an oscillator frequency does not drift

28. - E6D09

What devices are commonly used as VHF and UHF parasitic suppressors at the input and output terminals of a transistor HF amplifier?

Select	Answer
A	Ferrite beads
B	Steel-core toroids
C	Butterworth filters
D	Electrolytic capacitors

29. - E6E07

What type of transmission line is used for connections to MMICs?

Select	Answer
A	Parallel wire
B	Circular waveguide
C	Miniature coax
D	Microstrip

30. - E6F06

Which of these materials is most commonly used to create photoconductive devices?

Select	Answer
A	A crystalline semiconductor
B	A heavy metal
C	An ordinary metal
D	A liquid semiconductor

31. - E7A04

How many flip-flops are required to divide a signal frequency by 4?

Select	Answer
A	4
B	8
C	1
D	2

32. - E7B14

Why are switching amplifiers more efficient than linear amplifiers?

Select	Answer
A	Linear amplifiers have high gain resulting in higher harmonic content
B	Switching amplifiers operate at higher voltages
C	Switching amplifiers use push-pull circuits
D	The power transistor is at saturation or cutoff most of the time

33. - E7C10

Which of the following filters would be the best choice for use in a 2 meter band repeater duplexer?

Select	Answer
A	A cavity filter
B	A crystal filter
C	A DSP filter
D	An L-C filter

34. - E7D02

What is a characteristic of a switching electronic voltage regulator?

Select	Answer
A	It gives a ramp voltage at its output
B	It is generally less efficient than a linear regulator
C	The controlled device's duty cycle is changed to produce a constant average output voltage
D	The resistance of a control element is varied in direct proportion to the line voltage or load current

35. - E7E10

How does a diode envelope detector function?

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

36. - E7F07

What function is performed by a Fast Fourier Transform?

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

37. - E7G01

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

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

38. - E7H07

How can an oscillator's microphonic responses be reduced?

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

39. - E8A02

Which of the following is a type of analog-to-digital conversion?

Select	Answer
A	Phase reversal
B	Level shifting
C	Successive approximation
D	Harmonic regeneration

40. - E8B02

How does the modulation index of a phase-modulated emission vary with RF carrier frequency?

Select	Answer
A	It varies with the square root of the RF carrier frequency
B	It does not depend on the RF carrier frequency
C	It increases as the RF carrier frequency increases
D	It decreases as the RF carrier frequency increases

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	15.36 kHz
D	9.6 kHz

42. - E8D02

What spread spectrum communications technique uses a high-speed binary bit stream to shift the phase of an RF carrier?

Select	Answer
A	Frequency hopping
B	Binary phase-shift keying
C	Direct sequence
D	Phase compandored spread spectrum

43. - E9A13

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

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

44. - E9B03

In the antenna radiation pattern shown in Figure E9-1, what is the front-to-side ratio?

Select	Answer
A	18 dB
B	14 dB
C	24 dB
D	12 dB

45. - E9C04

What happens to the radiation pattern of an unterminated long wire antenna as the wire length is increased?

Select	Answer
A	The front-to-back ratio decreases
B	The lobes align more in the direction of the wire
C	The vertical angle increases
D	The lobes become more perpendicular to the wire

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

47. - E9E07

What parameter describes the interactions at the load end of a mismatched transmission line?

Select	Answer
A	Velocity factor
B	Dielectric constant
C	Reflection coefficient
D	Characteristic impedance

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

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 antenna electrical frequency
D	In fractions of transmission line electrical frequency

50. - E9H05

What is the main drawback of a small wire-loop antenna for direction finding?

Select	Answer
A	It has a bidirectional pattern
B	It is practical for use only on VHF and higher bands
C	All these choices are correct
D	It has no clearly defined null

Figure E9-1