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

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1. - E0A10

What toxic material may be present in some electronic components such as high voltage capacitors and transformers?

Select	Answer
A	Polytetrafluoroethylene
B	Polyethylene
C	Polychlorinated biphenyls
D	Polymorphic silicon

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

3. - E1B12

What must the control operator of a repeater operating in the 70 cm band do if a radiolocation system experiences interference from that repeater?

Select	Answer
A	All these choices are correct
B	Cease operation or make changes to the repeater to mitigate the interference
C	File an FAA NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) with the repeater system's ERP, call sign, and six-character grid locator
D	Reduce the repeater antenna HAAT (Height Above Average Terrain)

4. - E1C02

Which of the following types of communications may be transmitted to amateur stations in foreign countries?

Select	Answer
A	Messages intended for users of the maritime satellite service
B	Communications incidental to the purpose of the amateur service and remarks of a personal nature
C	Business-related messages for non-profit organizations
D	All these choices are correct

5. - E1D09

Which UHF amateur bands have frequencies authorized for space stations?

Select	Answer
A	70 cm only
B	70 cm and 13 cm
C	33 cm and 13 cm
D	70 cm and 33 cm

6. - E1E06

Who is responsible for the proper conduct and necessary supervision during an amateur operator license examination session?

Select	Answer
A	Each administering VE
B	The FCC
C	The VEC coordinating the session
D	The VE session manager

7. - E1F11

Which of the following best describes one of the standards that must be met by an external RF power amplifier if it is to qualify for a grant of FCC certification?

Select	Answer
A	It must satisfy the FCC's spurious emission standards when operated at the lesser of 1500 watts or its full output power
B	It must exhibit a gain of 0 dB or less over its full output range
C	It must be capable of external RF switching between its input and output networks
D	It must produce full legal output when driven by not more than 5 watts of mean RF input power

8. - E2A03

How is the signal inverted by an inverting linear transponder?

Select	Answer
A	The signal is reduced to I and Q components and the Q component is filtered out
B	The signal is passed through a mixer and the difference rather than the sum is transmitted
C	The signal is detected and remodulated on the reverse sideband
D	The signal is passed through a non-linear filter

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 IF converter
D	A special notch filter to remove synchronization pulses

10. - E2C03

From which of the following bands is amateur radio contesting generally excluded?

Select	Answer
A	33 centimeters
B	30 meters
C	2 meters
D	6 meters

11. - E2D05

What is one advantage of the JT65 mode?

Select	Answer
A	Uses only a 65 Hz bandwidth
B	The ability to decode signals which have a very low signal-to-noise ratio
C	Permits fast-scan TV transmissions over narrow bandwidth
D	Easily copied by ear if necessary

12. - E2E10

Which of these digital modes has the narrowest bandwidth?

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

13. - E3A10

Which type of atmospheric structure can create a path for microwave propagation?

Select	Answer
A	Dust devil
B	The jet stream
C	Wind shear
D	Temperature inversion

14. - E3B03

What is the best time of day for transequatorial propagation?

Select	Answer
A	Morning
B	Afternoon or early evening
C	Late at night
D	Noon

15. - E3C08

What does the space weather term G5 mean?

Select	Answer
A	Waning sunspot numbers
B	Moderate solar wind
C	An extreme geomagnetic storm
D	Very low solar activity

16. - E4A02

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

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

17. - E4B04

Which S parameter represents input port return loss or reflection coefficient (equivalent to VSWR)?

Select	Answer
A	S22
B	S21
C	S11
D	S12

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	-164 dBm
B	-155 dBm
C	-174 dBm
D	-148 dBm

19. - E4D01

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

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

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	Arcing contacts in a thermostatically controlled device
B	A malfunctioning illuminated advertising display
C	All these choices are correct
D	A defective doorbell or doorbell transformer inside a nearby residence

21. - E5A11

What is the half-power bandwidth of a resonant circuit that has a resonant frequency of 7.1 MHz and a Q of 150?

Select	Answer
A	157.8 Hz
B	23.67 kHz
C	47.3 kHz
D	315.6 Hz

22. - E5B12

What is admittance?

Select	Answer
A	The inverse of Q factor
B	The turns ratio of a transformer
C	The inverse of impedance
D	The term for the gain of a field effect transistor

23. - E5C07

Where is the impedance of a pure resistance plotted on rectangular coordinates?

Select	Answer
A	On a line through the origin, slanted at 45 degrees
B	On a horizontal line, offset vertically above the horizontal axis
C	On the horizontal axis
D	On the vertical axis

24. - E5D02

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

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

25. - E6A11

In Figure E6-1, what is the schematic symbol for a P-channel junction FET?

Select	Answer
A	6
B	1
C	2
D	3

26. - E6B06

Which of the following is a common use of a Schottky diode?

Select	Answer
A	As a variable capacitance in an automatic frequency control circuit
B	As a constant voltage reference in a power supply
C	As a VHF/UHF mixer or detector
D	As a rectifier in high current power supplies

27. - E6C07

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

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

28. - E6D04

Which materials are commonly used as a core in an inductor?

Select	Answer
A	Ferrite and brass
B	Teflon and Delrin
C	Polystyrene and polyethylene
D	Cobalt and aluminum

29. - E6E01

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

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

30. - E6F06

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

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

31. - E7A08

What logical operation does an OR gate perform?

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

32. - E7B01

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

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

33. - E7C12

What is one advantage of a Pi-matching network over an L-matching network consisting of a single inductor and a single capacitor?

Select	Answer
A	The Q of Pi-networks can be controlled
B	Pi-networks are more stable
C	L-networks cannot perform impedance transformation
D	Pi-networks provide balanced input and output

34. - E7D02

What is a characteristic of a switching electronic voltage regulator?

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

35. - E7E03

What is a frequency discriminator stage in a FM receiver?

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

36. - E7F04

What is a common method of generating an SSB signal using digital signal processing?

Select	Answer
A	Mixing products are converted to voltages and subtracted by adder circuits
B	A frequency synthesizer removes the unwanted sidebands
C	Signals are combined in quadrature phase relationship
D	Varying quartz crystal characteristics emulated in digital form

37. - E7G01

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

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

38. - E7H02

What is a microphonic?

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

39. - E8A09

How many different input levels can be encoded by an analog-to-digital converter with 8-bit resolution?

Select	Answer
A	8 multiplied by the gain of the input amplifier
B	256 divided by the gain of the input amplifier
C	256
D	8

40. - E8B10

What is frequency division multiplexing?

Select	Answer
A	Two or more information streams are merged into a baseband, which then modulates the transmitter
B	The transmitted signal jumps from band to band at a predetermined rate
C	Two or more information streams are merged into a digital combiner, which then pulse position modulates the transmitter
D	The transmitted signal is divided into packets of information

41. - E8C02

What is the definition of symbol rate in a digital transmission?

Select	Answer
A	The rate at which the waveform changes to convey information
B	The duration of each bit in a message sent over the air
C	The number of characters carried per second by the station-to-station link
D	The number of control characters in a message packet

42. - E8D03

How does the spread spectrum technique of frequency hopping work?

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

43. - E9A09

What is antenna efficiency?

Select	Answer
A	Radiation resistance divided by total resistance
B	Total resistance divided by radiation resistance
C	Radiation resistance divided by transmission resistance
D	Effective radiated power divided by transmitter output

44. - E9B11

What is a disadvantage of decreasing the number of wire segments in an antenna model below 10 segments per half-wavelength?

Select	Answer
A	The resulting design will favor radiation of harmonic energy
B	Ground conductivity will not be accurately modeled
C	The antenna will become mechanically unstable
D	The computed feed point impedance may be incorrect

45. - E9C09

Which of the following describes a G5RV antenna?

Select	Answer
A	A multi-band trap antenna
B	A phased array antenna consisting of multiple loops
C	A wide band dipole using shorted coaxial cable for the radiating elements and fed with a�4:1 balun
D	A multi-band dipole antenna fed with coax and a balun through a selected length of open wire transmission line

46. - E9D01

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

Select	Answer
A	6 dB
B	3 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	62 ohms
B	450 ohms
C	75 ohms
D	50 ohms

48. - E9F05

What is the approximate physical length of a solid polyethylene dielectric coaxial transmission line that is electrically 1/4 wavelength long at 14.1 MHz?

Select	Answer
A	5.3 meters
B	3.5 meters
C	10.6 meters
D	4.3 meters

49. - E9G08

What is the process of normalization with regard to a Smith chart?

Select	Answer
A	Reassigning impedance values with regard to the prime center
B	Reassigning reactance values with regard to the resistance axis
C	Reassigning resistance values with regard to the reactance axis
D	Reassigning prime center with regard to the reactance axis

50. - E9H03

What is Receiving Directivity Factor (RDF)?

Select	Answer
A	Forward gain compared to the gain in the reverse direction
B	Relative directivity compared to a dipole
C	Relative directivity compared to isotropic
D	Forward gain compared to average gain over the entire hemisphere

Figure E6-1