US Amateur Radio - Amateur Extra (Element 4, 2016-2020) Practice Test

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1. - E1A03

With your transceiver displaying the carrier frequency of phone signals, you hear a station calling CQ on 14.349 MHz USB. Is it legal to return the call using upper sideband on the same frequency?

Select	Answer
A	Yes, because you were not the station calling CQ
B	No, the sideband will extend beyond the band edge
C	Yes, because the displayed frequency is within the 20 meter band
D	No, U.S. stations are not permitted to use phone emissions above 14.340 MHz

2. - E1B03

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

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

3. - E1C02

What is meant by automatic control of a station?

Select	Answer
A	Remotely controlling a station's antenna pattern through a directional control link
B	A station operating with its output power controlled automatically
C	The use of a control link between a control point and a locally controlled station
D	The use of devices and procedures for control so that the control operator does not have to be present at a control point

4. - E1D01

What is the definition of the term telemetry?

Select	Answer
A	Two-way single channel transmissions of data
B	One-way transmission that initiates, modifies, or terminates the functions of a device at a distance
C	One-way transmission of measurements at a distance from the measuring instrument
D	Two-way radiotelephone transmissions in excess of 1000 feet

5. - E1E03

What is a Volunteer Examiner Coordinator?

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

6. - E1F05

Amateur stations may not transmit in which of the following frequency segments if they are located in the contiguous 48 states and north of Line A?

Select	Answer
A	53 MHz - 54 MHz
B	222 MHz - 223 MHz
C	420 MHz - 430 MHz
D	440 MHz - 450 MHz

7. - E2A10

Why may the received signal from an amateur satellite exhibit a rapidly repeating fading effect?

Select	Answer
A	Because of ionospheric absorption
B	Because the satellite is spinning
C	Because of the satellite's low orbital altitude
D	Because of the Doppler Effect

8. - E2B18

On which of the following frequencies is one likely to find FM ATV transmissions?

Select	Answer
A	14.230 MHz
B	1255 MHz
C	52.525 MHz
D	29.6 MHz

9. - E2C04

What type of transmission is most often used for a ham radio mesh network?

Select	Answer
A	Spread spectrum in the 2.4 GHz band
B	Multiple Frequency Shift Keying in the 10 GHz band
C	Store and forward on the 440 MHz band
D	Frequency division multiplex in the 24 GHz band

10. - E2D02

Which of the following is a good technique for making meteor scatter contacts?

Select	Answer
A	All of these choices are correct
B	Short transmission with rapidly repeated call signs and signal reports
C	15 second timed transmission sequences with stations alternating based on location
D	Use of high speed CW or digital modes

11. - E2E11

What is the difference between direct FSK and audio FSK?

Select	Answer
A	Direct FSK applies the data signal to the transmitter VFO
B	Audio FSK can be performed anywhere in the transmit chain
C	Direct FSK uses a DC-coupled data connection
D	Audio FSK has a superior frequency response

12. - E3A08

When a meteor strikes the Earth's atmosphere, a cylindrical region of free electrons is formed at what layer of the ionosphere?

Select	Answer
A	The F2 layer
B	The D layer
C	The F1 layer
D	The E layer

13. - E3B06

Which of the following amateur bands most frequently provides long-path propagation?

Select	Answer
A	10 meters
B	20 meters
C	80 meters
D	6 meters

14. - E3C01

What does the term ray tracing describe in regard to radio communications?

Select	Answer
A	The process in which an electronic display presents a pattern
B	Evaluating high voltage sources for X-Rays
C	Modeling a radio wave's path through the ionosphere
D	Determining the radiation pattern from an array of antennas

15. - E4A01

Which of the following parameter determines the bandwidth of a digital or computer-based oscilloscope?

Select	Answer
A	Input impedance
B	Sample resolution
C	Input capacitance
D	Sampling rate

16. - E4B17

What three test loads are used to calibrate a standard RF vector network analyzer?

Select	Answer
A	Short circuit, open circuit, and resonant circuit
B	Short circuit, open circuit, and 50 ohms
C	50 ohms through 1/8 wavelength, 1/4 wavelength, and 1/2 wavelength of coaxial cable
D	50 ohms, 75 ohms, and 90 ohms

17. - E4C15

What is usually the primary source of noise that is heard from an HF receiver with an antenna connected?

Select	Answer
A	Atmospheric noise
B	Receiver front-end noise
C	Detector noise
D	Induction motor noise

18. - E4D10

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

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

19. - E4E11

Which is the most likely cause if you are hearing combinations of local AM broadcast signals within one or more of the MF or HF ham bands?

Select	Answer
A	Your station receiver IF amplifier stage is defective
B	Nearby corroded metal joints are mixing and re-radiating the broadcast signals
C	The broadcast station is transmitting an over-modulated signal
D	You are receiving sky wave signals from a distant station

20. - E5A17

What is the result of increasing the Q of an impedance-matching circuit?

Select	Answer
A	Matching bandwidth is increased
B	Matching bandwidth is decreased
C	Matching range is increased
D	It has no effect on impedance matching

21. - E5B07

What is the phase angle between the voltage across and the current through a series RLC circuit if XC is 500 ohms, R is 1 kilohm, and XL is 250 ohms?

Select	Answer
A	14.0 degrees with the voltage leading the current
B	14.0 degrees with the voltage lagging the current
C	68.2 degrees with the voltage lagging the current
D	68.2 degrees with the voltage leading the current

22. - E5C14

Which point on Figure E5-2 best represents the impedance of a series circuit consisting of a 400 ohm resistor and a 38 picofarad capacitor at 14 MHz?

Select	Answer
A	Point 5
B	Point 6
C	Point 2
D	Point 4

23. - E5D11

What is the power factor of an R-L circuit having a 60 degree phase angle between the voltage and the current?

Select	Answer
A	0.5
B	1.414
C	0.866
D	1.73

24. - E6A15

Which semiconductor material contains excess holes in the outer shell of electrons?

Select	Answer
A	N-type
B	Bipolar-type
C	Superconductor-type
D	P-type

25. - E6B12

What is one common use for PIN diodes?

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

26. - E6C06

Why do CMOS digital integrated circuits have high immunity to noise on the input signal or power supply?

Select	Answer
A	The input switching threshold is about one-half the power supply voltage
B	The input switching threshold is about two times the power supply voltage
C	Larger bypass capacitors are used in CMOS circuit design
D	Input signals are stronger

27. - E6D04

Which materials are commonly used as a slug core in a variable inductor?

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

28. - E6E12

Why are high-power RF amplifier ICs and transistors sometimes mounted in ceramic packages?

Select	Answer
A	Better dissipation of heat
B	To provide a low-pass frequency response
C	High-voltage insulating ability
D	Enhanced sensitivity to light

29. - E6F04

What is the photovoltaic effect?

Select	Answer
A	The conversion of electrical energy to mechanical energy
B	The conversion of light to electrical energy
C	The tendency of a battery to discharge when used outside
D	The conversion of voltage to current when exposed to light

30. - E7A11

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

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

31. - E7B14

Why are switching amplifiers more efficient than linear amplifiers?

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

32. - E7C12

Which describes a Pi-L-network used for matching a vacuum tube final amplifier to a 50 ohm unbalanced output?

Select	Answer
A	A network with only three discrete parts
B	A Pi-network with an additional series inductor on the output
C	A Phase Inverter Load network
D	A matching network in which all components are isolated from ground

33. - E7D10

What is the primary reason that a high-frequency switching type high voltage power supply can be both less expensive and lighter in weight than a conventional power supply?

Select	Answer
A	The high frequency inverter design uses much smaller transformers and filter components for an equivalent power output
B	It uses a diode bridge rectifier for increased output
C	The inverter design does not require any output filtering
D	It uses a large power factor compensation capacitor to create free power from the unused portion of the AC cycle

34. - E7E05

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

Select	Answer
A	An audio prescaler
B	A pre-emphasis network
C	A de-emphasis network
D	A heterodyne suppressor

35. - E7F10

What aspect of receiver analog-to-digital conversion determines the maximum receive bandwidth of a Direct Digital Conversion SDR?

Select	Answer
A	Sample rate
B	Processor latency
C	Sample width in bits
D	Sample clock phase noise

36. - E7G05

How can unwanted ringing and audio instability be prevented in a multi-section op-amp RC audio filter circuit?

Select	Answer
A	Restrict Q but increase gain
B	Increase both gain and Q
C	Restrict both gain and Q
D	Restrict gain but increase Q

37. - E7H07

How can an oscillator's microphonic responses be reduced?

Select	Answer
A	Using the oscillator only for CW and digital signals
B	Eliminating noise on the oscillator's power supply
C	Mechanically isolating the oscillator circuitry from its enclosure
D	Use of NP0 capacitors

38. - E8A01

What is the name of the process that shows that a square wave is made up of a sine wave plus all of its odd harmonics?

Select	Answer
A	Fourier analysis
B	Numerical analysis
C	Differential analysis
D	Vector analysis

39. - E8B01

What is the term for the ratio between the frequency deviation of an RF carrier wave and the modulating frequency of its corresponding FM-phone signal?

Select	Answer
A	Quieting index
B	Modulation index
C	Percentage of modulation
D	FM compressibility

40. - E8C09

Which is the name of a digital code where each preceding or following character changes by only one bit?

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

41. - E8D09

What is considered a good minimum IMD level for an idling PSK signal?

Select	Answer
A	-20 dB
B	+15 dB
C	+10 dB
D	-30 dB

42. - E9A02

What antenna has no gain in any direction?

Select	Answer
A	Half-wave dipole
B	Yagi
C	Quarter-wave vertical
D	Isotropic antenna

43. - 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	12 dB
D	24 dB

44. - E9C09

What is a G5RV antenna?

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

45. - E9D06

What happens to the bandwidth of an antenna as it is shortened through the use of loading coils?

Select	Answer
A	No change occurs
B	It is increased
C	It is decreased
D	It becomes flat

46. - E9E01

What system matches a higher impedance transmission line to a lower impedance antenna by connecting the line to the driven element in two places spaced a fraction of a wavelength each side of element center?

Select	Answer
A	The stub matching system
B	The delta matching system
C	The gamma matching system
D	The omega matching system

47. - E9F12

What impedance does a 1/4 wavelength transmission line present to a generator when the line is open at the far end?

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

48. - E9G01

Which of the following can be calculated using a Smith chart?

Select	Answer
A	Radiation resistance
B	Antenna radiation pattern
C	Impedance along transmission lines
D	Radio propagation

49. - E9H09

Which of the following describes the construction of a receiving loop antenna?

Select	Answer
A	A large circularly polarized antenna
B	One or more turns of wire wound in the shape of a large open coil
C	A small coil of wire tightly wound around a toroidal ferrite core
D	A vertical antenna coupled to a feed line through an inductive loop of wire

50. - E0A04

When evaluating a site with multiple transmitters operating at the same time, the operators and licensees of which transmitters are responsible for mitigating over-exposure situations?

Select	Answer
A	Each transmitter operating with a duty-cycle greater than 50 percent
B	Each transmitter that produces 5 percent or more of its MPE limit at accessible locations
C	Only the most powerful transmitter
D	Only commercial transmitters

Figure E5-2

Figure E9-1