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	Polyethylene
B	Polytetrafluoroethylene
C	Polymorphic silicon
D	Polychlorinated biphenyls

2. - E1A14

Except in some parts of Alaska, what is the maximum power permitted on the 630 meter band?

Select	Answer
A	1 watt EIRP
B	5 watts EIRP
C	100 watts PEP
D	50 watts PEP

3. - E1B08

What limitations may the FCC place on an amateur station if its signal causes interference to domestic broadcast reception, assuming that the receivers involved are of good engineering design?

Select	Answer
A	The amateur station must cease operation
B	The amateur station must cease operation on all frequencies below 30 MHz
C	The amateur station must cease operation on all frequencies above 30 MHz
D	The amateur station must avoid transmitting during certain hours on frequencies that cause the interference

4. - E1C06

Which of the following is required in order to operate in accordance with CEPT rules in foreign countries where permitted?

Select	Answer
A	The U.S. embassy must approve of your operation
B	You must bring a copy of FCC Public Notice DA 16-1048
C	You must identify in the official language of the country in which you are operating
D	You must append "/CEPT" to your call sign

5. - E1D04

Which of the following is required in the identification transmissions from a balloon-borne telemetry station?

Select	Answer
A	The output power of the balloon transmitter
B	Call sign
C	All these choices are correct
D	The station's six-character Maidenhead grid locator

6. - E1E01

For which types of out-of-pocket expenses do the Part 97 rules state that VEs and VECs may be reimbursed?

Select	Answer
A	No expenses are authorized for reimbursement
B	Providing amateur operator license examination preparation training materials
C	Preparing, processing, administering, and coordinating an examination for an amateur radio operator license
D	Teaching an amateur operator license examination preparation course

7. - E1F01

On what frequencies are spread spectrum transmissions permitted?

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

8. - E2A11

What type of antenna can be used to minimize the effects of spin modulation and Faraday rotation?

Select	Answer
A	A circularly polarized antenna
B	A linearly polarized antenna
C	An isotropic antenna
D	A log-periodic dipole array

9. - E2B08

What technique allows commercial analog TV receivers to be used for fast-scan TV operations on the 70 cm band?

Select	Answer
A	Using converted satellite TV dishes
B	Transmitting on channels shared with cable TV
C	Transmitting on the abandoned TV channel 2
D	Using USB and demodulating the signal with a computer sound card

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

11. - E2D04

What technology is used to track, in real time, balloons carrying amateur radio transmitters?

Select	Answer
A	Ultrasonics
B	Doppler shift of beacon signals
C	APRS
D	Bandwidth compressed LORAN

12. - E2E12

How do ALE stations establish contact?

Select	Answer
A	ALE radios monitor an internet site for the frequency they are being paged on
B	ALE radios activate when they hear their signal echoed by back scatter
C	ALE constantly scans a list of frequencies, activating the radio when the designated call sign is received
D	ALE radios send a constant tone code to establish a frequency for future use

13. - E3A07

Atmospheric ducts capable of propagating microwave signals often form over what geographic feature?

Select	Answer
A	Urban areas
B	Forests
C	Mountain ranges
D	Bodies of water

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 elliptically polarized
C	They become phase locked
D	They are bent toward the magnetic poles

15. - E3C08

What does the space weather term G5 mean?

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

16. - E4A03

Which of the following test instruments is used to display spurious signals and/or intermodulation distortion products generated by an SSB transmitter?

Select	Answer
A	A logic analyzer
B	A spectrum analyzer
C	A wattmeter
D	A time-domain reflectometer

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 non-harmonically related frequencies and observe the RF output with a spectrum 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 harmonically related frequencies and observe the RF output with a logic analyzer
D	Modulate the transmitter using two AF signals having non-harmonically related frequencies and observe the RF output with a spectrum analyzer

18. - E4C11

Why can an attenuator be used to reduce receiver overload on the lower frequency HF bands with little or no impact on signal-to-noise ratio?

Select	Answer
A	The attenuator has a low-pass filter to increase the strength of lower frequency signals
B	The attenuator has a noise filter to suppress interference
C	Atmospheric noise is generally greater than internally generated noise even after attenuation
D	Signals are attenuated separately from the noise

19. - E4D08

What causes intermodulation in an electronic circuit?

Select	Answer
A	Positive feedback
B	Lack of neutralization
C	Too little gain
D	Nonlinear circuits or devices

20. - E4E06

What is one type of electrical interference that might be caused by a nearby personal computer?

Select	Answer
A	A whining type noise that continually pulses off and on
B	A loud AC hum in the audio output of your station receiver
C	A clicking noise at intervals of a few seconds
D	The appearance of unstable modulated or unmodulated signals at specific frequencies

21. - E5A10

How is the Q of an RLC series resonant circuit calculated?

Select	Answer
A	Reactance of either the inductance or capacitance divided by the resistance
B	Reactance of the inductance multiplied by the reactance of the capacitance
C	Resistance divided by the reactance of either the inductance or capacitance
D	Reactance of either the inductance or capacitance multiplied by the resistance

22. - E5B10

What is the relationship between the AC current through an inductor and the voltage across an inductor?

Select	Answer
A	Voltage and current are 180 degrees out of phase
B	Current leads voltage by 90 degrees
C	Voltage leads current by 90 degrees
D	Voltage and current are in phase

23. - E5C05

What is the name of the diagram used to show the phase relationship between impedances at a given frequency?

Select	Answer
A	Venn diagram
B	Phasor diagram
C	Near field diagram
D	Far field diagram

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

25. - E6A06

What is the beta of a bipolar junction transistor?

Select	Answer
A	The breakdown voltage of the base to collector junction
B	The change in collector current with respect to base current
C	The switching speed
D	The frequency at which the current gain is reduced to 0.707

26. - E6B02

What is an important characteristic of a Schottky diode as compared to an ordinary silicon diode when used as a power supply rectifier?

Select	Answer
A	Longer carrier retention time
B	Less forward voltage drop
C	More constant reverse avalanche voltage
D	Much higher reverse voltage breakdown

27. - E6C08

In Figure E6-3, what is the schematic symbol for a NAND gate?

Select	Answer
A	1
B	3
C	4
D	2

28. - E6D08

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

Select	Answer
A	Powdered-iron cores generally require fewer turns to produce a given inductance
B	Powdered-iron cores use smaller diameter wire for the same inductance
C	Powdered-iron cores generally maintain their characteristics at higher currents
D	Powdered-iron cores generally have greater initial permeability

29. - E6E06

What characteristics of the MMIC make it a popular choice for VHF through microwave circuits?

Select	Answer
A	Nearly infinite gain, very high input impedance, and very low output impedance
B	The ability to retrieve information from a single signal even in the presence of other strong signals
C	Controlled gain, low noise figure, and constant input and output impedance over the specified frequency range
D	Plate current that is controlled by a control grid

30. - E6F07

What is a solid-state relay?

Select	Answer
A	A relay using transistors to drive the relay coil
B	A device that uses semiconductors to implement the functions of an electromechanical relay
C	A mechanical relay that latches in the on or off state each time it is pulsed
D	A semiconductor passive delay line

31. - E7A06

What is a characteristic of a monostable multivibrator?

Select	Answer
A	It switches momentarily to the opposite binary state and then returns to its original state after a set time
B	It stores one bit of data in either a 0 or 1 state
C	It produces a continuous square wave oscillating between 1 and 0
D	It maintains a constant output voltage, regardless of variations in the input voltage

32. - E7B12

What type of amplifier circuit is shown in Figure E7-1?

Select	Answer
A	Common base
B	Emitter follower
C	Common emitter
D	Common collector

33. - E7C02

Which of the following is a property of a T-network with series capacitors and a parallel shunt inductor?

Select	Answer
A	It is a band-pass filter
B	It is a low-pass filter
C	It is a high-pass filter
D	It is a notch filter

34. - E7D15

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

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

35. - E7E01

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

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

36. - E7F08

What is the function of decimation?

Select	Answer
A	Reducing the effective sample rate by removing samples
B	Converting data to binary code decimal form
C	Removing unnecessary significant digits
D	Attenuating the signal

37. - E7G08

How does the gain of an ideal operational amplifier vary with frequency?

Select	Answer
A	It increases linearly with increasing frequency
B	It decreases linearly with increasing frequency
C	It does not vary with frequency
D	It decreases logarithmically with increasing frequency

38. - E7H06

Which of the following oscillator circuits are commonly used in VFOs?

Select	Answer
A	Armstrong and deForest
B	Pierce and Zener
C	Colpitts and Hartley
D	Negative feedback and balanced feedback

39. - E8A10

What is the purpose of a low-pass filter used in conjunction with a digital-to-analog converter?

Select	Answer
A	Improve accuracy by removing out-of-sequence codes from the input
B	Lower the input bandwidth to increase the effective resolution
C	All these choices are correct
D	Remove harmonics from the output caused by the discrete analog levels generated

40. - E8B07

Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing is a technique used for which type of amateur communication?

Select	Answer
A	OFDM signals are not allowed on amateur bands
B	High-speed digital modes
C	EME
D	Extremely low-power contacts

41. - E8C01

How is Forward Error Correction implemented?

Select	Answer
A	By varying the frequency shift of the transmitted signal according to a predefined algorithm
B	By the receiving station repeating each block of three data characters
C	By transmitting a special algorithm to the receiving station along with the data characters
D	By transmitting extra data that may be used to detect and correct transmission errors

42. - E8D03

How does the spread spectrum technique of frequency hopping work?

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

43. - E9A13

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

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

44. - E9B04

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

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

45. - E9C09

Which of the following describes a G5RV antenna?

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

46. - E9D12

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

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

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

48. - 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 input impedance to the generator
B	The same as the characteristic impedance of the line
C	Very low impedance
D	Very high impedance

49. - E9G06

On the Smith chart shown in Figure E9-3, what is the name for the large outer circle on which the reactance arcs terminate?

Select	Answer
A	Impedance axis
B	Reactance axis
C	Polar axis
D	Prime axis

50. - E9H10

How can the output voltage of a multiple-turn receiving loop antenna be increased?

Select	Answer
A	By winding adjacent turns in opposing directions
B	By increasing the number of turns and/or the area
C	By reducing the permeability of the loop shield
D	By utilizing high impedance wire for the coupling loop

Figure E6-3

Figure E7-1

Figure E9-3