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

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1. - E0A03

Over what range of frequencies are the FCC human body RF exposure limits most restrictive?

Select	Answer
A	3 to 30 MHz
B	300 to 3000 MHz
C	300 kHz to 3 MHz
D	30 to 300 MHz

2. - E1A14

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

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

3. - E1B07

To what type of regulations does PRB-1 apply?

Select	Answer
A	State and local zoning
B	Use of wireless devices in vehicles
C	Homeowners associations
D	FAA tower height limits

4. - E1C09

What is the highest modulation index permitted at the highest modulation frequency for angle modulation below 29.0 MHz?

Select	Answer
A	3.0
B	2.0
C	1.0
D	0.5

5. - E1D06

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

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

6. - E1E06

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

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

7. - E1F09

Which of the following conditions apply when transmitting spread spectrum emissions?

Select	Answer
A	All these choices are correct
B	The transmission must not be used to obscure the meaning of any communication
C	The transmitting station must be in an area regulated by the FCC or in a country that permits SS emissions
D	A station transmitting SS emission must not cause harmful interference to other stations employing other authorized emissions

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. - E2B04

How is color information sent in analog SSTV?

Select	Answer
A	Color lines are sent sequentially
B	Color is sent in a color burst at the end of each line
C	Color information is sent on a 2.8 kHz subcarrier
D	Color is amplitude modulated on the frequency modulated intensity signal

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	At the top of each band, usually in a segment reserved for contests
B	In the middle of each band, usually on the national calling frequency
C	In the middle of the band, usually 25 kHz above the national calling frequency
D	In the weak signal segment of the band, with most of the activity near the calling frequency

11. - E2D10

How can an APRS station be used to help support a public service communications activity?

Select	Answer
A	APRS stations with General Personnel Scanners can automatically relay the participant numbers and time as they pass the check points
B	An APRS station with an emergency medical technician can automatically transmit medical data to the nearest hospital
C	An APRS station with a Global Positioning System unit can automatically transmit information to show a mobile station's position during the event
D	All these choices are correct

12. - E2E05

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

Select	Answer
A	PACTOR
B	PSK31
C	MFSK
D	RTTY

13. - E3A06

What might help to restore contact when DX signals become too weak to copy across an entire HF band a few hours after sunset?

Select	Answer
A	Switch to a lower frequency HF band
B	Wait 24 hours before attempting another communication on the band
C	Switch to a higher frequency HF band
D	Wait 90 minutes or so for the signal degradation to pass

14. - E3B02

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

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

15. - E3C09

How does the intensity of an X3 flare compare to that of an X2 flare?

Select	Answer
A	Twice as great
B	50 percent greater
C	10 percent greater
D	Four times as great

16. - E4A06

What is the effect of aliasing on a digital oscilloscope caused by setting the time base too slow?

Select	Answer
A	A false, jittery low-frequency version of the signal is displayed
B	All signals will have a DC offset
C	Calibration of the vertical scale is no longer valid
D	Excessive blanking occurs, which prevents display of the signal

17. - E4B02

What is the significance of voltmeter sensitivity expressed in ohms per volt?

Select	Answer
A	When used as an ammeter, the full scale reading in amps divided by ohms per volt rating will determine the size of shunt needed
B	When used as an ohmmeter, the reading in ohms divided by the ohms per volt rating will determine the voltage applied to the circuit
C	The full scale reading of the voltmeter multiplied by its ohms per volt rating will indicate the input impedance of the voltmeter
D	When used as a galvanometer, the reading in volts multiplied by the ohms per volt rating will determine the power drawn by the device under test

18. - E4C03

What is the term for the suppression in an FM receiver of one signal by another stronger signal on the same frequency?

Select	Answer
A	Capture effect
B	Desensitization
C	Frequency discrimination
D	Cross-modulation interference

19. - E4D07

Which of the following reduces the likelihood of receiver desensitization?

Select	Answer
A	Decrease the RF bandwidth of the receiver
B	Increase the receiver front end gain
C	Switch from fast AGC to slow AGC
D	Raise the receiver IF frequency

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. - E5A16

What is the resonant frequency of an RLC circuit if R is 33 ohms, L is 50 microhenries and C is 10 picofarads?

Select	Answer
A	7.12 MHz
B	7.12 kHz
C	23.5 kHz
D	23.5 MHz

22. - E5B01

What is the term for the time required for the capacitor in an RC circuit to be charged to 63.2% of the applied voltage or to discharge to 36.8% of its initial voltage?

Select	Answer
A	An exponential rate of one
B	A time factor of one
C	One time constant
D	One exponential period

23. - E5C10

Which point on Figure E5-1 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 6
B	Point 5
C	Point 2
D	Point 4

24. - E5D01

What is the result of skin effect?

Select	Answer
A	Thermal effects on the surface of the conductor decrease the impedance
B	As frequency decreases, RF current flows in a thinner layer of the conductor, closer to the surface
C	Thermal effects on the surface of the conductor increase the impedance
D	As frequency increases, RF current flows in a thinner layer of the conductor, closer to the surface

25. - E6A03

Why does a PN-junction diode not conduct current when reverse biased?

Select	Answer
A	Only P-type semiconductor material can conduct current
B	Holes in P-type material and electrons in the N-type material are separated by the applied voltage, widening the depletion region
C	Only N-type semiconductor material can conduct current
D	Excess holes in P-type material combine with the electrons in N-type material, converting the entire diode into an insulator

26. - E6B07

What is the failure mechanism when a junction diode fails due to excessive current?

Select	Answer
A	Charge carrier depletion
B	Insufficient forward voltage
C	Excessive inverse voltage
D	Excessive junction temperature

27. - E6C11

In Figure E6-3, what is the schematic symbol for the NOT operation (inverter)?

Select	Answer
A	5
B	4
C	6
D	2

28. - E6D06

What core material property determines the inductance of an inductor?

Select	Answer
A	Reactivity
B	Thermal impedance
C	Resistance
D	Permeability

29. - E6E10

What advantage does surface-mount technology offer at RF compared to using through-hole components?

Select	Answer
A	Shorter circuit-board traces
B	All these choices are correct
C	Components have less parasitic inductance and capacitance
D	Smaller circuit area

30. - E6F11

What is the approximate open-circuit voltage produced by a fully illuminated silicon photovoltaic cell?

Select	Answer
A	1.5 V
B	0.5 V
C	0.1 V
D	12 V

31. - E7A02

What is the function of a decade counter?

Select	Answer
A	It decodes a binary number for display on a seven-segment LED display
B	It produces 10 output pulses for every input pulse
C	It decodes a decimal number for display on a seven-segment LED display
D	It produces one output pulse for every 10 input pulses

32. - E7B02

What is a Class D amplifier?

Select	Answer
A	A frequency doubling amplifier
B	An amplifier that uses drift-mode FETs for high efficiency
C	A low power amplifier that uses a differential amplifier for improved linearity
D	A type of amplifier that uses switching technology to achieve high efficiency

33. - E7C05

Which filter type is described as having ripple in the passband and a sharp cutoff?

Select	Answer
A	A passive op-amp filter
B	An active LC filter
C	A Butterworth filter
D	A Chebyshev filter

34. - E7D15

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

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

35. - E7E03

What is a frequency discriminator stage in a FM receiver?

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

36. - E7F05

How frequently must an analog signal be sampled by an analog-to-digital converter so that the signal can be accurately reproduced?

Select	Answer
A	At least half the rate of the highest frequency component of the signal
B	At least twice the rate of the highest frequency component of the signal
C	At the same rate as the highest frequency component of the signal
D	At four times the rate of the highest frequency component of the signal

37. - E7G09

What will be the output voltage of the circuit shown in Figure E7-3 if R1 is 1000 ohms, RF is 10,000 ohms, and 0.23 volts DC is applied to the input?

Select	Answer
A	-2.3 volts
B	0.23 volts
C	2.3 volts
D	-0.23 volts

38. - E7H15

Which of these functions can be performed by a phase-locked loop?

Select	Answer
A	Wide-band AF and RF power amplification
B	Photovoltaic conversion, optical coupling
C	Comparison of two digital input signals, digital pulse counter
D	Frequency synthesis, FM demodulation

39. - E8A02

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

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

40. - E8B02

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

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

41. - E8C01

How is Forward Error Correction implemented?

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

42. - E8D08

What parameter evaluates distortion of an AFSK signal caused by excessive input audio levels?

Select	Answer
A	Intermodulation Distortion (IMD)
B	Repeat Request Rate (RRR)
C	Baud rate
D	Signal-to-noise ratio

43. - E9A12

How much gain does an antenna have compared to a 1/2-wavelength dipole when it has 6 dB gain over an isotropic antenna?

Select	Answer
A	8.15 dB
B	6.0 dB
C	3.85 dB
D	2.79 dB

44. - E9B08

What is the far field of an antenna?

Select	Answer
A	The region of the ionosphere where radiated power is not refracted
B	The region where radiated power dissipates over a specified time period
C	The region where radiated field strengths are constant
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 increases in the uphill direction
B	The main lobe takeoff angle decreases in the downhill direction
C	The horizontal beamwidth decreases in the downhill direction
D	The main lobe takeoff angle increases in the downhill direction

46. - E9D11

Which of the following conductors would be best for minimizing losses in a station's RF ground system?

Select	Answer
A	Resistive wire, such as spark plug wire
B	Stranded wire
C	Wide flat copper strap
D	Solid wire

47. - E9E09

Which of the following is used to shunt-feed a grounded tower at its base?

Select	Answer
A	All these choices are correct
B	Hairpin match
C	Double-bazooka match
D	Gamma match

48. - E9F09

What is the approximate physical length of a foam polyethylene dielectric coaxial transmission line that is electrically 1/4 wavelength long at 7.2 MHz?

Select	Answer
A	5.2 meters
B	10.4 meters
C	8.3 meters
D	6.9 meters

49. - E9G02

What type of coordinate system is used in a Smith chart?

Select	Answer
A	Resistance lines and reactance chords
B	Resistance circles and reactance arcs
C	Voltage circles and current arcs
D	Voltage lines and current chords

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 E5-1

Figure E6-3

Figure E7-3