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

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1. - E0A06

Why are there separate electric (E) and magnetic (H) field MPE limits?

Select	Answer
A	The body reacts to electromagnetic radiation from both the E and H fields
B	E field and H field radiation intensity peaks can occur at different locations
C	All these choices are correct
D	Ground reflections and scattering make the field strength vary with location

2. - E1A03

What is the maximum legal carrier frequency on the 20 meter band for transmitting USB AFSK digital signals having a 1 kHz bandwidth?

Select	Answer
A	14.070 MHz
B	14.100 MHz
C	14.149 MHz
D	14.349 MHz

3. - E1B10

What frequencies are authorized to an amateur station operating under RACES rules?

Select	Answer
A	Military Auxiliary Radio System (MARS) channels
B	Specific local government channels
C	Specific segments in the amateur service MF, HF, VHF and UHF bands
D	All amateur service frequencies authorized to the control operator

4. - E1C01

What is the maximum bandwidth for a data emission on 60 meters?

Select	Answer
A	170 Hz
B	2.8 kHz
C	1.5 kHz
D	60 Hz

5. - E1D06

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

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

6. - E1E10

What must the administering VEs do after the administration of a successful examination for an amateur operator license?

Select	Answer
A	They must submit the application document to the coordinating VEC according to the coordinating VEC instructions
B	They must collect and send the documents to the NCVEC for grading
C	They must collect and send the documents to the FCC according to instructions
D	They must collect and submit the documents to the coordinating VEC for grading

7. - E1F09

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

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

8. - E2A02

Which of the following occurs when a satellite is using an inverting linear transponder?

Select	Answer
A	Upper sideband on the uplink becomes lower sideband on the downlink, and vice versa
B	All these choices are correct
C	Doppler shift is reduced because the uplink and downlink shifts are in opposite directions
D	Signal position in the band is reversed

9. - E2B07

What is the name of the signal component that carries color information in NTSC video?

Select	Answer
A	Spectral intensity
B	Chroma
C	Luminance
D	Hue

10. - E2C05

What is the function of a DX QSL Manager?

Select	Answer
A	To allocate frequencies for DXpeditions
B	To relay calls to and from a DX station
C	To run a net to allow many stations to contact a rare DX station
D	To handle the receiving and sending of confirmation cards for a DX station

11. - E2D05

What is one advantage of the JT65 mode?

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

12. - E2E07

Which of the following is a possible reason that attempts to initiate contact with a digital station on a clear frequency are unsuccessful?

Select	Answer
A	All these choices are correct
B	Your transmit frequency is incorrect
C	The protocol version you are using is not supported by the digital station
D	Another station you are unable to hear is using the frequency

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

14. - E3B09

At what time of year is sporadic E propagation most likely to occur?

Select	Answer
A	Around the solstices, especially the winter solstice
B	Around the equinoxes, especially the fall equinox
C	Around the solstices, especially the summer solstice
D	Around the equinoxes, especially the spring equinox

15. - E3C08

What does the space weather term G5 mean?

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

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 time-domain reflectometer
C	A spectrum analyzer
D	A wattmeter

17. - E4B05

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

Select	Answer
A	50 ohms, 75 ohms, and 90 ohms
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	Short circuit, open circuit, and resonant circuit

18. - E4C10

What is an advantage of having a variety of receiver IF bandwidths from which to select?

Select	Answer
A	Receive bandwidth can be set to match the modulation bandwidth, maximizing signal-to-noise ratio and minimizing interference
B	Multiple frequencies can be received simultaneously if desired
C	The noise figure of the RF amplifier can be adjusted to match the modulation type, thus increasing receiver sensitivity
D	Receiver power consumption can be reduced when wider bandwidth is not required

19. - E4D12

What is the term for the reduction in receiver sensitivity caused by a strong signal near the received frequency?

Select	Answer
A	Squelch gain rollback
B	Desensitization
C	Quieting
D	Cross-modulation interference

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

21. - E5A08

What is the phase relationship between the current through and the voltage across a series resonant circuit at resonance?

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

22. - E5B11

What is the phase angle between the voltage across and the current through a series RLC circuit if XC is 25 ohms, R is 100 ohms, and XL is 50 ohms?

Select	Answer
A	76 degrees with the voltage leading the current
B	14 degrees with the voltage leading the current
C	14 degrees with the voltage lagging the current
D	76 degrees with the voltage lagging the current

23. - E5C12

Which point on Figure E5-1 best represents the impedance of a series circuit consisting of a 300-ohm resistor and a 19-picofarad capacitor at 21.200 MHz?

Select	Answer
A	Point 3
B	Point 7
C	Point 8
D	Point 1

24. - E5D09

What happens to reactive power in an AC circuit that has both ideal inductors and ideal capacitors?

Select	Answer
A	It is dissipated in the formation of inductive and capacitive fields
B	It is repeatedly exchanged between the associated magnetic and electric fields, but is not dissipated
C	It is dissipated as kinetic energy in the circuit
D	It is dissipated as heat in the circuit

25. - E6A07

Which of the following indicates that a silicon NPN junction transistor is biased on?

Select	Answer
A	Base-to-emitter voltage of approximately 0.6 to 0.7 volts
B	Base-to-emitter voltage of approximately 6 to 7 volts
C	Base-to-emitter resistance of approximately 6 to 7 ohms
D	Base-to-emitter resistance of approximately 0.6 to 0.7 ohms

26. - E6B05

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

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

27. - E6C08

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

Select	Answer
A	4
B	2
C	1
D	3

28. - E6D12

What is inductor saturation?

Select	Answer
A	Adjacent inductors become over-coupled
B	The inductor's voltage rating is exceeded causing a flashover
C	The inductor windings are over-coupled
D	The ability of the inductor's core to store magnetic energy has been exceeded

29. - E6E12

Why are DIP through-hole package ICs not typically used at UHF and higher frequencies?

Select	Answer
A	Excessive lead length
B	Unsuitable for combining analog and digital signals
C	Too many pins
D	Epoxy coating is conductive above 300 MHz

30. - E6F09

What is the efficiency of a photovoltaic cell?

Select	Answer
A	The open-circuit voltage divided by the short-circuit current under full illumination
B	The output RF power divided by the input DC power
C	Cost per kilowatt-hour generated
D	The relative fraction of light that is converted to current

31. - E7A03

Which of the following can divide the frequency of a pulse train by 2?

Select	Answer
A	A flip-flop
B	An XOR gate
C	A multiplexer
D	An OR gate

32. - E7B04

Where on the load line of a Class A common emitter amplifier would bias normally be set?

Select	Answer
A	Approximately halfway between saturation and cutoff
B	Where the load line intersects the voltage axis
C	At a point where the load line intersects the zero bias current curve
D	At a point where the bias resistor equals the load resistor

33. - E7C04

How does an impedance-matching circuit transform a complex impedance to a resistive impedance?

Select	Answer
A	It cancels the reactive part of the impedance and changes the resistive part to a desired value
B	Reactive currents are dissipated in matched resistances
C	It introduces transconductance to cancel the reactive part of impedance
D	It introduces negative resistance to cancel the resistive part of impedance

34. - E7D14

What is the purpose of connecting equal-value resistors across power supply filter capacitors connected in series?

Select	Answer
A	Provide a minimum load on the supply
B	Discharge the capacitors when voltage is removed
C	All these choices are correct
D	Equalize the voltage across each capacitor

35. - E7E03

What is a frequency discriminator stage in a FM receiver?

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

36. - E7F09

Why is an anti-aliasing digital filter required in a digital decimator?

Select	Answer
A	It peaks the response of the decimator, improving bandwidth
B	It notches out the sampling frequency to avoid sampling errors
C	It removes low-frequency signal components to eliminate the need for DC restoration
D	It removes high-frequency signal components that would otherwise be reproduced as lower frequency components

37. - E7G12

What is an operational amplifier?

Select	Answer
A	A digital audio amplifier whose characteristics are determined by components external to the amplifier
B	A high-gain, direct-coupled differential amplifier with very high input impedance and very low output impedance
C	An amplifier used to increase the average output of frequency modulated amateur signals to the legal limit
D	A RF amplifier used in the UHF and microwave regions

38. - E7H04

How is positive feedback supplied in a Colpitts oscillator?

Select	Answer
A	Through link coupling
B	Through a neutralizing capacitor
C	Through a tapped coil
D	Through a capacitive divider

39. - E8A07

What determines the PEP-to-average power ratio of a single-sideband phone signal?

Select	Answer
A	Amplifier gain
B	The degree of carrier suppression
C	The frequency of the modulating signal
D	Speech characteristics

40. - E8B07

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

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

41. - E8C02

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

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

42. - E8D04

What is the primary effect of extremely short rise or fall time on a CW signal?

Select	Answer
A	The generation of RF harmonics
B	The generation of key clicks
C	Limits data speed
D	More difficult to copy

43. - E9A11

Which of the following factors determines ground losses for a ground-mounted vertical antenna operating in the 3 MHz to 30 MHz range?

Select	Answer
A	Take-off angle
B	Distance from the transmitter
C	Soil conductivity
D	The standing wave ratio

44. - E9B06

What is the elevation angle of peak response in the antenna radiation pattern shown in Figure E9-2?

Select	Answer
A	75 degrees
B	7.5 degrees
C	25 degrees
D	45 degrees

45. - E9C08

What is a folded dipole antenna?

Select	Answer
A	A dipole one-quarter wavelength long
B	A type of ground-plane antenna
C	A half-wave dipole with an additional parallel wire connecting its two ends
D	A dipole configured to provide forward gain

46. - E9D10

What happens to feed-point impedance at the base of a fixed length HF mobile antenna when operated below its resonant frequency?

Select	Answer
A	The radiation resistance decreases and the capacitive reactance decreases
B	The radiation resistance decreases and the capacitive reactance increases
C	The radiation resistance increases and the capacitive reactance decreases
D	The radiation resistance increases and the capacitive reactance increases

47. - E9E11

What is the primary purpose of phasing lines when used with an antenna having multiple driven elements?

Select	Answer
A	It ensures that each driven element operates in concert with the others to create the desired antenna pattern
B	It allows single-band antennas to operate on other bands
C	It prevents reflected power from traveling back down the feed line and causing harmonic radiation from the transmitter
D	It creates a low-angle radiation pattern

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	Very low impedance
C	Very high impedance
D	The same as the characteristic impedance of the line

49. - E9G03

Which of the following is often determined using a Smith chart?

Select	Answer
A	Satellite azimuth and elevation bearings
B	Impedance and SWR values in transmission lines
C	Beam headings and radiation patterns
D	Trigonometric functions

50. - E9H08

What is the function of a sense antenna?

Select	Answer
A	It provides diversity reception that cancels multipath signals
B	It increases the sensitivity of a DF antenna array
C	It modifies the pattern of a DF antenna array to provide a null in one direction
D	It allows DF antennas to receive signals at different vertical angles

Figure E5-1

Figure E6-3

Figure E9-2