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

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1. - E0A11

Which of the following injuries can result from using high-power UHF or microwave transmitters?

Select	Answer
A	Localized heating of the body from RF exposure in excess of the MPE limits
B	Ingestion of ozone gas from the cooling system
C	Blood clotting from the intense magnetic field
D	Hearing loss caused by high voltage corona discharge

2. - E1A01

Which of the following carrier frequencies is illegal for LSB AFSK emissions on the 17 meter band RTTY and data segment of 18.068 to 18.110 MHz?

Select	Answer
A	18.107 MHz
B	18.100 MHz
C	18.068 MHz
D	18.110 MHz

3. - E1B05

What is the National Radio Quiet Zone?

Select	Answer
A	An area in New Mexico surrounding the White Sands Test Area
B	An area in Florida surrounding Cape Canaveral
C	An area in Puerto Rico surrounding the Arecibo Radio Telescope
D	An area surrounding the National Radio Astronomy Observatory

4. - E1C07

At what level below a signal's mean power level is its bandwidth determined according to FCC rules?

Select	Answer
A	6 dB
B	26 dB
C	23 dB
D	3 dB

5. - E1D08

Which VHF amateur bands have frequencies authorized for space stations?

Select	Answer
A	6 meters and 2 meters
B	2 meters and 1.25 meters
C	6 meters, 2 meters, and 1.25 meters
D	2 meters

6. - E1E09

What may be the penalty for a VE who fraudulently administers or certifies an examination?

Select	Answer
A	A fine of up to $1000 per occurrence
B	Revocation of the VE's amateur station license grant and the suspension of the VE's amateur operator license grant
C	A sentence of up to one year in prison
D	All these choices are correct

7. - 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	222 MHz - 223 MHz
B	440 MHz - 450 MHz
C	53 MHz - 54 MHz
D	420 MHz - 430 MHz

8. - E2A12

What is the purpose of digital store-and-forward functions on an amateur radio satellite?

Select	Answer
A	To relay messages between satellites
B	To delay download of telemetry between satellites
C	To upload operational software for the transponder
D	To store digital messages in the satellite for later download by other stations

9. - E2B07

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

Select	Answer
A	Luminance
B	Chroma
C	Spectral intensity
D	Hue

10. - E2C02

Which of the following best describes the term self-spotting? in connection with HF contest operating?

Select	Answer
A	A manual technique for rapidly zero beating or tuning to a station's frequency before calling that station
B	The acceptable practice of manually posting the call signs of stations on a spotting network
C	The often-prohibited practice of posting one's own call sign and frequency on a spotting network
D	An automatic method for rapidly zero beating or tuning to a station's frequency before calling that station

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 a Global Positioning System unit can automatically transmit information to show a mobile station's position during the event
C	All these choices are correct
D	An APRS station with an emergency medical technician can automatically transmit medical data to the nearest hospital

12. - E2E11

What is the difference between direct FSK and audio FSK?

Select	Answer
A	Only direct FSK can be decoded by computer
B	Direct FSK can transmit faster baud rates
C	Direct FSK applies the data signal to the transmitter VFO, while AFSK transmits tones via phone
D	Direct FSK occupies less bandwidth

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

14. - E3B10

Why is chordal hop propagation desirable?

Select	Answer
A	Signals travel faster along ionospheric chords
B	The MUF for chordal hop propagation is much lower than for normal skip propagation
C	The signal experiences less loss compared to multi-hop using Earth as a reflector
D	Atmospheric noise is lower in the direction of chordal hop propagation

15. - E3C12

How does the maximum range of ground-wave propagation change when the signal frequency is increased?

Select	Answer
A	It stays the same
B	It increases
C	It peaks at roughly 14 MHz
D	It decreases

16. - E4A01

Which of the following limits the highest frequency signal that can be accurately displayed on a digital oscilloscope?

Select	Answer
A	Sampling rate of the analog-to-digital converter
B	Amount of memory
C	All these choices are correct
D	Q of the circuit

17. - E4B02

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

Select	Answer
A	The full scale reading of the voltmeter multiplied by its ohms per volt rating will indicate the input impedance of the voltmeter
B	When used as an ammeter, the full scale reading in amps divided by ohms per volt rating will determine the size of shunt needed
C	When used as an ohmmeter, the reading in ohms divided by the ohms per volt rating will determine the voltage applied to the circuit
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. - E4C08

An SDR receiver is overloaded when input signals exceed what level?

Select	Answer
A	The reference voltage of the analog-to-digital converter
B	One-half the maximum sample rate
C	The maximum count value of the analog-to-digital converter
D	One-half the maximum sampling buffer size

19. - E4D07

Which of the following reduces the likelihood of receiver desensitization?

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

20. - E4E08

What current flows equally on all conductors of an unshielded multi-conductor cable?

Select	Answer
A	Return current
B	Differential-mode current
C	Common-mode current
D	Reactive current only

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	23.5 MHz
B	7.12 kHz
C	7.12 MHz
D	23.5 kHz

22. - E5B10

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

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

23. - E5C08

What coordinate system is often used to display the phase angle of a circuit containing resistance, inductive and/or capacitive reactance?

Select	Answer
A	Polar coordinates
B	Maidenhead grid
C	Faraday grid
D	Elliptical coordinates

24. - E5D15

What is the power factor of an RL circuit having a 45-degree phase angle between the voltage and the current?

Select	Answer
A	0.5
B	0.707
C	0.866
D	1.0

25. - E6A01

In what application is gallium arsenide used as a semiconductor material?

Select	Answer
A	In microwave circuits
B	In high-current rectifier circuits
C	In very low-frequency RF circuits
D	In high-power audio circuits

26. - E6B04

What type of semiconductor device is designed for use as a voltage-controlled capacitor?

Select	Answer
A	Silicon-controlled rectifier
B	Varactor diode
C	Zener diode
D	Tunnel diode

27. - E6C11

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

Select	Answer
A	4
B	6
C	2
D	5

28. - E6D09

What devices are commonly used as VHF and UHF parasitic suppressors at the input and output terminals of a transistor HF amplifier?

Select	Answer
A	Steel-core toroids
B	Ferrite beads
C	Electrolytic capacitors
D	Butterworth filters

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

30. - E6F08

Why are optoisolators often used in conjunction with solid-state circuits when switching 120 VAC?

Select	Answer
A	Optoisolators eliminate the effects of reflected light in the control circuit
B	Optoisolators provide a low impedance link between a control circuit and a power circuit
C	Optoisolators provide a very high degree of electrical isolation between a control circuit and the circuit being switched
D	Optoisolators provide impedance matching between the control circuit and power circuit

31. - E7A11

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

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

32. - E7B05

What can be done to prevent unwanted oscillations in an RF power amplifier?

Select	Answer
A	Tune both the input and output for maximum power
B	Install parasitic suppressors and/or neutralize the stage
C	Use a phase inverter in the output filter
D	Tune the stage for maximum SWR

33. - E7C07

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

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

34. - E7D08

What type of circuit is shown in Figure E7-2?

Select	Answer
A	Grounded emitter amplifier
B	Monostable multivibrator
C	Switching voltage regulator
D	Linear voltage regulator

35. - E7E08

What are the principal frequencies that appear at the output of a mixer circuit?

Select	Answer
A	The two input frequencies along with their sum and difference frequencies
B	Two and four times the original frequency
C	1.414 and 0.707 times the input frequency
D	The square root of the product of input frequencies

36. - E7F13

What is the function of taps in a digital signal processing filter?

Select	Answer
A	To reduce excess signal pressure levels
B	Provide access for debugging software
C	Provide incremental signal delays for filter algorithms
D	Select the point at which baseband signals are generated

37. - E7G04

What is meant by the "op-amp input offset voltage"?

Select	Answer
A	The difference between the output voltage of the op-amp and the input voltage required in the immediately following stage
B	The output voltage of the op-amp minus its input voltage
C	The potential between the amplifier input terminals of the op-amp in an open loop condition
D	The differential input voltage needed to bring the open loop output voltage to zero

38. - E7H02

What is a microphonic?

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

39. - E8A10

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

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

40. - E8B09

What is deviation ratio?

Select	Answer
A	The ratio of the audio modulating frequency to the center carrier frequency
B	The ratio of the maximum carrier frequency deviation to the highest audio modulating frequency
C	The ratio of the highest audio modulating frequency to the average audio modulating frequency
D	The ratio of the carrier center frequency to the audio modulating frequency

41. - E8C08

How does ARQ accomplish error correction?

Select	Answer
A	If errors are detected, redundant data is substituted
B	If errors are detected, a retransmission is requested
C	Special polynomial codes provide automatic correction
D	Special binary codes provide automatic correction

42. - E8D06

What is the advantage of including parity bits in ASCII characters?

Select	Answer
A	Foreign language characters can be sent
B	The signal can overpower interfering signals
C	Faster transmission rate
D	Some types of errors can be detected

43. - E9A02

What is the effective radiated power relative to a dipole of a repeater station with 150 watts transmitter power output, 2 dB feed line loss, 2.2 dB duplexer loss, and 7 dBd antenna gain?

Select	Answer
A	1977 watts
B	286 watts
C	420 watts
D	78.7 watts

44. - E9B04

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

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

45. - E9C13

How does the radiation pattern of a horizontally polarized 3-element beam antenna vary with increasing height above ground?

Select	Answer
A	The horizontal beamwidth decreases
B	The takeoff angle of the lowest elevation lobe increases
C	The horizontal beamwidth increases
D	The takeoff angle of the lowest elevation lobe decreases

46. - E9D11

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

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

47. - E9E08

What is a use for a Wilkinson divider?

Select	Answer
A	It is used to feed low-impedance loads from a high-impedance source
B	It is used to feed high-impedance antennas from a low-impedance source
C	It is used to divide power equally between two 50-ohm loads while maintaining 50-ohm input impedance
D	It divides the operating frequency of a transmitter signal so it can be used on a lower frequency band

48. - E9F10

What impedance does a 1/8-wavelength transmission line present to a generator when the line is shorted at the far end?

Select	Answer
A	The same as the characteristic impedance of the line
B	An inductive reactance
C	A capacitive reactance
D	Zero

49. - E9G07

On the Smith chart shown in Figure E9-3, what is the only straight line shown?

Select	Answer
A	The voltage axis
B	The reactance axis
C	The current axis
D	The resistance axis

50. - E9H05

What is the main drawback of a small wire-loop antenna for direction finding?

Select	Answer
A	It has no clearly defined null
B	It is practical for use only on VHF and higher bands
C	It has a bidirectional pattern
D	All these choices are correct

Figure E6-3

Figure E7-2

Figure E9-3