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

2. - E1A04

With your transceiver displaying the carrier frequency of phone signals, you hear a DX station calling CQ on 3.601 MHz LSB. Is it legal to return the call using lower sideband on the same frequency?

Select	Answer
A	Yes, because the DX station initiated the contact
B	No, U.S. stations are not permitted to use phone emissions below 3.610 MHz
C	No, the sideband will extend beyond the edge of the phone band segment
D	Yes, because the displayed frequency is within the 75 meter phone band segment

3. - E1B02

Which of the following is an acceptable bandwidth for Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) based voice or SSTV digital transmissions made on the HF amateur bands?

Select	Answer
A	15 kHz
B	20 kHz
C	10 kHz
D	3 kHz

4. - E1C12

On what portion of the 630 meter band are phone emissions permitted?

Select	Answer
A	None
B	Only the bottom 3 kHz
C	Only the top 3 kHz
D	The entire band

5. - E1D09

Which UHF amateur bands have frequencies authorized for space stations?

Select	Answer
A	70 cm and 13 cm
B	70 cm only
C	70 cm and 33 cm
D	33 cm and 13 cm

6. - E1E09

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

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

7. - E1F07

When may an amateur station send a message to a business?

Select	Answer
A	When transmitting international third-party communications
B	When neither the amateur nor his or her employer has a pecuniary interest in the communications
C	When the control operator is employed by the FCC or another government agency
D	When the total money involved does not exceed $25

8. - E2A06

What are Keplerian elements?

Select	Answer
A	Parameters that define the orbit of a satellite
B	High-emission heater filaments used in magnetron tubes
C	Phase reversing elements in a Yagi antenna
D	Encrypting codes used for spread spectrum modulation

9. - E2B07

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

Select	Answer
A	Hue
B	Spectral intensity
C	Chroma
D	Luminance

10. - E2C11

How should you generally identify your station when attempting to contact a DX station during a contest or in a pileup?

Select	Answer
A	Send your full call sign and grid square
B	Send the call sign of the DX station three times, the words this is,then your call sign three times
C	Send your full call sign once or twice
D	Send only the last two letters of your call sign until you make contact

11. - E2D03

Which of the following digital modes is especially useful for EME communications?

Select	Answer
A	JT65
B	MSK144
C	PACTOR III
D	Olivia

12. - E2E02

What do the letters FEC mean as they relate to digital operation?

Select	Answer
A	Forward Error Correction
B	Final Error Correction
C	Fatal Error Correction
D	First Error Correction

13. - E3A14

What is meant by circularly polarized electromagnetic waves?

Select	Answer
A	Waves with an electric field bent into a circular shape
B	Waves produced by a loop antenna
C	Waves that circle the Earth
D	Waves with a rotating electric field

14. - E3B03

What is the best time of day for transequatorial propagation?

Select	Answer
A	Morning
B	Late at night
C	Afternoon or early evening
D	Noon

15. - E3C07

Which of the following descriptors indicates the greatest solar flare intensity?

Select	Answer
A	Class X
B	Class A
C	Class B
D	Class M

16. - E4A05

What is the purpose of the prescaler function on a frequency counter?

Select	Answer
A	It divides a higher frequency signal so a low-frequency counter can display the input frequency
B	It multiplies a higher frequency signal so a low-frequency counter can display the operating frequency
C	It amplifies low-level signals for more accurate counting
D	It prevents oscillation in a low-frequency counter circuit

17. - E4B04

Which S parameter represents input port return loss or reflection coefficient (equivalent to VSWR)?

Select	Answer
A	S11
B	S12
C	S21
D	S22

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

19. - E4D04

Which of the following may reduce or eliminate intermodulation interference in a repeater caused by another transmitter operating in close proximity?

Select	Answer
A	A band-pass filter in the feed line between the transmitter and receiver
B	Utilizing a Class D final amplifier
C	A properly terminated circulator at the output of the repeater's transmitter
D	Utilizing a Class C final amplifier

20. - E4E04

How can conducted and radiated noise caused by an automobile alternator be suppressed?

Select	Answer
A	By installing filter capacitors in series with the DC power lead and a blocking capacitor in the field lead
B	By installing a noise suppression resistor and a blocking capacitor in both leads
C	By connecting the radio's power leads directly to the battery and by installing coaxial capacitors in line with the alternator leads
D	By installing a high-pass filter in series with the radio's power lead and a low-pass filter in parallel with the field lead

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

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

23. - E5C04

What coordinate system is often used to display the resistive, inductive, and/or capacitive reactance components of impedance?

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

24. - E5D04

Why are short connections used at microwave frequencies?

Select	Answer
A	To reduce noise figure
B	To increase compensating capacitance
C	To increase neutralizing resistance
D	To reduce phase shift along the connection

25. - E6A01

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

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

26. - E6B08

Which of the following is a Schottky barrier diode?

Select	Answer
A	Thermionic emission diode
B	Metal-semiconductor junction
C	Electrolytic rectifier
D	PIN junction

27. - E6C07

What best describes a pull-up or pull-down resistor?

Select	Answer
A	A resistor that ensures that an oscillator frequency does not drift
B	A resistor connected to the positive or negative supply line used to establish a voltage when an input or output is an open circuit
C	A resistor connected to an op-amp output that prevents signals from exceeding the power supply voltage
D	A resistor in a keying circuit used to reduce key clicks

28. - E6D11

Which type of core material decreases inductance when inserted into a coil?

Select	Answer
A	Ferrite
B	Brass
C	Powdered iron
D	Ceramic

29. - E6E07

What type of transmission line is used for connections to MMICs?

Select	Answer
A	Microstrip
B	Circular waveguide
C	Parallel wire
D	Miniature coax

30. - E6F07

What is a solid-state relay?

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

31. - E7A04

How many flip-flops are required to divide a signal frequency by 4?

Select	Answer
A	2
B	1
C	8
D	4

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	At a point where the load line intersects the zero bias current curve
C	Where the load line intersects the voltage axis
D	At a point where the bias resistor equals the load resistor

33. - E7C12

What is one advantage of a Pi-matching network over an L-matching network consisting of a single inductor and a single capacitor?

Select	Answer
A	L-networks cannot perform impedance transformation
B	Pi-networks are more stable
C	The Q of Pi-networks can be controlled
D	Pi-networks provide balanced input and output

34. - E7D14

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

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

35. - E7E11

Which type of detector circuit is used for demodulating SSB signals?

Select	Answer
A	Phase comparator
B	Phase detector
C	Product detector
D	Discriminator

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

37. - E7G08

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

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

38. - E7H12

Which of the following must be done to ensure that a crystal oscillator provides the frequency specified by the crystal manufacturer?

Select	Answer
A	Bias the crystal at a specified current
B	Bias the crystal at a specified voltage
C	Provide the crystal with a specified parallel capacitance
D	Provide the crystal with a specified parallel inductance

39. - E8A06

What is the approximate ratio of PEP-to-average power in a typical single-sideband phone signal?

Select	Answer
A	1 to 1
B	100 to 1
C	2.5 to 1
D	25 to 1

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	Extremely low-power contacts
C	EME
D	High-speed digital modes

41. - E8C01

How is Forward Error Correction implemented?

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

42. - E8D07

What is a common cause of overmodulation of AFSK signals?

Select	Answer
A	Excessive numbers of retries
B	Ground loops
C	Bit errors in the modem
D	Excessive transmit audio levels

43. - E9A01

What is an isotropic antenna?

Select	Answer
A	A theoretical, omnidirectional antenna used as a reference for antenna gain
B	A grounded antenna used to measure Earth conductivity
C	A spacecraft antenna used to direct signals toward Earth
D	A horizontally polarized antenna used to compare Yagi antennas

44. - E9B05

What type of antenna pattern is shown in Figure E9-2?

Select	Answer
A	Azimuth
B	Polarization
C	Radiation resistance
D	Elevation

45. - E9C02

What is the radiation pattern of two 1/4-wavelength vertical antennas spaced 1/4 wavelength apart and fed 90 degrees out of phase?

Select	Answer
A	Omni-directional
B	Cardioid
C	A figure-8 end-fire along the axis of the array
D	A figure-8 broadside to the axis of the array

46. - E9D02

How can linearly polarized Yagi antennas be used to produce circular polarization?

Select	Answer
A	Stack two Yagis fed in phase to form an array with the respective elements in parallel planes
B	Stack two Yagis fed 90 degrees out of phase to form an array with the respective elements in parallel planes
C	Arrange two Yagis collinear to each other with the driven elements fed 180 degrees out of phase
D	Arrange two Yagis perpendicular to each other with the driven elements at the same point on the boom fed 90 degrees out of phase

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. - E9F02

Which of the following has the biggest effect on the velocity factor of a transmission line?

Select	Answer
A	Dielectric materials used in the line
B	The line length
C	The termination impedance
D	The center conductor resistivity

49. - E9G10

What do the arcs on a Smith chart represent?

Select	Answer
A	SWR
B	Frequency
C	Points with constant resistance
D	Points with constant reactance

50. - E9H04

What is an advantage of placing a grounded electrostatic shield around a small loop direction-finding antenna?

Select	Answer
A	It adds capacitive loading, increasing the bandwidth of the antenna
B	It increases signal strength by providing a better match to the feed line
C	It eliminates unbalanced capacitive coupling to the surroundings, improving the nulls
D	It eliminates tracking errors caused by strong out-of-band signals

Figure E9-2