US Amateur Radio - Amateur Extra (Element 4, 2016-2020) Practice Test

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1. - 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	No, U.S. stations are not permitted to use phone emissions below 3.610 MHz
B	Yes, because the DX station initiated the contact
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

2. - E1B07

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

Select	Answer
A	1.0
B	3.0
C	2.0
D	0.5

3. - E1C10

What types of amateur stations may automatically retransmit the radio signals of other amateur stations?

Select	Answer
A	Only beacon, repeater or space stations
B	Only earth stations, repeater stations or model craft
C	Only auxiliary, repeater or space stations
D	Only auxiliary, beacon or space stations

4. - E1D11

Which amateur stations are eligible to operate as Earth stations?

Select	Answer
A	Any amateur station whose licensee has filed a pre-space notification with the FCC's International Bureau
B	Only those of General, Advanced or Amateur Extra Class operators
C	Any amateur station, subject to the privileges of the class of operator license held by the control operator
D	Only those of Amateur Extra Class operators

5. - E1E13

Which of these choices is an acceptable method for monitoring the applicants if a VEC opts to conduct an exam session remotely?

Select	Answer
A	The exam proctor observes the applicants and reports any violations
B	Record the exam session on video tape for later review by the VE team
C	Have each applicant sign an affidavit stating that all session rules were followed
D	Use a real-time video link and the Internet to connect the exam session to the observing VEs

6. - E1F11

Which of the following best describes one of the standards that must be met by an external RF power amplifier if it is to qualify for a grant of FCC certification?

Select	Answer
A	It must exhibit a gain of 0 dB or less over its full output range
B	It must produce full legal output when driven by not more than 5 watts of mean RF input power
C	It must be capable of external RF switching between its input and output networks
D	It must satisfy the FCC's spurious emission standards when operated at the lesser of 1500 watts or its full output power

7. - E2A03

What is the orbital period of an Earth satellite?

Select	Answer
A	The time it takes for a satellite to complete one revolution around the Earth
B	The point of maximum height of a satellite's orbit
C	The point of minimum height of a satellite's orbit
D	The time it takes for a satellite to travel from perigee to apogee

8. - E2B08

Which of the following is a common method of transmitting accompanying audio with amateur fast-scan television?

Select	Answer
A	Frequency-modulated sub-carrier
B	All of these choices are correct
C	A separate VHF or UHF audio link
D	Frequency modulation of the video carrier

9. - E2C04

What type of transmission is most often used for a ham radio mesh network?

Select	Answer
A	Store and forward on the 440 MHz band
B	Multiple Frequency Shift Keying in the 10 GHz band
C	Frequency division multiplex in the 24 GHz band
D	Spread spectrum in the 2.4 GHz band

10. - E2D08

What type of packet frame is used to transmit APRS beacon data?

Select	Answer
A	Disconnect
B	Connect
C	Unnumbered Information
D	Acknowledgement

11. - E2E06

What is the most common data rate used for HF packet?

Select	Answer
A	110 baud
B	300 baud
C	1200 baud
D	48 baud

12. - E3A05

Tropospheric propagation of microwave signals often occurs along what weather related structure?

Select	Answer
A	Sprites and jets
B	Warm and cold fronts
C	Lightning discharges
D	Gray-line

13. - E3B13

Why is chordal hop propagation desirable?

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

14. - E3C10

What does the 304A solar parameter measure?

Select	Answer
A	UV emissions at 304 angstroms, correlated to solar flux index
B	The solar wind velocity at 304 degrees from the solar equator, correlated to solar activity
C	The ratio of X-Ray flux to radio flux, correlated to sunspot number
D	The solar emission at 304 GHz, correlated to X-Ray flare levels

15. - E4A12

Which of the following procedures is an important precaution to follow when connecting a spectrum analyzer to a transmitter output?

Select	Answer
A	Match the antenna to the load
B	Attenuate the transmitter output going to the spectrum analyzer
C	All of these choices are correct
D	Use high quality double shielded coaxial cables to reduce signal losses

16. - E4B02

What is an advantage of using a bridge circuit to measure impedance?

Select	Answer
A	It can display results directly in Smith chart format
B	It is very precise in obtaining a signal null
C	It provides an excellent match under all conditions
D	It is relatively immune to drift in the signal generator source

17. - E4C07

What does the MDS of a receiver represent?

Select	Answer
A	The maximum detectable spectrum
B	The minimum discernible signal
C	The meter display sensitivity
D	The multiplex distortion stability

18. - E4D09

What is the purpose of the preselector in a communications receiver?

Select	Answer
A	To increase rejection of unwanted signals
B	To allow selection of the optimum RF amplifier device
C	To provide a range of AGC time constants
D	To store often-used frequencies

19. - E4E12

What is one disadvantage of using some types of automatic DSP notch-filters when attempting to copy CW signals?

Select	Answer
A	Any nearby signal passing through the DSP system will overwhelm the desired signal
B	Ringing in the DSP filter will completely remove the spaces between the CW characters
C	Received CW signals will appear to be modulated at the DSP clock frequency
D	A DSP filter can remove the desired signal at the same time as it removes interfering signals

20. - E5A03

What is the magnitude of the impedance of a series RLC circuit at resonance?

Select	Answer
A	Approximately equal to inductive reactance
B	Approximately equal to capacitive reactance
C	Approximately equal to circuit resistance
D	High, as compared to the circuit resistance

21. - E5B03

What happens to the phase angle of a reactance when it is converted to a susceptance?

Select	Answer
A	It is unchanged
B	The susceptance phase angle is the inverse of the reactance phase angle
C	The sign is reversed
D	It is shifted by 90 degrees

22. - E5C16

Which point on Figure E5-2 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 7
B	Point 3
C	Point 8
D	Point 1

23. - E5D07

What determines the strength of the magnetic field around a conductor?

Select	Answer
A	The resistance divided by the current
B	The amount of current flowing through the conductor
C	The diameter of the conductor
D	The ratio of the current to the resistance

24. - E6A05

What is the alpha of a bipolar junction transistor?

Select	Answer
A	The change of collector current with respect to gate current
B	The change of collector current with respect to base current
C	The change of base current with respect to collector current
D	The change of collector current with respect to emitter current

25. - E6B13

What type of bias is required for an LED to emit light?

Select	Answer
A	Reverse bias
B	Zero bias
C	Forward bias
D	Inductive bias

26. - E6C12

What is BiCMOS logic?

Select	Answer
A	A FET logic family based on bimetallic semiconductors
B	An integrated circuit logic family using both bipolar and CMOS transistors
C	A logic device with two CMOS circuits per package
D	A logic family based on bismuth CMOS devices

27. - E6D01

How many turns will be required to produce a 5-microhenry inductor using a powdered-iron toroidal core that has an inductance index (A L) value of 40 microhenrys/100 turns?

Select	Answer
A	79 turns
B	13 turns
C	141 turns
D	35 turns

28. - E6E10

What is the packaging technique in which leadless components are soldered directly to circuit boards?

Select	Answer
A	Surface mount
B	Stripped lead
C	Virtual lead mounting
D	Direct soldering

29. - E6F13

What is a liquid crystal display (LCD)?

Select	Answer
A	A modern replacement for a quartz crystal oscillator which displays its fundamental frequency
B	A display that uses a glowing liquid to remain brightly lit in dim light
C	A display utilizing a crystalline liquid and polarizing filters which becomes opaque when voltage is applied
D	A frequency-determining unit for a transmitter or receiver

30. - E7A02

What is the function of a decade counter digital IC?

Select	Answer
A	It produces ten output pulses for every input pulse
B	It decodes a decimal number for display on a seven segment LED display
C	It adds two decimal numbers together
D	It produces one output pulse for every ten input pulses

31. - E7B16

What is the effect of intermodulation products in a linear power amplifier?

Select	Answer
A	All of these choices are correct
B	Transmission of spurious signals
C	Creation of parasitic oscillations
D	Low efficiency

32. - E7C08

Which of the following factors has the greatest effect in helping determine the bandwidth and response shape of a crystal ladder filter?

Select	Answer
A	The amplitude of the signals passing through the filter
B	The relative frequencies of the individual crystals
C	The DC voltage applied to the quartz crystal
D	The gain of the RF stage preceding the filter

33. - E7D09

What is the main reason to use a charge controller with a solar power system?

Select	Answer
A	Prevention of battery damage due to overcharge
B	Prevention of battery undercharge
C	Matching of day and night charge rates
D	Control of electrolyte levels during battery discharge

34. - E7E06

Why is de-emphasis commonly used in FM communications receivers?

Select	Answer
A	For higher efficiency
B	To reduce impulse noise reception
C	To remove third-order distortion products
D	For compatibility with transmitters using phase modulation

35. - E7F06

What is the minimum number of bits required for an analog-to-digital converter to sample a signal with a range of 1 volt at a resolution of 1 millivolt?

Select	Answer
A	10 bits
B	4 bits
C	6 bits
D	8 bits

36. - E7G06

Which of the following is the most appropriate use of an op-amp active filter?

Select	Answer
A	For smoothing power supply output
B	As a low-pass filter used between a transmitter and a transmission line
C	As a high-pass filter used to block RFI at the input to receivers
D	As an audio filter in a receiver

37. - E7H03

How is positive feedback supplied in a Hartley oscillator?

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

38. - E8A11

What type of information can be conveyed using digital waveforms?

Select	Answer
A	All of these choices are correct
B	Video signals
C	Data
D	Human speech

39. - E8B08

What describes Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing?

Select	Answer
A	A digital modulation technique using subcarriers at frequencies chosen to avoid intersymbol interference
B	A bandwidth compression technique using Fourier transforms
C	A digital mode for narrow band, slow speed transmissions
D	A frequency modulation technique which uses non-harmonically related frequencies

40. - E8C11

What is the relationship between symbol rate and baud?

Select	Answer
A	They are the same
B	Symbol rate is only used for packet-based modes
C	Baud is twice the symbol rate
D	Baud is only used for RTTY

41. - E8D03

How does the spread spectrum technique of frequency hopping work?

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

42. - E9A18

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

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

43. - E9B06

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

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

44. - E9C12

Which of the following describes an extended double Zepp antenna?

Select	Answer
A	A wideband vertical antenna constructed from precisely tapered aluminum tubing
B	An end fed folded dipole antenna
C	A portable antenna erected using two push support poles
D	A center fed 1.25 wavelength antenna (two 5/8 wave elements in phase)

45. - E9D09

What is the function of a loading coil used as part of an HF mobile antenna?

Select	Answer
A	To cancel capacitive reactance
B	To lower the Q
C	To increase the SWR bandwidth
D	To lower the losses

46. - E9E07

What term best describes the interactions at the load end of a mismatched transmission line?

Select	Answer
A	Reflection coefficient
B	Dielectric constant
C	Velocity factor
D	Characteristic impedance

47. - E9F04

What is the typical velocity factor for a coaxial cable with solid polyethylene dielectric?

Select	Answer
A	0.30
B	2.70
C	0.10
D	0.66

48. - E9G02

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

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

49. - E9H01

When constructing a Beverage antenna, which of the following factors should be included in the design to achieve good performance at the desired frequency?

Select	Answer
A	Its overall length must not exceed 1/4 wavelength
B	It should be one or more wavelengths long
C	It should be configured as a four-sided loop
D	It must be mounted more than 1 wavelength above ground

50. - E0A08

What does SAR measure?

Select	Answer
A	The rate of RF energy reflected from stationary terrain
B	The rate at which RF energy is absorbed by the body
C	Signal Amplification Rating
D	Synthetic Aperture Ratio of the human body

Figure E5-2

Figure E9-2