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

Logging in (or registering) will help the system to select questions that you need to focus on.

1. - E1A13

Who must be in physical control of the station apparatus of an amateur station aboard any vessel or craft that is documented or registered in the United States?

Select	Answer
A	Any person holding an FCC issued amateur license or who is authorized for alien reciprocal operation
B	Any person named in an amateur station license grant or a person holding an unrestricted Radiotelephone Operator Permit
C	Only a person with an FCC Marine Radio
D	Only a person named in an amateur station license grant

2. - E1B05

What is the National Radio Quiet Zone?

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

3. - E1C13

Which of the following is required in order to operate in accordance with CEPT rules in foreign countries where permitted?

Select	Answer
A	You must identify in the official language of the country in which you are operating
B	You must append "/CEPT" to your call sign
C	The U.S. embassy must approve of your operation
D	You must bring a copy of FCC Public Notice DA 11-221

4. - E1D09

Which UHF amateur service bands have frequencies available for a space station?

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

5. - E1E12

What must the VE team do with the application form if the examinee does not pass the exam?

Select	Answer
A	Send the application form to the FCC and inform the FCC of the grade
B	Destroy the application form
C	Maintain the application form with the VEC's records
D	Return the application document to the examinee

6. - E1F08

Which of the following types of amateur station communications are prohibited?

Select	Answer
A	Communications that have a religious content
B	Communications transmitted for hire or material compensation, except as otherwise provided in the rules
C	Communications in a language other than English
D	Communications that have a political content, except as allowed by the Fairness Doctrine

7. - E2A07

Which of the following types of signals can be relayed through a linear transponder?

Select	Answer
A	SSB and SSTV
B	FM and CW
C	PSK and Packet
D	All of these choices are correct

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	Frequency modulation of the video carrier
C	A separate VHF or UHF audio link
D	All of these choices are correct

9. - E2C12

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 90 minutes or so for the signal degradation to pass
D	Wait 24 hours before attempting another communication on the band

10. - E2D14

What is one advantage of using JT65 coding?

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

11. - E2E04

What is indicated when one of the ellipses in an FSK crossed-ellipse display suddenly disappears?

Select	Answer
A	Selective fading has occurred
B	The receiver has drifted 5 kHz from the desired receive frequency
C	One of the signal filters is saturated
D	The mark and space signal have been inverted

12. - E3A02

What characterizes libration fading of an EME signal?

Select	Answer
A	A fluttery irregular fading
B	A gradual loss of signal as the Sun rises
C	The returning echo is several Hertz lower in frequency than the transmitted signal
D	A slow change in the pitch of the CW signal

13. - E3B04

What is meant by the terms extraordinary and ordinary waves?

Select	Answer
A	Refracted rays and reflected waves
B	Extraordinary waves describe rare long skip propagation compared to ordinary waves which travel shorter distances
C	Independent waves created in the ionosphere that are elliptically polarized
D	Long path and short path waves

14. - E3C09

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

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

15. - E4A14

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

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

16. - E4B12

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	The full scale reading of the voltmeter multiplied by its ohms per volt rating will indicate the input impedance of the voltmeter
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

17. - E4C05

What does a value of -174 dBm/Hz represent with regard to the noise floor of a receiver?

Select	Answer
A	The noise figure of a 1 Hz bandwidth receiver
B	The minimum detectable signal as a function of receive frequency
C	The theoretical noise at the input of a perfect receiver at room temperature
D	The galactic noise contribution to minimum detectable signal

18. - E4D09

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

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

19. - E4E11

Which is the most likely cause if you are hearing combinations of local AM broadcast signals within one or more of the MF or HF ham bands?

Select	Answer
A	You are receiving sky wave signals from a distant station
B	Your station receiver IF amplifier stage is defective
C	The broadcast station is transmitting an over-modulated signal
D	Nearby corroded metal joints are mixing and re-radiating the broadcast signals

20. - E5A03

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

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

21. - E5B09

What is the relationship between the current through a capacitor and the voltage across a capacitor?

Select	Answer
A	Voltage leads current by 90 degrees
B	Voltage and current are 180 degrees out of phase
C	Voltage and current are in phase
D	Current leads voltage 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 3
B	Point 1
C	Point 8
D	Point 7

23. - E5D10

How can the true power be determined in an AC circuit where the voltage and current are out of phase?

Select	Answer
A	By multiplying the apparent power times the power factor
B	By multiplying the reactive power times the power factor
C	By dividing the reactive power by the power factor
D	By dividing the apparent power by the power factor

24. - E6A01

In what application is gallium arsenide used as a semiconductor material in preference to germanium or silicon?

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

25. - E6B05

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

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

26. - E6C09

What is a Programmable Logic Device (PLD)?

Select	Answer
A	An algorithm for simulating logic functions during circuit design
B	Programmable equipment used for testing digital logic integrated circuits
C	A device to control industrial equipment
D	A programmable collection of logic gates and circuits in a single integrated circuit

27. - E6D06

What core material property determines the inductance of a toroidal inductor?

Select	Answer
A	Reactivity
B	Resistance
C	Thermal impedance
D	Permeability

28. - E6E03

Which of the following materials is likely to provide the highest frequency of operation when used in MMICs?

Select	Answer
A	Gallium nitride
B	Silicon dioxide
C	Silicon
D	Silicon nitride

29. - E6F13

What is a liquid crystal display (LCD)?

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

30. - E7A01

Which is a bi-stable circuit?

Select	Answer
A	An "OR" gate
B	A flip-flop
C	An "AND" gate
D	A clock

31. - E7B15

What is one way to prevent thermal runaway in a bipolar transistor amplifier?

Select	Answer
A	All of these choices are correct
B	Select transistors with high beta
C	Neutralization
D	Use a resistor in series with the emitter

32. - E7C03

What advantage does a Pi-L-network have over a regular Pi-network for impedance matching between the final amplifier of a vacuum-tube transmitter and an antenna?

Select	Answer
A	Greater harmonic suppression
B	Lower losses
C	Higher efficiency
D	Greater transformation range

33. - E7D16

When several electrolytic filter capacitors are connected in series to increase the operating voltage of a power supply filter circuit, why should resistors be connected across each capacitor?

Select	Answer
A	To provide a minimum load current to reduce voltage excursions at light loads
B	To equalize, as much as possible, the voltage drop across each capacitor
C	All of these choices are correct
D	To provide a safety bleeder to discharge the capacitors when the supply is off

34. - E7E08

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

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

35. - E7F12

What digital process is applied to I and Q signals in order to recover the baseband modulation information?

Select	Answer
A	Quadrature mixing
B	Decimation
C	Signal conditioning
D	Fast Fourier Transform

36. - E7G01

What is the typical output impedance of an integrated circuit op-amp?

Select	Answer
A	1000 ohms
B	Very low
C	Very high
D	100 ohms

37. - E7H13

Which of the following is a technique for providing highly accurate and stable oscillators needed for microwave transmission and reception?

Select	Answer
A	Use a temperature-controlled high Q dielectric resonator
B	All of these choices are correct
C	Use a rubidium stabilized reference oscillator
D	Use a GPS signal reference

38. - E8A01

What is the name of the process that shows that a square wave is made up of a sine wave plus all of its odd harmonics?

Select	Answer
A	Vector analysis
B	Numerical analysis
C	Fourier analysis
D	Differential analysis

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 frequency modulation technique which uses non-harmonically related frequencies
C	A bandwidth compression technique using Fourier transforms
D	A digital mode for narrow band, slow speed transmissions

40. - E8C03

When performing phase shift keying, why is it advantageous to shift phase precisely at the zero crossing of the RF carrier?

Select	Answer
A	This results in the least possible transmitted bandwidth for the particular mode
B	It is easier to demodulate with a conventional, non-synchronous detector
C	It improves carrier suppression
D	All of these choices are correct

41. - E8D04

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

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

42. - E9A06

How does the beamwidth of an antenna vary as the gain is increased?

Select	Answer
A	It increases arithmetically
B	It is essentially unaffected
C	It decreases
D	It increases geometrically

43. - E9B07

How does the total amount of radiation emitted by a directional gain antenna compare with the total amount of radiation emitted from an isotropic antenna, assuming each is driven by the same amount of power?

Select	Answer
A	They are the same
B	The total amount of radiation from the directional antenna is stronger by its front-to-back ratio
C	The total amount of radiation from the directional antenna is increased by the gain of the antenna
D	The radiation from the isotropic antenna is 2.15 dB stronger than that from the directional antenna

44. - E9C04

What happens to the radiation pattern of an unterminated long wire antenna as the wire length is increased?

Select	Answer
A	The front-to-back ratio decreases
B	The vertical angle increases
C	The lobes become more perpendicular to the wire
D	The lobes align more in the direction of the wire

45. - E9D04

Why should an HF mobile antenna loading coil have a high ratio of reactance to resistance?

Select	Answer
A	To minimize losses
B	To minimize the Q
C	To swamp out harmonics
D	To maximize losses

46. - E9E06

What is the equivalent lumped-constant network for a hairpin matching system of a 3-element Yagi?

Select	Answer
A	Pi-network
B	Pi-L-network
C	A series capacitor
D	A shunt inductor

47. - E9F05

What is the approximate physical length of a solid polyethylene dielectric coaxial transmission line that is electrically one-quarter wavelength long at 14.1 MHz?

Select	Answer
A	2.3 meters
B	3.5 meters
C	0.2 meters
D	20 meters

48. - E9G10

What do the arcs on a Smith chart represent?

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

49. - E9H02

Which is generally true for low band (160 meter and 80 meter) receiving antennas?

Select	Answer
A	Atmospheric noise is so high that gain over a dipole is not important
B	All of these choices are correct
C	Low loss coax transmission line is essential for good performance
D	They must be erected at least 1/2 wavelength above the ground to attain good directivity

50. - 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	Ground reflections and scattering make the field impedance vary with location
C	E field and H field radiation intensity peaks can occur at different locations
D	All of these choices are correct

Figure E5-2