Practice Exam

E1A04

1. May an Extra class operator answer the CQ of a station on 3.601 MHz LSB phone?

• A. No, the sideband components will extend beyond the edge of the phone band segment
• B. No, US stations are not permitted to use phone emissions below 3.610 MHz
• C. Yes, the entire signal will be inside the SSB allocation for Extra class operators
• D. Yes, the displayed frequency is within the 75-meter phone band segment

E9G11

2. In what units are the wavelength scales on a Smith chart calibrated?

• A. In fractions of transmission line electrical wavelength
• B. In fractions of antenna electrical frequency
• C. In fractions of antenna electrical wavelength
• D. In fractions of transmission line electrical frequency

E5B07

3. What is the phase angle between the voltage across and the current through a series RLC circuit if XC is 500 ohms, R is 1 kilohm, and XL is 250 ohms?

• A. 14.0 degrees with the voltage lagging the current
• B. 14.0 degrees with the voltage leading the current
• C. 68.2 degrees with the voltage lagging the current
• D. 68.2 degrees with the voltage leading the current

E8B09

4. What is deviation ratio?

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

E7A03

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

• A. A multiplexer
• B. A flip-flop
• C. An XOR gate
• D. An OR gate

E6B10

6. In Figure E6-2, which is the schematic symbol for a Schottky diode?

• A. 2
• B. 1
• C. 6
• D. 3

E7F10

7. What aspect of receiver analog-to-digital conversion determines the maximum receive bandwidth of a direct-sampling software defined radio (SDR)?

• A. Differential non-linearity
• B. Sample rate
• C. Integral non-linearity
• D. Sample width in bits

E4E10

8. Which of the following can create intermittent loud roaring or buzzing AC line interference?

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

E2B09

9. What kind of receiver can be used to receive and decode SSTV using the Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) protocol?

• A. CDMA
• B. AM
• C. SSB
• D. AREDN

E7B02

10. What is a Class D amplifier?

• A. An amplifier that uses switching technology to achieve high efficiency
• B. An amplifier that uses drift-mode FETs for high efficiency
• C. An amplifier biased to be relatively free from distortion
• D. A low power amplifier that uses a differential amplifier for improved linearity

E5A09

11. How is the Q of an RLC parallel resonant circuit calculated?

• A. Reactance of the inductance multiplied by the reactance of the capacitance
• B. Resistance divided by the reactance of either the inductance or capacitance
• C. Reactance of either the inductance or capacitance multiplied by the resistance
• D. Reactance of either the inductance or capacitance divided by the resistance

E5D07

12. What combines to create the self-resonance of a component?

• A. The component's inductance and capacitance
• B. The component's resistance and reactance
• C. The component's electrical length and impedance
• D. The component's nominal and parasitic reactance

E8D08

13. What parameter evaluates distortion of an AFSK signal caused by excessive input audio levels?

• A. Signal-to-noise ratio
• B. Intermodulation Distortion (IMD)
• C. Repeat Request Rate (RRR)
• D. Baud error rate

E7G10

14. What absolute voltage gain can be expected from the circuit in Figure E7-3 when R1 is 1,800 ohms and RF is 68 kilohms?

• A. 1
• B. 76
• C. 0.03
• D. 38

E3C04

15. What does the value of Bz (B sub z) represent?

• A. North-south strength of the interplanetary magnetic field
• B. Geomagnetic field stability
• C. Critical frequency for vertical transmissions
• D. Duration of long-delayed echoes

E7H08

16. Which of the following components can be used to reduce thermal drift in crystal oscillators?

• A. Wirewound resistors
• B. Non-inductive resistors
• C. Toroidal inductors
• D. NP0 capacitors

E3B12

17. What is chordal-hop propagation?

• A. Propagation across the geomagnetic equator
• B. Successive ionospheric refractions without an intermediate reflection from the ground
• C. Signals reflected back toward the transmitting station
• D. Propagation away from the great circle bearing between stations

E4B05

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

• A. Short circuit, open circuit, and resonant circuit
• 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. 50 ohms, 75 ohms, and 90 ohms

E1F05

19. 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?

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

E8A05

20. What is the benefit of making voltage measurements with a true-RMS calculating meter?

• A. RMS is measured for both sinusoidal and non-sinusoidal signals
• B. The calculated RMS value can be converted directly into phasor form
• C. An inverse Fourier transform can be used
• D. The signal's RMS noise factor is also calculated

E9C09

21. Which of the following describes a G5RV antenna?

• A. A wide band dipole using shorted coaxial cable for the radiating elements and fed with a 4:1 balun
• B. A multi-band trap antenna
• C. A phased array antenna consisting of multiple loops
• D. A wire antenna center-fed through a specific length of open-wire line connected to a balun and coaxial feed line

E2D01

22. Which of the following digital modes is designed for meteor scatter communications?

• A. APRS
• B. MSK144
• C. Hellschreiber
• D. WSPR

E4C13

23. What is reciprocal mixing?

• A. Local oscillator phase noise mixing with adjacent strong signals to create interference to desired signals
• B. Two digital signals combining from alternate time slots
• C. In-phase signals cancelling in a mixer resulting in loss of receiver sensitivity
• D. Two out-of-band signals mixing to generate an in-band spurious signal

E6E09

24. Which of the following component package types have the least parasitic effects at frequencies above the HF range?

• A. Axial lead
• B. TO-220
• C. Radial lead
• D. Surface mount

E7D02

25. How does a switchmode voltage regulator work?

• A. By varying the conductivity of a pass element
• B. By varying the duty cycle of pulses input to a filter
• C. By alternating the output between positive and negative voltages
• D. By switching between two Zener diode reference voltages

E1E11

26. What must the VE team do if an examinee scores a passing grade on all examination elements needed for an upgrade or new license?

• A. Three VEs must certify that the examinee is qualified for the license grant and that they have complied with the administering VE requirements
• B. Photocopy all examination documents and forward them to the FCC for processing
• C. Issue the examinee the new or upgrade license
• D. All these choices are correct

E6F03

27. What is the most common configuration of an optoisolator or optocoupler?

• A. An LED and a phototransistor
• B. A frequency-modulated helium-neon laser
• C. An amplitude-modulated helium-neon laser
• D. A lens and a photomultiplier

E2C04

28. Which of the following frequencies can be used for amateur radio mesh networks?

• A. Cable TV channels 41-43
• B. Frequencies shared with various unlicensed wireless data services
• C. The 60-meter band channel centered on 5373 kHz
• D. HF frequencies where digital communications are permitted

E4A05

29. What is the purpose of using a prescaler with a frequency counter?

• A. Prevent oscillation in a low-frequency counter circuit
• B. Multiply a higher frequency signal so a low-frequency counter can display the operating frequency
• C. Amplify low-level signals for more accurate counting
• D. Reduce the signal frequency to within the counter's operating range

E7C06

30. What are the characteristics of an elliptical filter?

• A. Gradual passband rolloff with extreme stop-band ripple
• B. Extremely sharp cutoff with one or more notches in the stop band
• C. Gradual passband rolloff with minimal stop-band ripple
• D. Extremely flat response over its pass band with gradually rounded stop-band corners

E4D03

31. What creates intermodulation interference between two repeaters in close proximity?

• A. The input frequencies are harmonically related
• B. The output signals mix in the final amplifier of one or both transmitters
• C. The output frequencies are harmonically related
• D. The output signals cause feedback in the final amplifier of one or both transmitters

E9D04

32. Why should antenna loading coils have a high ratio of reactance to resistance?

• A. To swamp out harmonics
• B. To lower the radiation angle
• C. To maximize efficiency
• D. To minimize the Q

E1C04

33. What is an IARP?

• A. A permit that allows US amateurs to operate in certain countries of the Americas
• B. An indication of increased antenna reflected power
• C. The internal amateur radio practices policy of the FCC
• D. A forecast of intermittent aurora radio propagation

E9H03

34. What is receiving directivity factor (RDF)?

• A. Relative directivity compared to isotropic
• B. Relative directivity compared to a dipole
• C. Forward gain compared to the gain in the reverse direction
• D. Peak antenna gain compared to average gain over the hemisphere around and above the antenna

E0A03

35. Over what range of frequencies are the FCC human body RF exposure limits most restrictive?

• A. 3 - 30 MHz
• B. 300 kHz - 3 MHz
• C. 30 - 300 MHz
• D. 300 - 3000 MHz

E9A07

36. What is the effective isotropic radiated power (EIRP) of a repeater station with 200 watts transmitter power output, 2 dB feed line loss, 2.8 dB duplexer loss, 1.2 dB circulator loss, and 7 dBi antenna gain?

• A. 159 watts
• B. 63.2 watts
• C. 252 watts
• D. 632 watts

E5C07

37. Where is the impedance of a pure resistance plotted on rectangular coordinates?

• A. On the vertical axis
• B. On the horizontal axis
• C. On a horizontal line, offset vertically above the horizontal axis
• D. On a line through the origin, slanted at 45 degrees

E6D01

38. What is piezoelectricity?

• A. The ability of materials to generate voltage when an electromagnetic wave of a certain frequency is applied
• B. A characteristic of materials that have an index of refraction which depends on the polarization of the electromagnetic wave passing through it
• C. The ability of materials to generate electromagnetic waves of a certain frequency when voltage is applied
• D. A characteristic of materials that generate a voltage when stressed and that flex when a voltage is applied

E1D02

39. Which of the following may transmit encrypted messages?

• A. Mesh network backbone nodes
• B. Telecommand signals from a space telecommand station
• C. Auxiliary relay links carrying repeater audio
• D. Telecommand signals to terrestrial repeaters

E6A09

40. What is a depletion-mode field-effect transistor (FET)?

• A. An FET that has no current flow between source and drain when no gate voltage is applied
• B. An FET for which holes are the majority carriers
• C. An FET that exhibits a current flow between source and drain when no gate voltage is applied
• D. An FET that exhibits very high electron mobility due to a lack of holes in the N-type material

E9F01

41. What is the velocity factor of a transmission line?

• A. The ratio of its termination impedance to its characteristic impedance
• B. The velocity of a wave in the transmission line multiplied by the velocity of light in a vacuum
• C. The ratio of its characteristic impedance to its termination impedance
• D. The velocity of a wave in the transmission line divided by the velocity of light in a vacuum

E6C05

42. Which of the following digital logic families has the lowest power consumption?

• A. CMOS
• B. NMOS
• C. ECL
• D. Schottky TTL

E9B08

43. What is the far field of an antenna?

• A. The region where radiated power dissipates over a specified time period
• B. The region where radiated field strengths are constant
• C. The region where the shape of the radiation pattern no longer varies with distance
• D. The region of the ionosphere where radiated power is not refracted

E2E10

44. Which of these digital modes has the narrowest bandwidth?

• A. PACTOR IV
• B. 170 Hz shift, 45-baud RTTY
• C. MFSK16
• D. FT8

E7E06

45. Why is de-emphasis used in FM communications receivers?

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

E9E05

46. What Yagi driven element feed point impedance is required to use a beta or hairpin matching system?

• A. Purely resistive
• B. Capacitive (driven element electrically shorter than 1/2 wavelength)
• C. Purely reactive
• D. Inductive (driven element electrically longer than 1/2 wavelength)

E3A11

47. What is a typical range for tropospheric duct propagation of microwave signals?

• A. 100 miles to 300 miles
• B. 1,200 miles
• C. 2,500 miles
• D. 10 miles to 50 miles

E1B07

48. To what type of regulations does PRB-1 apply?

• A. Homeowners associations
• B. State and local zoning
• C. Use of wireless devices in vehicles
• D. FAA tower height limits

E8C08

49. How does ARQ accomplish error correction?

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

E2A05

50. What do the letters in a satellite's mode designator specify?

• A. The uplink and downlink frequency ranges
• B. Power limits for uplink and downlink transmissions
• C. The polarization of uplink and downlink signals
• D. The location of the ground control station