Basic Qualification · B-003 Station assembly, practice and safety · B-003-005-002
In an SSB/CW receiver, what is the purpose of the radio frequency (RF) amplifier?
- AIncrease the local oscillator signal to drive the mixer
- BProvide sufficient gain to activate the limiter circuit
- CIncrease the sensitivity of the receiver
- DProvide sufficient drive for the automatic gain control circuit (AGC)
Correct answer: C — Increase the sensitivity of the receiver. From the official ISED question bank, verified word for word.
Why
The radio frequency amplifier boosts the very weak signal captured by the antenna before it reaches the rest of the receiver, making faint stations easier to hear and thus increasing overall sensitivity. The full explanation — and one for every question — is in Pro.
Practise this section
Station assembly, practice and safety is section B-003 of the Basic exam: Building a station safely: power supplies, grounding, RF exposure, lightning, feedline routing, and what a transmitter, receiver and transceiver actually do.
Drill B-003 — free, no account