Fifth generation networks (5G) will be associated with a partial shift to higher carrier frequencies, including wavelengths comparable in size to insects. This may lead to higher absorption of radio frequency (RF) electromagnetic fields (EMF) by insects and could cause dielectric heating. The yellow fever mosquito (Aedes aegypti), a vector for diseases such as yellow and dengue fever, favors warm climates. Being exposed to higher frequency RF EMFs causing possible dielectric heating, could have an influence on behavior, physiology and morphology, and could be a possible factor for introduction of the species in regions where the yellow fever mosquito normally does not appear. In this study, the influence of far field RF exposure on A. aegypti was examined between 2 and 240 GHz. Using Finite Difference Time Domain (FDTD) simulations, the distribution of the electric field in and around the insect and the absorbed RF power were found for six different mosquito models (three male, three female). The 3D models were created from micro-CT scans of real mosquitoes. The dielectric properties used in the simulation were measured from a mixture of homogenized A. aegypti. For a given incident RF power, the absorption increases with increasing frequency between 2 and 90 GHz with a maximum between 90 and 240 GHz. The absorption was maximal in the region where the wavelength matches the size of the mosquito. For a same incident field strength, the power absorption by the mosquito is 16 times higher at 60 GHz than at 6 GHz. The higher absorption of RF power by future technologies can result in dielectric heating and potentially influence the biology of this mosquito.

Short-range wireless radio-frequency devices are rapidly pervading home and office environments. Nevertheless, their contribution to the electromagnetic field exposure of humans has not yet been systematically assessed, nor have the procedures for testing compliance been developed. In this paper, we have assessed the range of exposure in terms of the dosimetric and incident field quantities for devices of the most common technologies, i.e., digital enhanced cordless telecommunications, wireless local area networks and Bluetooth, as well as wireless communication devices based on proprietary standards in the frequency range from 30 MHz to 6 GHz. Well-defined procedures to obtain the worst case operational modes are presented. Since operation in the near-field of these devices cannot be excluded, dosimetric evaluation is the most straightforward technique for testing compliance when low-power exclusions are not applicable. The suitability of the suggested methods is demonstrated through the examination of five classes of short-range transmitters.

In this study, the total electromagnetic dose, i.e., the combined dose from fixed antennas and mobile devices, was estimated for a number of hypothetical network topologies for implementation in Switzerland to support the deployment of fifth generation (5G) mobile communication systems while maintaining exposure guidelines for public safety. In this study, we consider frequency range 1 (FR1) and various user scenarios. The estimated dose in hypothetical 5G networks was extrapolated from measurements in one of the Swiss 4G networks and by means of Monte Carlo analysis. The results show that the peak dose is always dominated by an individual’s mobile phone and, in the case of non-users, by the bystanders’ mobile phones. The reduction in cell size and the separation of indoor and outdoor coverage can substantially reduce the total dose by >10 dB. The introduction of higher frequencies in 5G mobile networks, e.g., 3.6 GHz, reduces the specific absorption rate (SAR) in the entire brain by an average of −8 dB, while the SAR in the superficial tissues of the brain remains locally constant, i.e., within ±3 dB. Data from real networks with multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) were not available; the effect of adaptive beam-forming antennas on the dose will need to be quantitatively revisited when 5G networks are fully established.

To date, the development of valid and globally universally accepted recognized methods for the accurate exposure assessment of wireless power transfer (WPT) technologies is lagging behind the rapid emergence of high power systems in the energy and automotive sectors. WPT systems based on inductive and magnetic resonance technologies generate strong but rapidly decaying magnetic fields, which often exceed reference levels (RL) in the immediate vicinity of the WPT coils by up to a factor of $>$ 100. Compliance testing of WPT systems with limits derived for homogeneous exposure can lead to estimations of exposure that exceed by up to 40 dB assessments of the fields induced in the human body, i.e., the basic restrictions (BR) defined by the international safety guidelines. Testing compliance with the BR is impractical for regulatory purposes due to the high costs of resources of determining the maximum exposure conditions. This paper presents a novel compliance testing method that mitigates the overestimation of the exposure while maintaining the simplicity of the testing procedure. This is achieved by using coupling transformation functions to correlate not only the amplitude and frequency but also the gradient of the incident field with the BR. These novel conservative coupling functions have been determined by means of a large scale numerical study in the frequency range 3 kHz–10 MHz supported by a physics-based approximation. The here proposed compliance testing method is still conservative in comparison to the compliance toward BR of localized sources. However, in comparison to today’s practice of applying RL directly, the overestimation is strongly reduced for high gradient fields ( $G_n$ $>$ 50 T/m/T), e.g., by more than 3000 times for field gradients of about 200 T/m/T. We have validated the method by numerical analysis of human exposure to actual WPT sources. The adoption of the new method will help to accelerate the introduction of high-power wireless charging devices in the global market.