Overview - EM Exposure Assessment

Electromagnetic external sources such as mobile phones, induction heaters, power lines, and MRI and internal sources such as active medical implants induce electromagnetic fields (EMF) in the human body. Quantifying these fields is complex, particularly the non-correlated and non-homogeneous fields in the close near-field. Characterizing the field distribution is also complex as it strongly depends on a person’s posture, body shape and tissue distribution. Developing a basic understanding of the internal electromagnetic environment and the coupling mechanism is crucial for accurately identifying exposure-induced biological effects and for minimizing the potential health hazards of advanced and emerging technologies.

EMF Exposure and Health has been a main research focus area at IT'IS since its inception. As we became the leading developer of novel EM technologies to simulate and measure electromagnetic near-fields, we also pursued three main themes of research in this focus area:

• extraction of the basic coupling mechanism between incident field/source and device/human body (e.g., 1) transmitters close to the body, 2) exposure of human bodies close to base station antennas, and 3) coupling of implants) 
• certification research for establishing safety guidelines and product standards to demonstrate compliance
• dosimetry and exposure evaluations for defining absorption mechanisms and patterns in individuals and in the population as a whole

As our exposure to EMF increases with the constant emergence of new and evolving technologies, IT’IS is committed to providing rapid and accurate solutions for characterizing electromagnetic field exposures, establishing reliable and sound safety standards, and identifying risk factors.