Estimation of whole-body SAR from electromagnetic fields using personal exposure meters

In this article, personal electromagnetic field measurements are converted into whole-body specific absorption rates for exposure of the general public. Whole-body SAR values calculated from personal exposure meter data are compared for different human spheroid phantoms: the highest SAR values (at 950 MHz) are obtained for the 1-year-old child (99th percentile of 17.9 microW/kg for electric field strength of 0.36 V/m), followed by the 5-year-old child, 10-year-old child, average woman, and average man. For the 1-year-old child, whole-body SAR values due to 9 different radiofrequency sources (FM, DAB, TETRA, TV, GSM900 DL, GSM1800 DL, DECT, UMTS DL, WiFi) are determined for 15 different scenarios. An SAR matrix for 15 different exposure scenarios and 9 sources is provided with the personal field exposure matrix. Highest 95th percentiles of the whole-body SAR are equal to 7.9 microW/kg (0.36 V/m, GSM900 DL), 5.8 microW/kg (0.26 V/m, DAB/TV), and 7.1 microW/kg (0.41 V/m, DECT) for the 1-year-old child, with a maximal total whole-body SAR of 11.5 microW/kg (0.48 V/m) due to all 9 sources. All values are below the basic restriction of 0.08 W/kg for the general public. 95th percentiles of whole-body SAR per V/m are equal to 60.1, 87.9, and 42.7 microW/kg for GSM900, DAB/TV, and DECT sources, respectively. Functions of the SAR versus measured electric fields are provided for the different phantoms and frequencies, enabling epidemiological and dosimetric studies to make an analysis in combination with both electric field and actual whole-body SAR.