With respect to the effect of EM radiation on the human cells. Most researchers are focused on the immediate effect and Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) as a metric limiting the design of BS and UE antennas. How about the time spread of the continuously growing globally reflected waves.
Are we facing a danger of EM pollution whereby our living bodies receive more reflected waves over time than they can discharge. The communication systems are based on outage probability, we disperse more energy than we need to ensure higher probability, this energy can naturally be absorbed as long as they are size-able. How about when the rate of emission is faster than our surroundings can absorb. Our bodies do absorb them too. I am thinking about massive MIMO and escalating bandwidth requirements and start thinking ARE WE FACING A THREAT?
The pace at which we are increasing day to day radiation, it is a THREAT. Like chemical, smoke etc it is a pollution in environment.
One of the goals with 5G wireless networks is to increase the capacity without increasing the powe consumption. This can be achieved by decreasing the distance between transmitters and receivers (smaller cells) or by focusing the signal energy at the intended receiver (massive MIMO). Both cases allows for lower transmit powers.
Long-time exposure to EM radiation from wireless communications might be harmful, but this has not been proved. The highest radiation comes from the handset so you can easily avoid using th tehnology if you think it is bad for you.
If the "rate of emission is faster than our surroundings can absorb", in our physical knowledge, it is called heating, and at the power levels due to present technology it does not pose a concern despite many studies trying to prove the contrary.
None the less, the increasing exposure to low levels of EM radiation could pose a threat if non thermal effects were found.
Non thermal effects are proved at low frequency (< 100 kHz) and very high field strenghts, at low intensity radiofrequency we could expect, due to the experience cumulated so far, only stochastic effects with very low probability
Further research is needed but considering consolidated results
Thanks all for the replies
@Emil
yes we focus on reducing transmission power via diversity...but did we ever consider diversity techniques and basically spatial as a means to increase probability of exposure to (weaker) rays (increased spatial routes) ...it is just like an unseen fountain....if yes keep in mind with increase in capacity demands we still are moving towards more transmission power for increased number of bits... and keep in mind that drops of water if accumulated can over time breakdown a building
@ Francesco
Yes we share the same view about low level radiation and it was the motive behind this post
I meant by the quoted expression not the immediate heating....I meant slow absorption in mother nature of EM waves; known to us engineers as fading.....in global sense look at all these devices emitting EM waves more than used (unseen fountains of low radiations) as compared to the EM traversing for ever until they fade.... this fading is actually energy converted ((absorbed) by our bodies among other elements of earth.....
but as you say more research is need....unproven results is not a definite answer when speaking of a likely threat....medically speaking collaboration has all through been focused on immediate effect....long term exposure over several hours, days, months and years to these weak radiations has not been a subject of concern.....more research is needed
@Korchut:
progressing thought in your line; some olde research hypothesis suggested that telepathy could be a metabolic activity allowing unseen EM transmission of signals from brain to brain :-).....
Every one focuses on immediate temporal effect ...not the accumulation over long time and through multi-path....for all frequencies
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