Whole-Body SAR in a Full-Size Human Model at 28.9 kHz

Abstract

In 1976, when the original Radiofrequency (RF) Radiation Dosimetry Handbook¹ was published, occupational exposures to VLF fields (3–30 kHz) were not considered to be important. First, applicable exposure standards such as ANSI C95.1-1974 did not cover irradiation below 10 MHz; and second, the dosimetry handbook showed calculated VLF-caused SAR’s to be many orders of magnitude below that predicted for the newly coined “human resonance absorption” spectrum of 30 to 300 MHz. It had been recently demonstrated that an individual exposed to resonant-wavelength irradiation would not be able to thermally tolerate prolonged illumination, even at the historical benchmark limit of 10 mW/cm². Since no resonance interactions existed for VLF exposures, there was little interest in surveying the existing high-power VLF transmitting sites for radiation hazards (RADHAZ).