Physical units to report intensity of electromagnetic wave

Environmental research · 2021 · Unclear · Insufficient evidence

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UnclearInsufficient evidencePaper 1002

The authors propose a consensus for reporting electromagnetic wave intensity measured by personal exposimeters, recommending use of W/m² (and µW/m² for very low intensities) rather than reporting electric field strength in V/m, citing the quadratic relationsh…

Study snapshot

PublicationEnvironmental research · 2021

Study typeother

Reported directionUnclear

Evidence ratingInsufficient

Abstract

Physical units to report intensity of electromagnetic wave R Ramirez-Vazquez, I Escobar, T Franco, E Arribas. Physical units to report intensity of electromagnetic wave. Environ Res. 2021 Nov 2;112341. doi: 10.1016/j.envres.2021.112341. Abstract The aim of this work is to propose a consensus to scientific community that handles personal exposimeters, which measure intensity of an electromagnetic wave (W/m2). To express the intensity of an electromagnetic wave there is a duality in the way of expressing it. Some scientists prefer to use W/m2 while others use V/m, which is a unit of the electric field. There is also a duality in the name, sometimes it is called it power flux density and some other times, wave intensity. We believe that this second name is more appropriate from the point of view of physics. We suggest expressing intensity of an electromagnetic wave in W/m2 instead of giving the value of their electric field which is measured in V/m. There is a quadratic relation between electric field and intensity of the wave, and it is necessary to do a mathematical operation, so in our opinion, it is preferable to use W/m2 which directly gives us the value of the measured intensity. Furthermore, if the intensity is very low, it may be expressed in μW/m2 and with only three significant figures, due to sensitivity of the current exposimeters used. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Machine Enhanced Logic

AI evidence extraction

Structured fields below were generated from the paper’s abstract and metadata to make the evidence easier to inspect. Automated extraction may be incomplete or incorrect; verify important details against the original paper.

Study typeother

Effect directionunclear

PopulationNot supplied

Sample sizeNot supplied

ExposureNot supplied

Evidence strengthInsufficientConfidence: 78% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

Outcomes measured

Reporting/measurement units for electromagnetic wave intensity (W/m² vs V/m)
Terminology for intensity (power flux density vs wave intensity)
Recommended significant figures/units for low intensities (µW/m², three significant figures)

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "other",
  "exposure": {
    "band": null,
    "source": "personal exposimeters",
    "frequency_mhz": null,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": null
  },
  "population": null,
  "sample_size": null,
  "outcomes": [
    "Reporting/measurement units for electromagnetic wave intensity (W/m² vs V/m)",
    "Terminology for intensity (power flux density vs wave intensity)",
    "Recommended significant figures/units for low intensities (µW/m², three significant figures)"
  ],
  "main_findings": "The authors propose a consensus for reporting electromagnetic wave intensity measured by personal exposimeters, recommending use of W/m² (and µW/m² for very low intensities) rather than reporting electric field strength in V/m, citing the quadratic relationship between electric field and wave intensity and the need for conversion.",
  "effect_direction": "unclear",
  "limitations": [],
  "evidence_strength": "insufficient",
  "confidence": 0.78,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "personal exposimeters",
    "electromagnetic wave intensity",
    "power flux density",
    "wave intensity",
    "W/m2",
    "V/m",
    "electric field",
    "reporting units",
    "significant figures",
    "µW/m2"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "exposure-assessment",
      "weight": 0.9,
      "reason": "Focuses on how to report/express EMF intensity measurements from personal exposimeters."
    }
  ]
}

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AI-extracted fields are generated from the abstract and metadata and may be incomplete or incorrect. This material is for informational purposes and is not medical advice.

Identifiers and source

DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2021.112341
PubMed: 34740620

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