Comparison of low-cost 5G electromagnetic field sensors

This paper compares different low-cost sensors that can measure (5G) RF-EMF exposure. The sensors are either commercially available (off-the-shelf Software Defined Radio (SDR) Adalm Pluto) or constructed by a research institution (i.e., imec-WAVES, Ghent University and Smart Sensor Systems research group (S3R), The Hague University of Applied Sciences). Both in-lab (GTEM cell) and in-situ measurements have been performed for this comparison. The in-lab measurements tested the linearity and sensitivity, which can then be used to calibrate the sensors. The in-situ testing confirmed that the low-cost hardware sensors and SDR can be used to assess the RF-EMF radiation. The variability between the sensors was 1.78 dB on average, with a maximum deviation of 5.26 dB. Values between 0.09 V/m and 2.44 V/m were obtained at a distance of about 50 m from the base station. These devices can be used to provide the general public and governments with temporal and spatial 5G electromagnetic field values.

本研究对比了多款可用于测量第五代移动通信技术（5G）射频电磁场（Radio Frequency Electromagnetic Field, RF-EMF）暴露量的低成本传感器。这些传感器既包括商用现货的软件定义无线电（Software Defined Radio, SDR）Adalm Pluto，也由研究机构自研而成，例如根特大学imec-WAVES实验室以及海牙应用科学大学智能传感器系统研究组（Smart Sensor Systems research group, S3R）。本次对比同时开展了实验室（GTEM小室）与实地测量：实验室测量环节测试了传感器的线性度与灵敏度，以此完成传感器校准；实地测量验证了低成本硬件传感器与软件定义无线电可用于评估射频电磁场辐射情况。各传感器间的测量变异平均为1.78分贝，最大偏差达5.26分贝。在距离基站约50米处，测得的电场强度范围为0.09至2.44伏每米（V/m）。此类设备可用于为公众与政府部门提供时域与空域维度的第五代移动通信技术电磁场数值。