Broadband Measurement of Absorption Cross Section of the Human Body in a Reverberation Chamber

We present broadband reverberation chamber measurements of the absorption cross section (ACS) of the human body averaged over all directions of incidence and angles of polarization. This frequency-dependent parameter characterizes the interactions between the body and the enclosures of reverberant environments such as aircraft cabins, and is, therefore, important for the determination of the overall Q-factor and, hence, the field strength illuminating equipment inside such enclosures. It also correlates directly with the electromagnetic exposure of occupants of reverberant environments. The average ACS of nine subjects was measured at frequencies over the range 1-8.5 GHz. For a 75-kg male, the ACS varied between 0.18 and 0.45 square meters over this range. ACS also correlated with body surface area for the subjects tested. The results agree well with computational electromagnetic simulations, but are obtained much more rapidly. We have used the obtained values of ACS to estimate the effect of passengers on the Q-factor of a typical airliner cabin.