Hybrid Measurement and Post-Processing Method for Human RF Exposure Assessment of Mobile Radio Small-Cells

Established methods for determining the electromagnetic field exposure of mobile radio small-cell base stations to the general public are currently based either on numerical far-field computation or on field strength measurement at selected evaluation points. It means that they are not capable of providing a realistic 3-dimensional near-and far-fleld evaluation of mobile radio small-cell base stations. For this reason, a promising hybrid exposure assessment approach – which combines antenna nearfield pattern measurements and numerical computations under varying environmental conditions – was specially adapted to small cells. While the conservatively determined measurement uncertainty of ± 3 dB is comparable to already established methods such as electric field probe measurement, the hybrid assessment offers novel possibilities in terms of flexibility. By moving exposure assessment into a virtual domain, complex installation scenarios or varying antenna operation parameters can typically be investigated within a simulation environment, so that complex measurement campaigns may be substituted by hybrid assessment.