Radio Frequency EMF Measurements and Exposure Assessment from 5G Outdoor Base Stations

This paper presents preliminary results of radio-frequency electromagnetic field (RF-EMF) measurements in outdoor environments. The purpose is to measure and evaluate the exposure levels of general public from fifth generation (5G) base stations, and compare them with the enforced national and international guidelines. Frequency selective measurements have been performed in diverse urban and rural locations between 27 MHz and 6 GHz, comparing the 5G emissions with other cellular or broadcast exposure levels. The electric field, explicitly from 5G emissions, varies in the range of 0.14-0.57 V/m, and 0.19-4.10 V/m, in urban and rural locations, respectively. The maximum 5G emission, in terms of power density (44.6 mW/m
²
), is measured in rural areas and corresponds to about 0.4% of the legislated limits in the European Union. The inherent structure of the 5G networks corroborate the observed difference in exposure levels between urban and rural areas. The maximum recorded Total Exposure Ratio (TER) is about (27.71±12.06)∙10
^-3
, being consistent with the enforced limits. Finally, 5G emissions are found to contribute about 12% to the total exposure levels.