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Amplitude modulated RF fields stemming from a GSM/DCS‐1800 phone

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Abstract

Experiments which investigate possible effects arising from handheld phones employing amplitude modulated Radio Frequency (RF) fields, must deploy an excitation field which matches the true situation. Amplitude modulation arising from digital systems such as Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) or Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications (DECT) is more complicated than just bursting of RF fields with a certain repetition rate and a certain duty cycle. In the GSM system the RF field is amplitude modulated with both a 217 Hz and an 8 Hz repetition rate. Furthermore, when the GSM land mobile network allows Discontinuous Transmission (DTX) the amplitude modulation rate can be as low as 2 Hz. Also the transmitted power may change in a complex manner. Extremely Low Frequency (ELF) magnetic fields connected with the current drawn from the battery of a handheld phone are investigated and measured, as a function of both time and frequency, and it is shown that the behavior of the current drawn is nearly the same as the one derived for the amplitude modulation of the RF power. This paper does not explain all details of the GSM system, but investigates the system in order to establish an experimental setup, which matches the real fields stemming from GSM mobile transmitters. For the purpose of comparison with digital cordless systems employing Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) some figures of power and ELF magnetic field values are included.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for PersonKommunikation, Aalborg University, Fredrik Bajersvej 7A, DK‐9220, Aalborg, Denmark

    Gert Frølund Pedersen

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  1. Gert Frølund Pedersen
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Pedersen, G.F. Amplitude modulated RF fields stemming from a GSM/DCS‐1800 phone. Wireless Networks 3, 489–498 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1019158712657

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1019158712657

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