{ "collection": "glossary", "name": "Glossary", "description": "Definitions of the physics, regulatory, measurement and health terms used throughout the dataset.", "count": 30, "dataVersion": "2026.08.1", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "license": { "name": "CC BY 4.0", "url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" }, "records": [ { "id": "glossary:elf", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "elf", "name": "ELF (extremely low frequency)", "summary": "Fields below about 300 Hz, dominated by the 50 or 60 Hz power supply and its harmonics.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Extremely low frequency covers roughly 3–300 Hz and in practice means power-frequency fields from wiring, appliances, transformers and transmission lines. ELF electric and magnetic fields are treated as separate quantities because they are not coupled at these frequencies, and the biological concern addressed by exposure limits is induced current in tissue, not heating.", "category": "physics", "seeAlso": [ "glossary:rf", "quantities:magnetic-flux-density" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "icnirp-2010", "title": "Guidelines for Limiting Exposure to Time-Varying Electric and Magnetic Fields (1 Hz to 100 kHz)", "publisher": "International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection", "url": "https://www.icnirp.org/en/publications/article/lf-guidelines-2010.html", "year": 2010, "kind": "guideline", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "who-elf", "title": "Electromagnetic fields and public health: exposure to extremely low frequency fields", "publisher": "World Health Organization", "url": "https://www.who.int/teams/environment-climate-change-and-health/radiation-and-health/non-ionizing/exposure", "year": 2007, "kind": "government", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/elf", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/elf", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/elf.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:rf", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "rf", "name": "RF (radiofrequency)", "summary": "Fields from about 100 kHz to 300 GHz, the range used by all wireless communication.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Radiofrequency spans roughly 100 kHz to 300 GHz and includes broadcast, cellular, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and radar. Above about 100 kHz the electric and magnetic components are linked, so exposure can be expressed interchangeably as electric field strength or power density, and the effect addressed by exposure limits is energy absorption and consequent heating.", "category": "physics", "seeAlso": [ "glossary:elf", "quantities:power-density" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "icnirp-2020", "title": "Guidelines for Limiting Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields (100 kHz to 300 GHz)", "publisher": "International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection", "url": "https://www.icnirp.org/en/publications/article/rf-guidelines-2020.html", "year": 2020, "kind": "guideline", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "fcc-1310", "title": "47 CFR § 1.1310 — Radiofrequency radiation exposure limits", "publisher": "U.S. Government Publishing Office (eCFR)", "url": "https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-47/section-1.1310", "kind": "regulation", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/rf", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/rf", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/rf.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:non-ionizing", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "non-ionizing-radiation", "name": "Non-ionizing radiation", "summary": "Electromagnetic radiation whose photons lack the energy to remove electrons from atoms — everything below ultraviolet, including all EMF discussed on this site.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Non-ionizing radiation covers all electromagnetic radiation below the ionization threshold, meaning it cannot break chemical bonds directly the way X-rays and gamma rays do. This is a statement about mechanism, not a statement that no effect is possible: established non-ionizing effects include tissue heating at RF and nerve stimulation at ELF, both of which exposure limits are built around.", "category": "physics", "seeAlso": [ "glossary:rf", "glossary:thermal-effect" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "icnirp-2020", "title": "Guidelines for Limiting Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields (100 kHz to 300 GHz)", "publisher": "International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection", "url": "https://www.icnirp.org/en/publications/article/rf-guidelines-2020.html", "year": 2020, "kind": "guideline", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "who-emf-rf", "title": "Radiation: Electromagnetic fields (questions and answers)", "publisher": "World Health Organization", "url": "https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-electromagnetic-fields", "kind": "government", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/non-ionizing-radiation", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/non-ionizing-radiation", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/non-ionizing-radiation.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:thermal-effect", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "thermal-effect", "name": "Thermal effect", "summary": "Tissue heating from absorbed RF energy — the established mechanism that RF exposure limits are set to prevent, with a safety margin.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Absorbed RF energy raises tissue temperature. ICNIRP and FCC limits are derived from the exposure that produces a defined temperature rise, then reduced by a safety factor — typically 50 for the general public relative to the threshold for established effects. Claims of 'non-thermal' effects concern mechanisms below this threshold and are the substance of the scientific dispute in this field.", "category": "health", "seeAlso": [ "glossary:non-thermal-effect", "quantities:specific-absorption-rate" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "icnirp-2020", "title": "Guidelines for Limiting Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields (100 kHz to 300 GHz)", "publisher": "International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection", "url": "https://www.icnirp.org/en/publications/article/rf-guidelines-2020.html", "year": 2020, "kind": "guideline", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "fcc-1310", "title": "47 CFR § 1.1310 — Radiofrequency radiation exposure limits", "publisher": "U.S. Government Publishing Office (eCFR)", "url": "https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-47/section-1.1310", "kind": "regulation", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/thermal-effect", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/thermal-effect", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/thermal-effect.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:non-thermal-effect", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "non-thermal-effect", "name": "Non-thermal effect", "summary": "A proposed biological effect at exposure levels too low to cause measurable heating; the central claim of precautionary guidelines and the central objection of regulators.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Non-thermal effects are biological responses proposed to occur below the heating threshold, for example via oxidative stress or voltage-gated calcium channels. ICNIRP's position is that no such effect has been established with sufficient consistency to base limits on. Precautionary frameworks such as BioInitiative and EUROPAEM assume they exist and propose targets orders of magnitude lower. This site records both positions and labels which is which.", "category": "health", "seeAlso": [ "glossary:thermal-effect", "standards:bioinitiative-2012" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "icnirp-2020", "title": "Guidelines for Limiting Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields (100 kHz to 300 GHz)", "publisher": "International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection", "url": "https://www.icnirp.org/en/publications/article/rf-guidelines-2020.html", "year": 2020, "kind": "guideline", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "bioinitiative-2012", "title": "BioInitiative Report 2012 (updated) — conclusions and recommended precautionary levels", "publisher": "BioInitiative Working Group", "url": "https://bioinitiative.org/conclusions/", "year": 2012, "kind": "ngo", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "europaem-2016", "title": "EUROPAEM EMF Guideline 2016 for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of EMF-related health problems", "publisher": "European Academy for Environmental Medicine", "url": "https://europaem.eu/en/library/blog-en/97-europaem-emf-guideline-2016", "year": 2016, "kind": "ngo", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/non-thermal-effect", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/non-thermal-effect", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/non-thermal-effect.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:sar", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "sar", "name": "SAR (specific absorption rate)", "summary": "Watts absorbed per kilogram of tissue, the dosimetric basis of phone compliance testing — 1.6 W/kg over 1 g in the U.S., 2 W/kg over 10 g under ICNIRP.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "SAR quantifies RF power deposition in tissue. It is measured in a liquid-filled phantom with the device transmitting at maximum power in its worst-case configuration, which is why a device's SAR is a compliance figure rather than a description of everyday exposure. Because the U.S. averages over 1 gram and ICNIRP over 10 grams, published SAR values for the same phone differ between regions and must not be compared directly.", "category": "measurement", "seeAlso": [ "limits:fcc-sar-partial-body", "protocols:sar-lookup" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "fcc-2-1093", "title": "47 CFR § 2.1093 — Radiofrequency radiation exposure evaluation: portable devices", "publisher": "U.S. Government Publishing Office (eCFR)", "url": "https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-47/section-2.1093", "kind": "regulation", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "icnirp-2020", "title": "Guidelines for Limiting Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields (100 kHz to 300 GHz)", "publisher": "International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection", "url": "https://www.icnirp.org/en/publications/article/rf-guidelines-2020.html", "year": 2020, "kind": "guideline", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/sar", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/sar", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/sar.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:mpe", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "mpe", "name": "MPE (maximum permissible exposure)", "summary": "The FCC's term for the enforceable exposure limit expressed as field strength or power density.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Maximum permissible exposure is the FCC's limit on external field quantities — electric field strength, magnetic field strength or power density — that a person may be exposed to, averaged over 30 minutes for the general public and 6 minutes for occupational exposure. MPE values are frequency dependent and are derived from the underlying SAR-based restrictions.", "category": "regulation", "seeAlso": [ "limits:fcc-mpe-public-1500-100000", "glossary:reference-level" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "fcc-1310", "title": "47 CFR § 1.1310 — Radiofrequency radiation exposure limits", "publisher": "U.S. Government Publishing Office (eCFR)", "url": "https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-47/section-1.1310", "kind": "regulation", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "fcc-oet65", "title": "OET Bulletin 65: Evaluating Compliance with FCC Guidelines for Human Exposure to Radiofrequency Electromagnetic Fields", "publisher": "Federal Communications Commission, Office of Engineering and Technology", "url": "https://www.fcc.gov/general/oet-bulletins-line", "year": 1997, "kind": "government", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/mpe", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/mpe", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/mpe.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:reference-level", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "reference-level", "name": "Reference level vs basic restriction", "summary": "ICNIRP's two-tier structure: basic restrictions are the dosimetric limits that matter biologically; reference levels are the externally measurable proxies derived from them.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "A basic restriction limits an internal quantity such as SAR or induced electric field, which cannot be measured in a living person. A reference level limits an external quantity such as power density or magnetic flux density, and is derived conservatively so that compliance with it guarantees compliance with the basic restriction. Exceeding a reference level is therefore not automatically a breach of the basic restriction — it triggers a more detailed assessment.", "category": "regulation", "seeAlso": [ "standards:icnirp-2020", "glossary:mpe" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "icnirp-2020", "title": "Guidelines for Limiting Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields (100 kHz to 300 GHz)", "publisher": "International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection", "url": "https://www.icnirp.org/en/publications/article/rf-guidelines-2020.html", "year": 2020, "kind": "guideline", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/reference-level", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/reference-level", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/reference-level.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:installation-limit-value", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "installation-limit-value", "name": "Installation limit value", "summary": "A precautionary legal limit applied to a single installation at sensitive locations, used in Switzerland and set far below the general exposure limit.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Switzerland's ONIR/NISV distinguishes an immission limit value, which protects against established effects and follows ICNIRP, from an installation limit value, which applies to the contribution of one installation at places of sensitive use such as homes and schools and is roughly a tenth of the ICNIRP reference level in field-strength terms. It is precautionary by design and legally binding, which makes Switzerland the standard counterexample to the claim that precautionary limits are unenforceable.", "category": "regulation", "seeAlso": [ "standards:ch-onir", "limits:ch-onir-installation-mobile" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "ch-onir", "title": "Ordinance relating to Protection from Non-Ionising Radiation (ONIR / NISV, SR 814.710)", "publisher": "Swiss Confederation", "url": "https://www.fedlex.admin.ch/eli/cc/2000/38/en", "year": 2000, "kind": "regulation", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/installation-limit-value", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/installation-limit-value", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/installation-limit-value.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:dirty-electricity", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "dirty-electricity", "name": "Dirty electricity", "summary": "High-frequency harmonics and transients riding on mains wiring, typically from dimmers, switch-mode supplies and inverters. Not a term used in any exposure standard.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Dirty electricity describes conducted voltage distortion above the power frequency, roughly 2 kHz to 1 MHz. It is measurable as harmonic content at a socket, and building-biology practice grades it more severely than the fundamental. No regulator defines an exposure limit for it, and the widely used proprietary meter index is not an exposure unit, so claims quantified only in those units cannot be compared against any standard.", "category": "measurement", "seeAlso": [ "emitters:dimmer-switch", "meters:dirty-electricity-meter" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "sbm-2024", "title": "Building Biology Evaluation Guidelines for Sleeping Areas (SBM-2024)", "publisher": "Institut für Baubiologie + Nachhaltigkeit (IBN)", "url": "https://buildingbiology.com/site/downloads/SBM-2024_EVALUATION_GUIDELINES_EN.pdf", "year": 2024, "kind": "ngo", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/dirty-electricity", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/dirty-electricity", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/dirty-electricity.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:duty-cycle", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "duty-cycle", "name": "Duty cycle", "summary": "The fraction of time a transmitter is actually radiating — the reason a peak reading and a time-averaged exposure can differ by a factor of a hundred or more.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Most digital transmitters send bursts rather than a continuous carrier. A smart meter may transmit for well under one percent of the time, so its peak burst amplitude says little about exposure as regulatory limits define it, which is averaged over 6 or 30 minutes. Any comparison of a measurement to a limit is invalid unless both refer to the same averaging.", "category": "measurement", "seeAlso": [ "emitters:smart-meter", "protocols:rf-room-survey" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "fcc-1310", "title": "47 CFR § 1.1310 — Radiofrequency radiation exposure limits", "publisher": "U.S. Government Publishing Office (eCFR)", "url": "https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-47/section-1.1310", "kind": "regulation", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "sbm-2024", "title": "Building Biology Evaluation Guidelines for Sleeping Areas (SBM-2024)", "publisher": "Institut für Baubiologie + Nachhaltigkeit (IBN)", "url": "https://buildingbiology.com/site/downloads/SBM-2024_EVALUATION_GUIDELINES_EN.pdf", "year": 2024, "kind": "ngo", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/duty-cycle", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/duty-cycle", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/duty-cycle.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:far-field", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "far-field", "name": "Far field and near field", "summary": "Beyond roughly a wavelength from an antenna the field behaves as a propagating wave and inverse-square estimates apply; closer than that they do not.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "In the far field, electric and magnetic components are in a fixed ratio, power density falls with the square of distance, and one measured quantity determines the others. In the near field — within roughly a wavelength, or 12.5 cm at 2.4 GHz — the components vary independently, inverse-square estimation is invalid, and exposure is assessed dosimetrically as SAR. This is why phone exposure is expressed as SAR and tower exposure as power density.", "category": "physics", "seeAlso": [ "quantities:power-density", "glossary:sar" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "itu-fs-relations", "title": "Free-space path loss and power density relations (ITU-R P.525)", "publisher": "International Telecommunication Union", "url": "https://www.itu.int/rec/R-REC-P.525/en", "kind": "standard", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "fcc-oet65", "title": "OET Bulletin 65: Evaluating Compliance with FCC Guidelines for Human Exposure to Radiofrequency Electromagnetic Fields", "publisher": "Federal Communications Commission, Office of Engineering and Technology", "url": "https://www.fcc.gov/general/oet-bulletins-line", "year": 1997, "kind": "government", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/far-field", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/far-field", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/far-field.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:eirp", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "eirp", "name": "EIRP / ERP", "summary": "Transmitter power multiplied by antenna gain: the figure that, with distance, determines free-space power density.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Equivalent isotropically radiated power is the power an isotropic radiator would need to produce the same field on the antenna's main beam. ERP is the same idea referenced to a half-wave dipole (ERP × 1.64 = EIRP). Both describe the main beam only, so using EIRP with an inverse-square formula gives a boresight upper bound and overstates exposure everywhere off-axis — which is why levels at the base of a tower are far below the value the formula suggests.", "category": "technology", "seeAlso": [ "emitters:macro-cell-tower", "quantities:power-density" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "fcc-oet65", "title": "OET Bulletin 65: Evaluating Compliance with FCC Guidelines for Human Exposure to Radiofrequency Electromagnetic Fields", "publisher": "Federal Communications Commission, Office of Engineering and Technology", "url": "https://www.fcc.gov/general/oet-bulletins-line", "year": 1997, "kind": "government", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "itu-fs-relations", "title": "Free-space path loss and power density relations (ITU-R P.525)", "publisher": "International Telecommunication Union", "url": "https://www.itu.int/rec/R-REC-P.525/en", "kind": "standard", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/eirp", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/eirp", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/eirp.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:beamforming", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "beamforming", "name": "Beamforming", "summary": "5G massive-MIMO antennas steer energy toward active users rather than radiating uniformly, so exposure is intermittent and direction-dependent.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Beamforming uses an antenna array to concentrate transmission toward a specific receiver. The consequence for exposure assessment is that the maximum EIRP occurs only in a narrow beam pointed at an active device, so a fixed-point measurement varies with network activity, and time-averaged assessment methods specific to massive MIMO are required rather than static worst-case arithmetic.", "category": "technology", "seeAlso": [ "emitters:5g-small-cell", "emitters:macro-cell-tower" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "fcc-oet65", "title": "OET Bulletin 65: Evaluating Compliance with FCC Guidelines for Human Exposure to Radiofrequency Electromagnetic Fields", "publisher": "Federal Communications Commission, Office of Engineering and Technology", "url": "https://www.fcc.gov/general/oet-bulletins-line", "year": 1997, "kind": "government", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "arpansa-base-stations", "title": "Mobile phone base stations and health", "publisher": "Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency", "url": "https://www.arpansa.gov.au/understanding-radiation/radiation-sources/more-radiation-sources/mobile-phone-base-stations", "kind": "government", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/beamforming", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/beamforming", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/beamforming.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:net-current", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "net-current", "name": "Net current (wiring error)", "summary": "When the current flowing out on a circuit does not return on the same cable, the imbalance radiates a magnetic field across the whole building.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "In correctly wired circuits, line and neutral currents are equal and opposite within centimetres of each other, so their external magnetic fields cancel almost completely. Shared neutrals, crossed neutrals between circuits, and current returning through plumbing break that cancellation, producing elevated magnetic fields throughout a structure that do not fall off with distance from any identifiable appliance. It is an electrical fault, not an EMF problem, and it is corrected by an electrician.", "category": "measurement", "seeAlso": [ "protocols:elf-magnetic-survey", "emitters:electrical-service-panel" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "niehs-emf", "title": "Electric and Magnetic Fields", "publisher": "National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences", "url": "https://www.niehs.nih.gov/health/topics/agents/emf", "kind": "government", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "sbm-2024", "title": "Building Biology Evaluation Guidelines for Sleeping Areas (SBM-2024)", "publisher": "Institut für Baubiologie + Nachhaltigkeit (IBN)", "url": "https://buildingbiology.com/site/downloads/SBM-2024_EVALUATION_GUIDELINES_EN.pdf", "year": 2024, "kind": "ngo", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/net-current", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/net-current", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/net-current.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:milligauss", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "milligauss", "name": "Milligauss (mG) and microtesla (µT)", "summary": "The two units for power-frequency magnetic fields: 1 µT = 10 mG, so 0.4 µT = 4 mG.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Milligauss belongs to the CGS system and is standard in North American consumer practice; microtesla is the SI unit and is used in European guidelines and scientific literature. The conversion is exact: 1 µT equals 10 mG. Most confusion in ELF discussion is a factor-of-ten unit error, including the frequently misquoted 0.3–0.4 µT epidemiological threshold, which is 3–4 mG.", "category": "measurement", "seeAlso": [ "quantities:magnetic-flux-density", "limits:who-elf-leukaemia-association" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "nist-si", "title": "The International System of Units (SI), NIST Special Publication 330", "publisher": "National Institute of Standards and Technology", "url": "https://www.nist.gov/pml/special-publication-330", "kind": "government", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "who-elf", "title": "Electromagnetic fields and public health: exposure to extremely low frequency fields", "publisher": "World Health Organization", "url": "https://www.who.int/teams/environment-climate-change-and-health/radiation-and-health/non-ionizing/exposure", "year": 2007, "kind": "government", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/milligauss", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/milligauss", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/milligauss.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:power-density-units", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "power-density-units", "name": "µW/m², mW/m² and mW/cm²", "summary": "Three units for the same RF quantity, spanning ten orders of magnitude: 1 mW/cm² = 10 W/m² = 10,000 mW/m² = 10,000,000 µW/m².", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Consumer RF meters report µW/m² or mW/m², ICNIRP uses W/m², and FCC rules use mW/cm². A reading of 10,000 µW/m² is 0.01 W/m², which is 0.001 mW/cm² — one ten-thousandth of the FCC's 10 mW/cm² public limit above 1.5 GHz. Failing to convert is the single most common error in EMF discussion in both directions.", "category": "measurement", "seeAlso": [ "quantities:power-density", "limits:fcc-mpe-public-1500-100000" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "nist-si", "title": "The International System of Units (SI), NIST Special Publication 330", "publisher": "National Institute of Standards and Technology", "url": "https://www.nist.gov/pml/special-publication-330", "kind": "government", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "fcc-1310", "title": "47 CFR § 1.1310 — Radiofrequency radiation exposure limits", "publisher": "U.S. Government Publishing Office (eCFR)", "url": "https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-47/section-1.1310", "kind": "regulation", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "icnirp-2020", "title": "Guidelines for Limiting Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields (100 kHz to 300 GHz)", "publisher": "International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection", "url": "https://www.icnirp.org/en/publications/article/rf-guidelines-2020.html", "year": 2020, "kind": "guideline", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/power-density-units", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/power-density-units", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/power-density-units.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:ehs", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "ehs", "name": "EHS (electromagnetic hypersensitivity)", "summary": "Symptoms attributed by the affected person to EMF exposure; recognised as real symptoms by WHO, without a demonstrated causal link to field exposure in blinded studies.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Electromagnetic hypersensitivity, referred to by WHO as idiopathic environmental intolerance attributed to electromagnetic fields, describes a symptom complex including headache, fatigue, sleep disturbance and skin sensations. WHO's position is that the symptoms are genuine and can be disabling, while blinded provocation studies have not shown that affected individuals can detect field presence or that symptoms track actual exposure. This site records the position and the primary literature; it does not offer medical advice.", "category": "health", "seeAlso": [ "studies:who-ehs-2005", "standards:europaem-2016" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "who-ehs", "title": "Electromagnetic hypersensitivity (WHO backgrounder, December 2005; formerly Fact sheet 296)", "publisher": "World Health Organization", "url": "https://www.who.int/teams/environment-climate-change-and-health/radiation-and-health/non-ionizing/hypersensitivity", "year": 2005, "kind": "government", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "europaem-2016", "title": "EUROPAEM EMF Guideline 2016 for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of EMF-related health problems", "publisher": "European Academy for Environmental Medicine", "url": "https://europaem.eu/en/library/blog-en/97-europaem-emf-guideline-2016", "year": 2016, "kind": "ngo", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/ehs", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/ehs", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/ehs.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:group-2b", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "group-2b", "name": "IARC Group 2B", "summary": "'Possibly carcinogenic to humans' — a statement about how strong the evidence is, not about how large any risk is.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "IARC hazard categories describe the strength of evidence that an agent can cause cancer, not the potency or the magnitude of exposure-related risk. Group 2B means limited evidence in humans and less than sufficient evidence in animals. Both RF fields (2011) and ELF magnetic fields (2002) are in Group 2B. Citing the classification as evidence of a quantified risk misstates what IARC published.", "category": "health", "seeAlso": [ "studies:iarc-2b-rf-2011", "studies:iarc-elf-2b-2002" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "iarc-2b-rf", "title": "IARC classifies radiofrequency electromagnetic fields as possibly carcinogenic to humans (Group 2B), Press Release N° 208", "publisher": "International Agency for Research on Cancer", "url": "https://www.iarc.who.int/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/pr208_E.pdf", "year": 2011, "kind": "government", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "iarc-monograph-80", "title": "IARC Monographs Volume 80: Non-Ionizing Radiation, Part 1: Static and Extremely Low-Frequency Electric and Magnetic Fields", "publisher": "International Agency for Research on Cancer", "url": "https://publications.iarc.who.int/98", "year": 2002, "kind": "peer-reviewed", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/group-2b", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/group-2b", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/group-2b.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:precautionary-principle", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "precautionary-principle", "name": "Precautionary principle (as applied to EMF)", "summary": "The basis for values set below the level justified by established effects, such as the Swiss installation limits and building-biology bands.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Applied to EMF, the precautionary principle supports reducing exposure where it can be done at reasonable cost, even without established harm at the levels concerned. It explains why Switzerland's legally binding installation values, Building Biology's evaluation bands and EUROPAEM's targets sit far below ICNIRP reference levels. Precautionary values are policy or professional judgements, not findings of harm, and this site labels them as such throughout.", "category": "regulation", "seeAlso": [ "standards:ch-onir", "standards:sbm-2024" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "ch-onir", "title": "Ordinance relating to Protection from Non-Ionising Radiation (ONIR / NISV, SR 814.710)", "publisher": "Swiss Confederation", "url": "https://www.fedlex.admin.ch/eli/cc/2000/38/en", "year": 2000, "kind": "regulation", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "sbm-2024", "title": "Building Biology Evaluation Guidelines for Sleeping Areas (SBM-2024)", "publisher": "Institut für Baubiologie + Nachhaltigkeit (IBN)", "url": "https://buildingbiology.com/site/downloads/SBM-2024_EVALUATION_GUIDELINES_EN.pdf", "year": 2024, "kind": "ngo", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "europaem-2016", "title": "EUROPAEM EMF Guideline 2016 for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of EMF-related health problems", "publisher": "European Academy for Environmental Medicine", "url": "https://europaem.eu/en/library/blog-en/97-europaem-emf-guideline-2016", "year": 2016, "kind": "ngo", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/precautionary-principle", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/precautionary-principle", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/precautionary-principle.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:shielding-effectiveness", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "shielding-effectiveness", "name": "Shielding effectiveness (dB)", "summary": "Attenuation expressed logarithmically: 10 dB removes 90% of power density, 20 dB removes 99%, 30 dB removes 99.9%.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Shielding effectiveness is the ratio of incident to transmitted field, in decibels, at a stated frequency. Datasheet figures are measured on flat samples in a test fixture; installed performance is governed by seams, edges and penetrations and is routinely 10–20 dB worse. Because the scale is logarithmic, a small dB shortfall is a large change in transmitted power.", "category": "measurement", "seeAlso": [ "quantities:shielding-attenuation", "protocols:shielding-verification" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "sbm-2024", "title": "Building Biology Evaluation Guidelines for Sleeping Areas (SBM-2024)", "publisher": "Institut für Baubiologie + Nachhaltigkeit (IBN)", "url": "https://buildingbiology.com/site/downloads/SBM-2024_EVALUATION_GUIDELINES_EN.pdf", "year": 2024, "kind": "ngo", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/shielding-effectiveness", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/shielding-effectiveness", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/shielding-effectiveness.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:faraday-cage", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "faraday-cage", "name": "Faraday cage", "summary": "A continuous grounded conductive enclosure. Effective in principle, and in practice limited entirely by its apertures.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "A Faraday cage excludes external electric fields and, if the conductor is continuous relative to the wavelength, radiofrequency fields. It does not exclude low-frequency magnetic fields, which pass through ordinary conductors essentially unattenuated. Any aperture larger than a small fraction of the wavelength behaves as a slot antenna, so seams and openings determine real performance — and a transmitter left inside a partial enclosure raises levels within it by reflection.", "category": "physics", "seeAlso": [ "shielding:foil", "shielding:mesh" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "sbm-2024", "title": "Building Biology Evaluation Guidelines for Sleeping Areas (SBM-2024)", "publisher": "Institut für Baubiologie + Nachhaltigkeit (IBN)", "url": "https://buildingbiology.com/site/downloads/SBM-2024_EVALUATION_GUIDELINES_EN.pdf", "year": 2024, "kind": "ngo", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/faraday-cage", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/faraday-cage", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/faraday-cage.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:averaging-time", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "averaging-time", "name": "Averaging time", "summary": "Regulatory limits apply to an average: 30 minutes for the general public under FCC and ICNIRP rules, 6 minutes for occupational exposure.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Exposure limits above 100 kHz are time-averaged because the effect they prevent is thermal and depends on accumulated energy. A brief peak far above the limit can be fully compliant if the 30-minute average is below it. Comparing a peak-hold consumer meter reading to a time-averaged limit is therefore not a valid compliance assessment, in either direction.", "category": "regulation", "seeAlso": [ "glossary:duty-cycle", "limits:fcc-mpe-public-1500-100000" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "fcc-1310", "title": "47 CFR § 1.1310 — Radiofrequency radiation exposure limits", "publisher": "U.S. Government Publishing Office (eCFR)", "url": "https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-47/section-1.1310", "kind": "regulation", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "icnirp-2020", "title": "Guidelines for Limiting Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields (100 kHz to 300 GHz)", "publisher": "International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection", "url": "https://www.icnirp.org/en/publications/article/rf-guidelines-2020.html", "year": 2020, "kind": "guideline", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/averaging-time", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/averaging-time", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/averaging-time.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:building-biology", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "building-biology", "name": "Building biology (Baubiologie) and SBM", "summary": "A German-origin discipline whose SBM testing methodology grades sleeping areas into precautionary bands far below regulatory limits.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Building biology assesses the built environment for occupant health, and its Standard of Building Biology Testing Methods (SBM) defines evaluation bands — no anomaly, slight, strong, extreme — for RF power density, AC magnetic and electric fields, and body voltage in sleeping areas. The bands are precautionary professional guidance, deliberately set well below regulatory limits, and are not law anywhere. Most consumer EMF advice online derives from them, usually without saying so.", "category": "measurement", "seeAlso": [ "standards:sbm-2024", "organizations:ibn" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "sbm-2024", "title": "Building Biology Evaluation Guidelines for Sleeping Areas (SBM-2024)", "publisher": "Institut für Baubiologie + Nachhaltigkeit (IBN)", "url": "https://buildingbiology.com/site/downloads/SBM-2024_EVALUATION_GUIDELINES_EN.pdf", "year": 2024, "kind": "ngo", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "ibe-building-biology", "title": "Institute of Building Biology + Sustainability IBN — building biology testing and training", "publisher": "IBN / buildingbiology.com", "url": "https://buildingbiology.com/", "kind": "ngo", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/building-biology", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/building-biology", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/building-biology.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:inverse-square-law", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "inverse-square-law", "name": "Inverse-square law", "summary": "In the far field, doubling the distance quarters the power density: the cheapest and most reliable mitigation available.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Power density from a point source falls as 1/d². Three times the distance is nine times less; ten times the distance is a hundred times less. This is why moving a router across a room outperforms most shielding purchases. Two caveats: it does not apply in the near field, and it does not apply to fields from extended sources such as a long transmission line, where fall-off is closer to 1/d.", "category": "physics", "seeAlso": [ "quantities:power-density", "emitters:wifi-router" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "itu-fs-relations", "title": "Free-space path loss and power density relations (ITU-R P.525)", "publisher": "International Telecommunication Union", "url": "https://www.itu.int/rec/R-REC-P.525/en", "kind": "standard", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/inverse-square-law", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/inverse-square-law", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/inverse-square-law.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:attention-value", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "attention-value", "name": "Attention value and quality objective", "summary": "Italy's two precautionary legal tiers below the exposure limit: the attention value applies where people spend four or more hours a day, the quality objective applies outdoors in busy areas.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "Under DPCM 8 July 2003 the exposure limit protects against established short-term effects, while the attention value (valore di attenzione) and quality objective (obiettivo di qualità) are precautionary tiers set far lower and applied where exposure is prolonged — inside buildings occupied four hours a day or more and their balconies and courtyards, and outdoors in intensively frequented areas. Both were 6 V/m from 2003 until 30 April 2024, when Law 214/2023 raised them to 15 V/m. They are precautionary in intent but legally binding, like the Swiss installation limit value.", "category": "regulation", "seeAlso": [ "standards:italy-dpcm-2003", "limits:italy-attention-value-15vm", "glossary:installation-limit-value" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "italy-dpcm-2003", "title": "DPCM 8 luglio 2003 — limiti di esposizione, valori di attenzione e obiettivi di qualità, 100 kHz–300 GHz", "publisher": "Presidenza del Consiglio dei Ministri (Gazzetta Ufficiale n. 199/2003)", "url": "https://corecom.consrc.it/hp2/doc/D.P.C.M.8_luglio2003.pdf", "year": 2003, "kind": "regulation", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "italy-mimit-15vm", "title": "Adeguamento dei limiti dei campi elettromagnetici (15 V/m)", "publisher": "Ministero delle Imprese e del Made in Italy", "url": "https://www.mimit.gov.it/it/notizie-stampa/adeguamento-dei-limiti-dei-campi-elettromagnetici", "year": 2024, "kind": "government", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/attention-value", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/attention-value", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/attention-value.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:uncontrolled-environment", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "uncontrolled-environment", "name": "Uncontrolled vs controlled environment", "summary": "The North American equivalent of the general-public and occupational tiers: 'uncontrolled' means people who are not aware of their exposure and cannot act on it.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "FCC and Health Canada tables are split into uncontrolled/general-population and controlled/occupational columns. Uncontrolled applies to people who have no knowledge of their exposure and no ability to limit it — residents, passers-by, anyone in a public area. Controlled applies to trained workers who are aware of the exposure and can control their time in the field, and is typically five times higher in power density and shorter in averaging time. Quoting an occupational figure as though it applied to a home is one of the commonest errors in EMF discussion.", "category": "regulation", "seeAlso": [ "limits:sc6-public-300-6000", "limits:fcc-mpe-occupational-1500-100000", "glossary:mpe" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "hc-safety-code-6", "title": "Limits of Human Exposure to Radiofrequency Electromagnetic Energy in the Frequency Range from 3 kHz to 300 GHz (Safety Code 6)", "publisher": "Health Canada", "url": "https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/publications/health-risks-safety/limits-human-exposure-radiofrequency-electromagnetic-energy-range-3-300.html", "year": 2015, "kind": "guideline", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "fcc-1310", "title": "47 CFR § 1.1310 — Radiofrequency radiation exposure limits", "publisher": "U.S. Government Publishing Office (eCFR)", "url": "https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-47/section-1.1310", "kind": "regulation", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/uncontrolled-environment", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/uncontrolled-environment", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/uncontrolled-environment.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:nocebo-effect", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "nocebo-effect", "name": "Nocebo effect", "summary": "Genuine symptoms produced by the expectation of harm rather than by the exposure itself — the inverse of the placebo effect.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "A nocebo response is a real, sometimes measurable symptom caused by a person's expectation that something will harm them. It is the mechanism the EHS provocation literature converges on: in 46 blinded experiments symptoms tracked what participants believed about the exposure rather than whether the field was actually present. Calling a symptom a nocebo response says nothing about whether it is real or disabling — it addresses only what triggered it, and therefore what is likely to help.", "category": "health", "seeAlso": [ "studies:rubin-2010", "glossary:provocation-study", "glossary:ehs" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "rubin-2010", "title": "Idiopathic environmental intolerance attributed to electromagnetic fields (formerly 'electromagnetic hypersensitivity'): an updated systematic review of provocation studies", "publisher": "Rubin GJ, Nieto-Hernandez R, Wessely S — Bioelectromagnetics 31(1):1–11", "url": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19681059/", "year": 2010, "kind": "peer-reviewed", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "who-ehs", "title": "Electromagnetic hypersensitivity (WHO backgrounder, December 2005; formerly Fact sheet 296)", "publisher": "World Health Organization", "url": "https://www.who.int/teams/environment-climate-change-and-health/radiation-and-health/non-ionizing/hypersensitivity", "year": 2005, "kind": "government", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/nocebo-effect", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/nocebo-effect", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/nocebo-effect.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:provocation-study", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "provocation-study", "name": "Provocation study", "summary": "An experiment in which a volunteer is exposed to a real or sham field without knowing which, to test whether exposure triggers symptoms or can be detected.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "In a blinded provocation study the field is switched on or off by the experimenter in a sequence unknown to the participant, and often to the person taking the measurements as well. It is the design that distinguishes an effect of the field from an effect of believing the field is present, which self-reported observation cannot do. Its limits matter as much as its strength: sessions are short, exposures acute, and a null result cannot rule out effects that need long latency or real-world exposure patterns — the gap ANSES asked new research to close.", "category": "health", "seeAlso": [ "studies:rubin-2010", "studies:anses-2018-ehs", "glossary:nocebo-effect" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "rubin-2010", "title": "Idiopathic environmental intolerance attributed to electromagnetic fields (formerly 'electromagnetic hypersensitivity'): an updated systematic review of provocation studies", "publisher": "Rubin GJ, Nieto-Hernandez R, Wessely S — Bioelectromagnetics 31(1):1–11", "url": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19681059/", "year": 2010, "kind": "peer-reviewed", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "anses-2018-ehs", "title": "Avis et rapport d'expertise collective — Hypersensibilité électromagnétique ou intolérance environnementale idiopathique attribuée aux champs électromagnétiques (mars 2018)", "publisher": "Agence nationale de sécurité sanitaire de l'alimentation, de l'environnement et du travail (ANSES), France", "url": "https://www.anses.fr/fr/system/files/AP2011SA0150Ra.pdf", "year": 2018, "kind": "government", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/provocation-study", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/provocation-study", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/provocation-study.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } }, { "id": "glossary:iso-17025", "collection": "glossary", "slug": "iso-17025", "name": "ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation", "summary": "Accreditation of a laboratory as competent for a named measurement method — the credential regulators require, as distinct from any personal certification.", "status": "verified", "lastVerified": "2026-08-12", "data": { "definition": "ISO/IEC 17025 is the international standard for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories. Accreditation is granted by a national accreditation body for a specific scope — a named method applied to a named measurand — so a firm accredited for 5G NR base-station measurement to the METAS method is not thereby accredited for anything else. It is what authorities rely on when a measurement has legal consequences: Swiss NISV compliance measurements must come from a firm in the SAS register, whose scope entries list each measurement recommendation it may apply.", "category": "measurement", "seeAlso": [ "organizations:sas-ch", "questions:do-i-need-an-accredited-measurement", "protocols:rf-room-survey" ] }, "sources": [ { "id": "sas-accredited-bodies", "title": "Search for accredited bodies (STS register of ISO/IEC 17025 laboratories)", "publisher": "Schweizerische Akkreditierungsstelle SAS (Swiss Accreditation Service)", "url": "https://www.sas.admin.ch/sas/en/home/akkreditiertestellen/akkrstellensuchesas.html", "kind": "government", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" }, { "id": "bafu-nisv-vollzugshilfen", "title": "Mobilfunk: Vollzugshilfen zur NISV — Messempfehlungen und Hinweis auf die für NIS-Messungen akkreditierten Messfirmen", "publisher": "Bundesamt für Umwelt BAFU (Switzerland)", "url": "https://www.bafu.admin.ch/de/mobilfunk-vollzugshilfen-zur-nisv", "kind": "government", "retrieved": "2026-08-12" } ], "links": { "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary/iso-17025", "html": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/iso-17025", "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/glossary/iso-17025.md", "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/glossary" } } ] }