EMFBase

Beamforming

5G massive-MIMO antennas steer energy toward active users rather than radiating uniformly, so exposure is intermittent and direction-dependent.

technology

Last verified 12 August 2026.

Category
technology

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.

Sources

  1. fcc-oet65 OET Bulletin 65: Evaluating Compliance with FCC Guidelines for Human Exposure to Radiofrequency Electromagnetic Fields Federal Communications Commission, Office of Engineering and Technology, 1997. government, link checked 2026-08-12.
  2. arpansa-base-stations Mobile phone base stations and health Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency. government, link checked 2026-08-12.

Same record, other formats