The phenomenal growth of mobile communications has spurred a new research paradigm in electromagnetics. Evolving operational requirements and technical complexity present new design and functionality challenges that must be addressed on a continual basis. For example, the need for advanced tools to develop and optimize aesthetically pleasing, smaller mobile devices with sophisticated functionality (i.e., multipurpose devices with multiple mobile bands including Bluetooth and WLAN data connectivity) devices while reliably operating within varyingly complex environments is increasing. Personal area networks capable of monitoring a person's health will eventually become more prevalent, resulting in the need for novel miniature, reliable and safe transmitters. Furthermore, the integration and co-existence of highly sensitive sensors, fast processors and transmitters will require the development of new technologies and methods to measure and predict EMC/EMI of devices in challenging and even hostile environments. Concerns about the interactions betweens electromagnetic fields and human tissue will undoubtedly increase as wireless technologies become more ubiquitous and advanced.

The BioElectroMagnetic EMC Group of the Integrated Systems Laboratory, in close cooperation with the Foundation for Research on Information Technologies in Society (IT'IS), addresses these issues by pursuing innovative research in the following three areas:

Near-Field Analysis and Design Tools
The development of novel analytic and design tools to accurately evaluate electromagnetic near-fields, particularly for the evaluation and optimization of EM fields in complex environments, such as close to and within the human body, has been a major research focus since the beginning. Typical applications include EM safety and design optimization of mobile phones, MR scanners and medical implants. Novel near-field probes (diode loaded sensors and full time-domain systems) as well as an advanced TCAD tool for antenna design, EMC and dosimetry have already been developed. A future goal is to develop full-time domain sensors that provide resolutions of a few micrometers.

BioMedical Research
By quantifying the electromagnetic field (EMF) distributions induced in the living body from external sources (e.g., mobile phones, induction heating, powerlines, etc.) or internal sources (e.g., active implants), we aim to quantify the user exposure from the most prevalent electromagnetic field sources and from new and emerging technologies and to characterize the fundamental mechanisms responsible for the absorption of electromagnetic fields in biological tissue. We are developing advanced exposure systems for exposing cell cultures and organisms to rigorous and scientifically sound exposure conditions for risk assessments and medical applications. The findings are being applied to develop treatment planning tools and applicators for EM cancer therapies, for example. Advanced numerical human models combined with powerful solvers are also being developed to simulate the varying physiologies of the entire human population.

Life Support Systems
Wireless technologies, such as wireless body area networks and wireless personal area networks, provide promising applications in medical monitoring systems to measure specified physiological data and to provide location-based information. With the increasing sophistication of wearable and implantable medical devices and their integration with wireless sensors and transmitters, an ever-expanding range of therapeutic and diagnostic applications is being pursued. As the newest area of research in this group, we aim to accelerate progress in this field by combining a vast pool of interdisciplinary knowledge from the different groups of the cooperating laboratories ranging from engineering to medicine.