A compact shielded exposure system for the simultaneous long-term UHF irradiation of forty small mammals: I. Electromagnetic and environmental design.

To carry out in vivo studies of the possible health effects of radiation from cellular telephone handsets, it is necessary to expose large numbers of small mammals at realistic power densities, modulations, and frequencies. Because even microwatt leakage could compromise the local cellular system, extreme care in shielding is required. Experimental logistics dictate, however, that the irradiated animals be easily accessed and that it be possible to irradiate them in small groups, while other groups are being loaded into or unloaded from the irradiators. This problem has been resolved by exposing the animals in aluminum-sheathed rectangular parallelepipeds, lined with microwave absorber and having doors that can be opened readily. Inside each of these microwave anechoic "chamberettes" is a vertical, four-element collinear array of dipole antennas; and around each antenna, 10 animal restrainers can be arranged like spokes on a wheel. The system has worked efficiently in studies of up to 480 rats. There is negligible coupling between antennas, and back reflection at an antenna's feed line is down 7-9 dB. Received CDMA power at the local base station is below the receiver's noise floor. Interior illumination reinforces the rats' diurnal rhythms, and the rats sleep during irradiation. Experimental logistics are excellent. In this paper, the irradiator design is presented.