What is RF energy?
Radio frequency (RF) energy is one form of electromagnetic energy that is a component of the electromagnetic spectrum. It includes microwaves, visible light and X-rays. RF energy, sometimes called “RF emissions”, “RF waves” or “RF fields”, is generated when a source current is fed to an antenna. This current excites electrons within the antenna and the energy propagates away from it in the form of an electromagnetic wave. Radio frequency fields have electric and magnetic components and the strength of the RF fields can be described by each component. The units “volts per metre” (V/m) and “amperes per metre” (A/m) are used to express the “electric” and “magnetic” field strengths respectively. Another common way to describe the RF field strength is by power density or the power per unit area, i.e. “watts per squared metre” (W/m2).
