# Electromagnetic Field-Aware Radio Resource Management for 5G and Beyond: A Survey
## 4 EMF Exposure Level and 5G Technologies
### EMF-Aware Radio Resource Management
The proposed schemes excelled in optimizing spectral efficiency while minimizing EMF exposure, providing a balanced approach to both communication performance and safety considerations. In [109], the authors analyze joint uplink and downlink EMF exposure in wireless networks, aiming to maximize coverage probability while minimizing exposure within safety standards. The study models exposure as a function of base station density, user power, and traffic distribution. It reveals that downlink transmissions typically dominate in terms of the total exposure, whereas uplink contributions become significant in sparse networks or poor signal conditions. The authors propose strategies such as optimizing base station placement, improving beamforming, and balancing traffic to reduce exposure. In [110], the authors address the challenge of optimizing user association in 5G networks while minimizing EMF exposure. They introduce an EMF-aware user association framework that balances network performance with compliance to EMF safety standards. The framework models user association as an optimization problem, incorporating factors such as base station transmit power, user distances, and traffic loads. By optimizing user assignments to base stations and leveraging advanced algorithms, this approach reduces both uplink and downlink EMF exposure while ensuring efficient resource utilization. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed framework effectively minimizes EMF exposure without compromising network throughput, making it a practical solution for future 5G deployments. Table 5 provides a comprehensive summary of recent studies focused on EMF-aware radio resource management in 5G networks, highlighting key approaches, methodologies, and performance outcomes. Integrating EMF radiation exposure constraints into radio resource allocation algorithms offers the potential for safer and more energy-efficient 5G services while ensuring users' QoS requirements are met. This approach acknowledges the dual importance of minimizing EMF exposure and efficiently managing radio resources. EMF exposure considerations are incorporated into resource management problems in two primary ways. In the first case, EMF metrics, such as PD, are included directly in the objective function as cost parameters to be minimized. In the second case, EMF exposure metrics are treated as constraints within the optimization problem, ensuring that system performance is optimized while adhering to predefined safety limits. The optimization process involves several resource variables, including beamforming weights (digital or analog), reflecting weights for RISs, which can be passive or active, optimal placement of base stations (gNB), RIS antenna elements, and power allocation strategies. However, optimizing these resources while taking into account EMF exposure presents significant challenges. Balancing the intricate requirements of resource efficiency, user experience, and EMF exposure reduction is a complex task that demands advanced algorithmic solutions, such as non-convex optimization techniques, and a comprehensive understanding of the interplay between these factors. Figure 5 summarizes radio resource management considering EMF exposure metrics.