Electromagnetic weapon Electromagnetic weapons are a type of directed energy weapon s which use electromagnetic radiation to deliver heat , mechanical , or electrical energy to a target to cause pain or permanent damage . They can be used against humans , electronic equipment , and military targets generally , depending on the technology . When used against equipment , directed electromagnetic energy weapons can operate similarly to omnidirectional electromagnetic pulse ( EMP ) devices , by inducing destructive voltage within electronic wiring . The difference is that they are directional and can be focused on a specific target using a parabolic reflector . Faraday cage s may be used to provide protection from most directed and undirected EMP effects . High - energy radio frequency weapons ( HERF ) or high - power radio frequency weapons ( HPRF ) use high intensity radio waves to disrupt electronics . High Power Microwave devices use microwave radiation , which has a shorter wavelength than radio . Development . In the United States of America , the University of Texas - Austin Institute for Advanced Technology ( IAT ) conducts basic research to advance electrodynamics and hypervelocity physics related to electromagnetic weapons . Use against humans . Generally considered ' non - lethal weapons ' , electromagnetic weaponry do however pose health threats to humans . In fact , " non - lethal weapons can sometimes be deadly . " Some common bio - effects of electromagnetic or other non - lethal weapons include effects to the human central nervous system resulting in physical pain , difficulty breathing , vertigo , nausea , disorientation , or other systemic discomfort , as weapons not directly considered lethal can indeed cause cumulative damage to the human body . Project Pandora , conducted by the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research , WRAIR , included externally induced auditory input from pulsed microwave audiograms of words or oral sounds which create the effect of hearing voices that are not a part of the recipients own thought processes . Microwave pulses can also affect the epidermis ( skin ) and dermis , the thick sensitive layer of skin and connective tissue beneath the epidermis that contains blood , lymph vessel s , sweat gland s , and nerve endings , generating a burn from as far as 700 yards . Crop Circles . A beam of radiation , if used in conjunction with a computer , can theoretically render the extremely complex patterns observed in genuine crop circles . Dr Levengood , a biophysicist of BLT Research Team and Ken Larsen , a biologist , have concluded that the way in which the stalks are flattened without being broken or damaged is typical of microwave radiation coming from a plasma source . Microwave radiation is not only invisible to the naked eye but can also penetrate clouds and account for the effects caused on crops . The most conspicuous of these effects are elongations of stems , abnormal holes at the nodes and bending of the plant at the nodes . Microwaves heat the water stored in plants . The water turns into vapor , expands , and finally escapes to the surrounding air . Having lost all water content , plant cells undergo plasmolysis and thus the structural integrity of the entire plant is severely undermined to the extent that it can no longer support its own weight . Use against equipment . Directed energy weapons such as Boeing ’ s Airborne Laser which can be mounted on a 747 jet is able to burn the skin off enemy missiles . Electromagnetic weapons , including high power microwaves , were used during the Gulf War to disrupt and destroy the enemy ' s electronic systems and may have been used for other effects . Types and magnitudes of exposure to electromagnetic fields is unknown .