Radio frequency wands

Tim Vitale <tjvitale [at] ix__netcom__com> writes

>Is anyone experimenting with one of those 'radio frequency treatment
>wands' being advertised on TV for reducing wrinkles?  I traced an
>online instance of a wand-based skin wrinkle reducer back to a
>'doctors' office type piece of equipment that appears to use
>microwaves.  The home model could be doing the same thing as the
>professional device, but using a lower energy flux that is under the
>limits of applicable regulations.  A non-contact heating wand would
>be an interesting tool; better than a small hair dryer.

These gadgets don't use microwaves (typical frequency 2500 MHz) but
radio waves (typical frequency 50 MHz), however, the heating effect
is similar, and does rely on the presence of water in the material.
They have been used in medicine for a long time, under the name of
diathermy, for treating things like joint and muscle pains.  I don't
know how effective they would be on materials that are essentially
"dry", such as paste.

Dr Barry Knight
Head of Conservation Research
The British Library
96 Euston Road
London NW1 2DB
+44 20 7412 7229
Fax: +44 20 7412 7658


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 26:46
                  Distributed: Sunday, April 21, 2013
                       Message Id: cdl-26-46-004
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