How EMI Shielding Protects Cell Phones

How EMI Shielding Protects Cell Phones

Electromagnetic interference (EMI) can affect any type of electronic device, including your cell phone. EMI is the reason your cell phone will garble conversations and drop calls, and, in extreme circumstances, it can lead to a loss of data and system failure. To function in this technology-filled world, your phone needs a solid defense against electromagnetism. In this guide, we’ll explain how electromagnetic interference works and how EMI shielding protects cell phones against unwanted interference.

What’s EMI?

Your electronic devices depend on the routing of electrons around circuits to operate. For routing to occur, the electrons need to be accelerated. Whenever charged particles like electrons are accelerated, electromagnetic fields are generated. “EMI” describes what happens when an electromagnetic field or another external source disrupts or adversely affects the normal functioning of an electronic circuit or device. There are national and international standards that regulate how much electromagnetic energy a device can emit. The easiest way to ensure compliance with these standards is to build devices with EMI shielding.

How Can I Protect My Cell Phone Against EMI?

Most smartphones are built with EMI shielding. EMI shielding protects cell phones by reducing the amount of electromagnetic waves coming from the phone and blocking incoming interference. This way, your phone is less likely to affect surrounding devices, and surrounding devices are less likely to affect your phone. The shielding isn’t applied to the entire phone. An array of digital chips inside the phone is shielded instead, which allows the phone to function normally while still receiving adequate protection. The shielding protects the parts of your phone that control wireless LAN, radio frequency, and Bluetooth. An overlooked benefit of EMI shielding is that it helps create space inside of the phone without compromising the device’s performance. While most modern smartphones come equipped with EMI shielding, older devices with worn-out or no EMI shielding materials at all might still be susceptible to electromagnetic interference.

Deep Coat specializes in EMI coating and shielding for a wide range of industries and devices. Connect with one of our team members to discuss how our innovative coating and shielding processes can help protect your devices.