Pulsed microwave induced light, sound, and electrical discharge enhanced by a biopolymer

Intense flashes of light were observed in sodium bicarbonate and hydrogen peroxide solutions when they were exposed to pulsed microwave radiation, and the response was greatly enhanced by a microwave‐absorbing, biosynthesized polymer, diazoluminomelanin. A FPS‐7B radar transmitter, operating at 1.25 GHz provided pulses of 5.73 ± 0.09 μs in duration at 10.00 ± 0.03 pulses/s with 2.07 ± 0.08 MW forward power (mean ± standard deviation), induced the effect but only when the appropriate chemical interaction was present. This phenomenon involves acoustic wave generation, bubble formation, pulsed luminescence, ionized gas ejection, and electrical discharge. The use of pulsed microwave radiation to generate highly focused energy deposition opens up the possibility of a variety of biomedical applications, including targeting killing of microbes or eukaryotic cells. The full range of microwave intensities and frequencies that induce these effects has yet to be explored and, therefore, the health and safety implications of generating the phenomena in living tissues remain an open question. Bioelectromagnetics 20:216‐223,1999. Published 1999 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.