ProtoGuide: a PEMF frequency app built on published clinical studies

Every PEMF frequency chart gives you a number. Almost none tell you where it came from. ProtoGuide shows you what researchers actually used.

Open ProtoGuide

Free. Runs in your browser, nothing to install, no signup. Published by Sentient Light.

BRAIN & NERVOUS SYSTEM

Insomnia

2 Hz

29:50

REMAINING

❚❚ ♡

DURATION − 30 min +

10 20 30 40 50 60

INTENSITY

18

2 Hz · 2 mT (20 gauss) · 30 min · nightly at bedtime · 4 weeks

Liao J et al. 2023, Psychiatry Investig

What ProtoGuide is, and what it isn't

ProtoGuide is a frequency app. You choose a condition, the app shows you the study-sourced parameters on its card, and you run the session on your own device while it handles the timing.

It isn't a recommendation. The settings shown are what researchers used, not what is appropriate for you. Whether those parameters suit your situation is a clinical judgment, not a lookup.

It also isn't a literature review of everything published on PEMF for that condition.

Think of it as an alternative to the unsourced frequency chart: the parameters researchers used, with the studies attached.

What each condition shows you

BRAIN & NERVOUS SYSTEM

Insomnia

2 Hz

OUTCOME

About 7 in 10 people using PEMF no longer had significant insomnia after four weeks — roughly double the sham group.

NUTRITION SUPPORT

Ashwagandha · Chamomile · Tryptophan · Vitamin D

CLINICAL REFERENCES

Liao J et al. 2023 · Pelka RB et al. 2001

SAFETY NOTES

Snoring or breathing pauses in sleep can mean sleep apnoea — needs a doctor first.

A complete condition card, top to bottom.

Study parameters

Frequency, intensity, session length, schedule, and applicator placement. If the study didn't report one, the card says so.

Study findings and limitations

What was reported, sample size, participant characteristics, and whether a sham control was used.

Proposed mechanism

How researchers propose PEMF may interact with the condition.

Nutrition research

Published nutrition research relevant to the condition, kept separate from the PEMF parameters.

Clinical sources

Two linked sources, so you can read the underlying research yourself.

Safety notes

Condition-specific precautions and red-flag symptoms that warrant medical evaluation.

How the evidence was selected

Each condition was checked against the published clinical literature. Not every study we found qualified.

Published PEMF studies vary substantially in size and design. Some are small, unblinded, or lack a sham control. A citation is a starting point, not a settled answer.

What qualified

Human studies of body-applied, low-frequency PEMF that reported their parameters. Anything unreported is marked as not reported, never estimated.

What was excluded

Transcranial magnetic stimulation, pulsed radiofrequency, shortwave diathermy, shockwave, laser, ultrasound, and static magnets. Different modalities — their parameters aren't interchangeable with PEMF.

How sources were chosen

Parameters come from studies that reported a benefit, so the sources are not a balanced account of the literature. Studies with null results may exist for the same condition.

More than the library

You're not limited to the condition library. Enter your own frequency as a single value or a sweep between two, set the duration and intensity, and run it.

If you already use your own protocol or manufacturer-supplied settings, you can enter those as a custom session. These settings come from you, not from a study cited by ProtoGuide.

Custom frequencies

Any single frequency, or a sweep between two.

Adjustable mid-session

Change duration and intensity while it runs.

Saved sessions

Keep the sessions you return to.

Playlists

Sequence one session after another.

Open ProtoGuide

Custom session

Set your own parameters

Frequency mode

Single

Sweep

Frequency (Hz)

e.g. 15

Device range: 2–10,000 Hz

Duration (minutes)

e.g. 30

1–180 minutes

Intensity 50 / 100

Start session

Add to playlist

Questions

Who shouldn't use PEMF?

PEMF is not appropriate for everyone. Standard precautions apply to anyone with an implanted electronic device such as a pacemaker or defibrillator, anyone who is pregnant, and anyone with active bleeding or a bleeding disorder.

Your device manufacturer's documentation lists the contraindications for your specific hardware, and those take precedence. Each condition in ProtoGuide also carries its own safety notes, including symptoms that warrant medical evaluation rather than a session.

Does it work with my device?

ProtoGuide doesn't connect to hardware. If your device can reproduce the parameters shown on a card, you can use those settings while ProtoGuide runs the session timer.

Is ProtoGuide on the App Store or Google Play?

No. ProtoGuide runs in your browser, so there's nothing to download or install. Open it on a phone, tablet, or computer and it works the same way on each.

The study intensity doesn't match my device's settings.

Studies report field intensity in units like millitesla or gauss, while devices differ in how their controls represent it. Check your device documentation to see whether it can reach the field strength the study used.

Why isn't my condition listed?

Some conditions have no published PEMF research that meets ProtoGuide's criteria. The library is updated as more studies are reviewed.

Is this medical advice?

No. ProtoGuide shows parameters reported in published studies. Whether they're appropriate for an individual is a question for a qualified healthcare professional.

How is it maintained?

Citations are reviewed as the library is maintained. If a source is retracted, or a condition needs revision in light of newer evidence, it's updated or removed.

Citing and linking to ProtoGuide

ProtoGuide is free to reference. If you write about PEMF, teach it, or point patients toward it, link to this page rather than the app — the app URL isn't indexed and may change.

Attribution

ProtoGuide, Sentient Light.
https://www.sentientlight.com/protoguide

For press

ProtoGuide is a free browser-based PEMF frequency app that shows the parameters published clinical studies used, with the sources cited alongside the settings. Published by Sentient Light.

Screenshots and further detail on request: info@sentientlight.com

About Sentient Light

ProtoGuide is published by Sentient Light, a PEMF device manufacturer in Hayden, Idaho. The company was founded by Larry Langdon, an electrical engineer with more than thirty years in hardware, embedded systems, and instrumentation, including work at Boeing, National Semiconductor, Intel, and Microsoft. He designed the Sentient Element PEMF system.

Research involving Sentient Light is subject to the same inclusion criteria as other sources, and that involvement is disclosed on the relevant card. Its inclusion is not presented as evidence that Sentient Light devices are effective.

Open ProtoGuide

ProtoGuide is a frequency app. The settings shown are the parameters used in the published studies cited on each card; they are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease or condition. Information is educational only and is not medical advice. Consult a qualified healthcare professional for medical concerns.

Last updated: September 2026