Numerical Techniques in Electromagnetics

THE FINITE-DIFFERENCE TIME-DOMAIN (FDTD) METHOD PART II

Nikolova 2004

9. Some excitation functions (sources) The problem of choosing the proper space-time dependence of the excitation g(x,y,z,t) requires special attention. Here, we confine our attention to the time-dependence of the sources and their discretization. Sinusoidal excitation n 2 t , n = 0,1, 2,3, sin( t ) = sin T

g n = sin n , n = 0,1, 2, Assuming that t = T / 32 16

g (t ) = e
Nikolova 2004

( t t0 )2

9. Some excitation functions (sources) cont. Gaussian pulse

g (t ) = e
1 0.9 0.8 0.7 0.6 0.5 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1 0 -1 0 1 2

( t t0 )2

t0 = 0

t0 = 2.5

t0 = 5

t
3 4 5 6

Nikolova 2004

f (t ) = e

16( t t0 ) 2

9. Some excitation functions (sources) cont. Gaussian pulse

g (t ) = e

( t t0 )2

g (t ) = e

( t 1.5) 2

g(t)

0.5 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1 0 0

=4 =9
0.5 1

= 16
1.5 2 2.5 3
4

Nikolova 2004

9. Some excitation functions (sources) cont.

g =e
n

t 2 ( n n0 )2

The discrete Gaussian excitation is controlled by two numerical constants: and b, where b denotes the half pulse width. Recommended b : b > 30 .
1 0.9 0.8 0.7 0.6 0.5 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1
Nikolova 2004

2b t truncation level
0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3

9. Some excitation functions (sources) cont. At the truncation level: | n n0 |= b Set truncation level at e 2
Note: n0 b

e t 2b2

e 2

t2

= A = (

/ b) 2

g =e
n

A( n n0 )2

The truncation level should be comparable with the precision of numbers. For single precision (6 significant digits), recommended value is = 4. This corresponds to truncation at exp(-16). For double precision (12 significant digits), = 5. The pulse width in terms of b is determined according to the desired width of the excitation frequency spectrum.
Nikolova 2004 6

9. Some excitation functions (sources) cont. The Fourier transform of the Gaussian pulse is a Gaussian function of frequency: 2 2 g ( f ) e f / We require that the spectral value at the highest frequency of interest is at 0.3 of the maximum: 2 e 2 f max / = 0.3
2 2 2 f max 2 f max t 2 = ln 0.3 A = = ln(10 / 3) b 2

ln(10 / 3) b= f max t
If we set f max t = t / Tmin
Nikolova 2004

32 ln(10 / 3) = 1/ 32 then b =
7

9. Some excitation functions (sources) cont. Typically, the spatial step h is first determined according to the finest detail of the structure. Then, t is computed such that c t = 1/ D h where D denotes the dimensionality of the problem (D=1,2,3). Often, t computed this way is much smaller than Tmin/32. Then, b is determined as
b=

ln(10 / 3) min h

Note that for good accuracy, there should be at least 32 h in one min. Often, however, the finest detail in a microwave structure is much smaller than min/2.
Nikolova 2004 8

9. Some excitation functions (sources) cont. Band-limited excitations (a) sine wave modulated with a Gaussian pulse

g (t ) = e ( t t0 )2 sin( t ) f 0 = 7.5 GHz f = 5 GHz

Nikolova 2004

9. Some excitation functions (sources) cont. Sine wave modulated with a Gaussian pulse, cont.

g (t ) = e ( t t0 )2 sin( t ) f 0 = 7.5 GHz f = 5 GHz

Nikolova 2004

10

9. Some excitation functions (sources) cont. (b) sine wave modulated by a Blackman-Harris window g (t ) = B (t )sin( t ),

B(t ) = a0 a1 cos ( w t ) + a2 cos ( 2 w t ) a3 cos ( 3 w t ) ,

w = / N ( N = 710)
a0 = 0.35875 a1 = 0.48829 a2 = 0.14128 a3 = 0.01168 N controls the bandwidth of the spectrum.

Nikolova 2004

11

10. Time-domain Maxwell equations for a dispersionfree medium The FDTD algorithm is based on the Maxwell curl equations

B(r, t ) E(r, t ) = + J m (r, t ) + J im (r, t ) t D(r, t ) H (r , t ) = + J e (r, t ) + J ie (r, t ) t

in dispersion-free isotropic medium

10. Time-domain Maxwell equations for a dispersionfree medium cont.

H(r, t ) E(r, t ) = + m H(r, t ) + J im (r, t ) t E(r, t ) H (r , t ) = + e E(r, t ) + J ie (r, t ) t In rectangular coordinates, the above is written as E z E y H x i +mHx = J mx t y z H y E x E z J i +mH y = my t x z E y E x H z i +mHz = J mz t x y
Nikolova 2004 13

10. Time-domain Maxwell equations for a dispersionfree medium cont.

Reduction to 2-D problems Consider a field and its sources, which do not depend on one of the spatial coordinates, e.g., the x coordinate. Maxwells equation then reduce to two decoupled systems of equations, each of which involves only three field components.
Nikolova 2004 14

10. Time-domain Maxwell equations for a dispersionfree medium cont.

=0 x

example: TE0m modes in a rectangular waveguide

E z E y H x i +mHx = J mx t y z H y E i + m H y = x J my t z E x H z i x +mHz = J mz b z t y y E x H z H y i + e Ex = J ex a t y z H x E z E y i H x i + e Ez = J ez + eEy = J ey t y Nikolova 2004 t z

15

10. Time-domain Maxwell equations for a dispersionfree medium cont. TEx modes E z E y H x i +mHx = J mx t y z TMx modes E x H z H y i + e Ex = J ex t y z H y E x i +mH y = J my t z E x H z i +mHz = J mz t y
Nikolova 2004

H x i J ey t z H x E z i + e Ez = J ez t y + eEy =

E y

16

10. Time-domain Maxwell equations for a dispersionfree medium cont. Important note: The field decomposition into TE and TM modes in 2-D problems is different from the 3-D TE and TM decomposition you know from waveguide theory! Consider the TEz and TMz modes in a waveguide and the TEz and TMz modes in a 2-D problem. (a) In 2-D problems the field is independent of z. (b) In a waveguide the field depends on z. (c) In 2-D problems the 2-D field has only 3 nonzero components (TEz: Ex,Ey,Hz; TMz: Hx,Hy,Ez). (d) In a waveguide the 3-D modal field has 5 nonzero components (TEz: Ez=0; TMz: Hz=0)
Nikolova 2004 17

10. Time-domain Maxwell equations for a dispersionfree medium cont. The 2-D TEz mode E y E x H z + mHz = t x y E H i x + e E x = z J ex t y E y H z i + eEy = J ey t x The 3-D TEz mode F = zF ( x, y , z , t )

E = F H + mH = F t Ez = 0 F F Ex = ; Ey = y x

H z 2 F 1 2 F H x 2 F +mHz = 2 2 2 +mHx = t z c t t xz H y 2 2 2 F F F +mH y = = 2 + 2 t yz x y Nikolova 2004

18

10. Time-domain Maxwell equations for a dispersionfree medium cont. The 2-D TMz mode H y H x E z i + e Ez = J ez t x y H E x +mHx = z t y H y E z +mH y = t x The 3-D TMz mode A = zA( x, y , z, t )

H = A E + eE = A t Hz = 0 A A ; Hy = Hx = y x

E x 2 A E z 2 A 1 2 A + e Ex = + e Ez = 2 2 2 t xz t z c t E y 2 A 2 2 A A + eEy = = 2 + 2 t yz x y Nikolova 2004

19

10. Time-domain Maxwell equations for a dispersionfree medium cont. Take as an example the TEz0m waveguide modes Ez = 0 Ex , H y , H z F F Ex = =0 ; Ey = This is a 2-D TMx mode! y x
H y 2 F +mH y = t yz H x 2 F +mHx = =0 t xz H z 2 F 1 2 F +mHz = 2 2 2 t z c t 2 F 2 F = 2 + 2 y x
Nikolova 2004

b a

PEC BC : E x = 0 port 1 port 2 y z 2-D TMx computational domain PEC BC : E x = 0

10. Time-domain Maxwell equations for a dispersionfree medium cont. There are no TMz0m waveguide modes! The boundary conditions

Az = 0 (no dependence on x), and x

make only the trivial solution possible: Az ( x, y , z, t ) = 0 Thus, the field is zero, too.
b
x

a
Nikolova 2004 21