THE FIT APPROACH ENHANCES EM SIMULATION CAPABILITY

RAPID improvements in computer technology have greatly facilitated the use of electromagnetic (EM) simulation in RF system design, while mar ket pressures have made this simulation essential, Smaller device size and spacing combined with higher operating frequencies have made the design process more difficult, since interference and cross-coupling b etween parts cannot be neglected, Conventional EM tools use either a t ime-domain (TD) or frequency-domain (FD) method, each of which offers relative strengths and weaknesses that must be evaluated when choosing a simulation tool, However, an approach termed the finite integration technique (FIT) combines the advantages of the FD and TD analysis met hods, This approach is used in the MAFIA (Maxwell's Equations by the F inite Integration Algorithm) software package distributed by AET Assoc iates (Cupertino, CA).