Chapter 4: Boundary Conditions: Introduction To ANSYS HFSS For Antenna Design

Chapter 4: Boundary Conditions
14. 0 Release
Introduction to ANSYS HFSS
for Antenna Design
Describing the Model
• There are two ways to describe the geometry in HFSS:
– Drawing Objects
• Objects are used to define the material properties applied to a specific volume.
• They provide the pictorial representation of the device.
• HFSS meshes these objects to determine the volumetric E-Field used to compute the devices performance.
• Boundary conditions between objects are implicitly defined when two objects touch.
• Drawing in HFSS is handled more thoroughly in the 3D Modeler Lecture
– Defining Boundary Conditions
• Boundary conditions simplify the model by replacing geometrical features with a surface approximation.
• The surface approximation defines how the E-field behaves along a surface.
• The field solution terminates on the boundary’s surface simplifying the solution process
Drawing Objects Defining Boundary Conditions
Users need to understand the boundary

condition’s approximation to make sure
they are properly used!
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2012 ANSYS, Inc. February 1, 2012 Release 14.0
February 23, 2009
© 2009 ANSYS, Inc. All rights reserved. Inventory #002593
Assigning Boundary Conditions
• Boundary conditions are defined on sheets or faces of objects
– Select the sheet or object face
– Select the menu item HFSS > Boundaries > Assign > “Boundary Name”
• Alternatively:
• Right click in the 3D Modeler Window and select Assign Boundaries > “Boundary Name” from the pop-up window
• Right click the Boundaries Branch of Project Manager Tree and select Assign > “Boundary Name” from the pop-
up window
– Fill in the Boundary’s Dialog Window
1. Select the face.

3. Fill in the Dialog Window
2. Choose Boundary Condition
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February 23, 2009
Perfect E and Perfect H Boundaries
• Perfect E is perfect electrical conductor (PEC)
– Forces E-field perpendicular to surface
– Represents metal surfaces, ground planes, ideal cavity walls, etc.
– Infinite ground plane option simulates effects of infinite ground plane in post-processing radiated fields
• Perfect H is perfect magnetic conductor (PMC)

– Forces H-field perpendicular to surface and E-field tangential
– Does not exist in real world
– Useful boundary constraint for electromagnetic models
– Represents openings in metal surfaces, etc.
E-field Perpendicular to surface
E-field Parallel to surface
Perfect E Boundary Perfect H Boundary
When you define a solid object as a

‘perf_conductor,’ a Perfect E boundary
condition is applied to its exterior surfaces.
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February 23, 2009
Background or Outer Surface
• How the Background Affects a Structure
– The background is a hidden region that is automatically defined by HFSS. The background surrounds the geometric
model and fills any space that is not occupied by an object. Any object surface that touches the background is
automatically defined to be a Perfect E boundary and given the boundary name outer. You can think of your structure
as being encased with a thin, perfect conductor.
– If it is necessary, you can change a surface that is exposed to the background to have properties that are different from
outer:
• To model losses in a surface, you can redefine the surface to be either a Finite Conductivity or Impedance
boundary.
• To model a surface to allow waves to radiate infinitely far into space, redefine the surface to be radiation
boundary.
– The background can affect how you make material assignments. For example, if you are modeling a simple air-filled
rectangular waveguide, you can create a single object in the shape of the waveguide and define it to have the
characteristics of air. The surface of the waveguide is automatically assumed to be a perfect conductor and given the
boundary condition outer, or you can change it to a lossy conductor.
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February 23, 2009
Radiation Boundary
• Mimics continued propagation beyond boundary plane
– Absorption achieved via 2nd order radiation boundary
– Absorbs best when incident energy flow is normal to surface
– Distance from radiating structure
– Place at least /4 from strongly radiating structure
– Place at least /10 from weakly radiating structure
– Must be concave to all incident fields from within modeled space
Boundary is /4 away from

horn aperture in all directions
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February 23, 2009
Radiation Boundary:
Incidence Angle Dependency
Radiation boundary
functions well for incident
angles less than 25°-30° Radiation Boundary
Radiation Boundary
Poor absorption of radiation
boundary affects radiation pattern
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February 23, 2009
Radiation Boundary’s Location
• Radiation Boundary separation distance
– Example probe-fed circular patch
– Varied distance between absorbing boundary condition (ABC) and antenna
• λ /20, λ /10, λ /8, λ /4, λ /2, 3 λ /4, λ
– Examined impact on return loss and gain
0.2 dB
variation
/4 and  cases

within 13 MHz
of each other
(0.1%)
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February 23, 2009
Perfectly Matched Layer (PML)
• Perfectly Matched Layer
– Fictitious lossy anisotropic material which fully absorbs electromagnetic fields
– Two types of PML applications
• “PML objects accept free radiation” if PML terminates free space
• “PML objects continue guided waves” if PML terminates transmission line
– Guidelines for assigning PML boundaries
• Use PML setup wizard for most cases
• Manually create a PML when base object is curved or inhomogeneous
– Parameters to Define:
• Define PML Thickness
• Specify Minimum Frequency (From Sweep)
• Specify Minimum Distance from Antenna to PML (Measure in Model)
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February 23, 2009
PML Setup Wizard
• PML Setup Wizard 1
– Helps create objects with appropriate material properties
• PML Inputs
– Uniform Layer Thickness
• Thickness of PML Object Created (recommended > λ/3)
– Minimum Frequency
• Minimum frequency that PML will be absorbing
– Minimum Radiating Distance
• Distance from radiating object to PML Object (recommended > λ/8)
Minimum Radiating Distance 2

PML Object
Air Box
Uniform Layer
Thickness
PML Corner Radiating Element

Object
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February 23, 2009
PML Incidence Angle Dependency
PML
PML
Blue Trace is with

thicker PML
PML functions well for

incident angles less
than 65°-70° Better absorption leads to better
consistency in the patterns
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February 23, 2009
PML’s Location
• PML separation Distance
– Example probe-fed circular patch
– Varied distance between PML and antenna
• λ/20, λ /10, λ /8, λ /4, λ /2, 3λ /4
– Examined impact on return loss and gain
/8 and 3/4 cases

within 28 MHz of
each other (0.3%)
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February 23, 2009
Hybrid Finite Element – Integral Equations
FE-BI
Finite Element Method

• HFSS
• Efficiently handles complex
material and geometries
• Hybrid Finite Element - Integral Equations

• FE-BI
• IE-Regions
• Hybrid method invoked inside of HFSS Design using IE-
Regions or FE-BI boundary conditions
Integral Equations • Hybrid method takes advantage of features from both
• HFSS-IE methods to allow for more efficient simulations
• Efficient solution
technique for open
radiating and scattering of
metallic objects IE-Regions
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February 23, 2009
Finite Element – Boundary Integral
• Mesh truncation of infinite free space
into a finite computational domain Fields at outer
– Alternative to Radiation or PML surface
• Hybrid solution of FEM and IE
– IE solution on outer faces FEM Solution IE Solution
– FEM solution inside of volume in Volume on Outer Surface
• FE-BI Advantages
– Arbitrary shaped boundary
Iterate
• Conformal and discontinuous to minimize
solution volume
– Reflection-less boundary condition
• High accuracy for radiating and scattering
problems FE-BI
– No theoretical minimum distance from radiator
• Reduce simulation volume and simplify problem
setup
Free space Arbitrary shape

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February 23, 2009
Finite Element–Boundary Integral (FE-BI)
• No theoretical minimum distance from radiator
• Advantage over ABC
• Easy setup for broadband frequency sweeps
– Reflectionless boundary condition Integral
• Ability to absorb incident fields is not dependent on the incident angle
Equation
• Highly advantageous over ABC boundary condition
Solved
Surface
– Arbitrary shaped boundary
• Outward facing normals can intersect
• Can contain separated domains FEM
• Conformal boundary can eliminate air volume required when Solved
using PMLs or ABCs
Volume
– FE-BI comes with a computational cost
• Ability to create Airbox with smaller volume than ABC or PML
can significantly offset this cost
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February 23, 2009
Finite Element-Boundary Integral:
Boundary Condition Setup
• FE-BI Boundary Condition
– Boundary condition is enabled with HFSS-IE
– Setup is similar to ABC boundary condition
– Enabled by selecting “Model exterior as HFSS-IE domain”
– Radiation surface must enclose entire geometry
– 1 infinite ground plane allowed
– Direct vs. Iterative Matrix Solver
– Direct Matrix Solver
• Preferred method with FE-BI
• Quickest solution
– Iterative solver
• Uses the least amount of RAM
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February 23, 2009
FEBI Incident Angle Dependency
FEBI Hybridization FEBI Hybridization
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February 23, 2009
Distance from Radiator
• Peak gain vs. Airbox sizing
– ABC needs at least λ/4 spacing from antenna element to yield accurate far field results
– PML and FE-BI accurately predicts gain, even as close as λ/30
Distance From
Antenna
λ/30 λ/2
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February 23, 2009
FE-BI Distance From Radiator:
Effect on Simulation Time
• Simulation Time
– Dependent on spacing from the radiator
• The number of iterations required between the FEM and IE domain will increase as the spacing between the
radiator and boundary conditions decreases
– A spacing of λ/10 or larger will yield the least number of iterations and minimum simulation time
Distance
λ/10 λ/4
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February 23, 2009
Broadband Antenna
• Airbox at any distance gives the same result
– Broadband antenna setup is simple with FE-BI
• Airbox at a distance of 2mm
– ~λ/100 @ 2 GHz
– ~λ/10 @ 18 GHz
• Airbox at a distance of 7.5mm
– ~λ/20 @ 2 GHz
– ~λ/2 @ 18 GHz
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February 23, 2009
IE-Regions
• IE-Regions
– In a hybrid FEM-IE solution, IE Regions allow uniform regions of free space or dielectric to be removed from the FEM
solution
• Metal objects can be solved directly with an IE solution applied to surface
– Removes need for air box to surround metal objects
• Dielectric regions can be replaced with an IE Region on the boundary of uniform dielectric material
– Solution inside of dielectric is solved using IE
FEM Only Solution Hybrid FEM-IE Solution
IE Region
Surface current on
metal block
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2012 ANSYS, Inc. February 1, 2012
FE-BI Release 14.0
February 23, 2009
Radiating Boundary Conditions Summary:
ABC, PML, FE-BI
• Radiation Boundary Summary
– PMLs are the recommended absorbing boundary condition for the highest accuracy
– FE-BI is recommended when large homogeneous electrical volumes can be removed via a conformal air volume
– For quicker answers, a Radiation boundary condition can be used
• More accurate answers with Radiation BC can be obtained by changing the integration surface
Boundary Computation Minimum Distance Shape Setup

Condition Resources from Radiator Complexity
ABC Low λ/4 Concave only Easy
PML Middle λ/8 Planar and concave Moderate

only (rectangular box)
FE-BI* Highest for No Limit. Arbitrary Easy
electrically Recommended to be
small designs. λ/8.
Lowest for
electrically
large designs.
*Requires HFSS-IE License Feature

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February 23, 2009
Model / Mesh Simplification
• Surface Loss Modeling
– All methods utilize an equivalent surface impedance applied to the field as it travels across the surface
  
E tan  Z s (n H tan )
Finite Conductivity Impedance

1 j
Zs  Zs specified as /sq

t t >> 
2


*Loss assumes current penetrates 1 skin depth
*Used implicitly for good conducting objects that
are not solved inside
Layered Impedance Lumped RLC

500  in N icke l 500  in G old
Parallel RLC Circuit

0.7m il C o pper
Zs,Au Zs,Ni Zs,Cu

LAu LNi LCu
*Models a stack up of thin materials as TL
Zs,input
*Works with metals and dielectrics
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February 23, 2009
Trace Thickness Effects on Planar Antenna
• Conducting traces often modeled as 2D objects for electromagnetic simulations
– More computationally efficient since fewer meshing surfaces required
– Good approximation for many structures operating in skin depth regime
Patch antenna modeled

with 2D sheet
Patch antenna modeled Frequency response of both

with 3D object models
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February 23, 2009
Symmetry Boundary
• Symmetry Boundary
– Exploit a device’s electromagnetic symmetry to reduce the simulation’s size
– Two options available:
– Perfect E: Electric field must be perpendicular to surface
– Perfect H: Electric field must be tangential to surface
• Impedance Multiplier:
– Corrects the Characteristic Impedance Calculation
• Symmetry H adds a factor 0.5 (Sym H gets the Half)
• Symmetry E adds a factor 2
• Multiple symmetry boundaries: multiply the factors (SymE & SymH has a factor of 1)
• Rectangular Waveguide Example:

Full Model E Symmetry Model H Symmetry Model
TE10
TE20
TE20 Mode is
NOT Symmetric
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February 23, 2009
Master/Slave Boundaries
Unit Cell Model
of Waveguide Array
• Master/Slave Boundaries
– Used to model unit cell of periodic structure
– Master and slave boundaries are always paired U-axis
• Fields on master surface are mapped to slave surface with a phase shift enforcing a
periodicity in the fields.
– Constraints V-axis
• Master and slave surfaces must be identical in shape and size Slave
• Coordinate systems must be created to identify point-to-point Boundary
correspondence Master
Boundary
WG Port
(bottom)
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February 23, 2009
Screening Impedance Boundary
• Screening Impedance Boundary
– Used to efficiently represent periodic screens or grids with impedance boundary condition Wave Port
• Can be anisotropic (different values in x and y directions)
• Can be frequency-dependent
– Periodic grid characterized by unit cell
• Dynamic link support to import impedance values from unit cell
• Includes effects of polarization Perfect H
– Parameters
• Resistance and reactance (/square)
Perfect E
Perfect E
• Coordinate system if anisotropic
• HFSS design for dynamic link
Perfect H
Drawing Object
Wave Port
Boundary Condition
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February 23, 2009
Summary
• Boundaries are another technique used to describe a geometry
– They are often used to:
• Reduce the solution’s volume
• Simplify the meshing process
• Common uses of boundary conditions include
– Truncating infinite space
• Radiation
• PML (Perfectly Match Layer)
• FEBI (Finite Element Boundary Integral) Method
• Undefined Volumes being treated as Perfect E
– Simply solution for difficult area
• Finite Conductivity (used by default on good conductors)
• Layered Impedance
• Impedance
• LumpedRLC
• Screening
– Reducing the simulation domain
• Symmetry
• Master / Slave
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February 23, 2009

Chapter 4: Boundary Conditions: Introduction To ANSYS HFSS For Antenna Design

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Chapter 4: Boundary Conditions: Introduction To ANSYS HFSS For Antenna Design

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Chapter 4: Boundary Conditions

Drawing Objects Defining Boundary Conditions

Users need to understand the boundary

1. Select the face.

2. Choose Boundary Condition

• Perfect H is perfect magnetic conductor (PMC)

E-field Perpendicular to surface

E-field Parallel to surface

Perfect E Boundary Perfect H Boundary

When you define a solid object as a

Boundary is /4 away from

/4 and  cases

Minimum Radiating Distance 2

PML Corner Radiating Element

Blue Trace is with

PML functions well for

/8 and 3/4 cases

Finite Element Method

• Hybrid Finite Element - Integral Equations

Free space Arbitrary shape

FEM Only Solution Hybrid FEM-IE Solution

Boundary Computation Minimum Distance Shape Setup

PML Middle λ/8 Planar and concave Moderate

*Requires HFSS-IE License Feature

Finite Conductivity Impedance

Layered Impedance Lumped RLC

Parallel RLC Circuit

Zs,Au Zs,Ni Zs,Cu

Patch antenna modeled

Patch antenna modeled Frequency response of both

• Rectangular Waveguide Example:

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