Modular 3-D Simulation And Design: EM.CUBE™: 2013 Edition

EM.CUBE's universal framework provides the ideal environment for hybrid simulations of complex, multi-scale electromagnetic problems, where a single numerical technique often proves to be computationally inefficient or simply impractical. In such cases, one usually breaks up a large structure into a number of smaller manageable sub-structures with common length scales or similar physical characteristics. Each sub-structure can be analyzed in EM.CUBE using the most effective simulation engine. The simulation results from different sub-structures can then be interfaced with each other using a number of cross-module utilities such as Huygens surfaces and Huygens sources to arrive at the final solution.

The integration of EMAG's older products within EM.CUBE's unified and streamlined framework has been more of a necessity than a mere convenience. Over the past eighteen years, EMAG Technologies has fulfilled a large number of projects that required complex hybrid simulation tools for modeling multi-scale RF problems. Examples of these are co-site interference among tactical vehicular communication systems, adaptive networking in high multi-path urban environments, networks of unattended sensors with near-ground operation, antennas on engineered meta-material substrates or complex platform structures, and see-through wall imaging radar systems, to name a few. With the introduction of EM.CUBE 2013, we are bringing a totally new level of simulation capability to the desktops of user like you at a very low cost.  

Highlighted Models (click the links below for details on each):

• EM.Tempo (FDTD.module)
• EM,Picasso (Planar.module)
• EM.Terrano (Propagation module)
• EM.Illumina (Physical Optics module)
• EM.Libera (Metal3D.module)
• CAD.module

EM.Tempo (FDTD module) is a time domain FDTD simulator (with optional  hardware acceleration) for full-wave EM simulation of 3-D structures, circuits, and antennas.

EM.Tempo is the evolution of EMAG's former EMLOUNGE product, which was originally developed in 2005 for the U.S. Navy for modeling EMC/EMI and shielding effectiveness in electronic equipment. EMLOUNGE was later extended to handle complex 3-D antenna structures and mounting platforms. As EM.CUBE's fdtd.module, the tool can analyze a wide range of 3-D electromagnetic radiation, scattering and propagation problems. It also features an integrated SPICE-based circuit simulator, which together with the FDTD kernel can solve mixed circuit-EM modeling problems in a self-consistent manner.

New features for 2013 include:

• Advanced materials including Anisotropic, Debye, Drude, and Lorentz materials.
• Parallelized solver takes advantage of the new multi-core CPU architectures. The multi-threaded version of the engine runs several times faster than the previous serial version.
• GPU solver accelerated for NVIDIA graphical processing units (GPU's), running up to 40 times faster than our previous version

Mesh generator can discretize very complex 3D structures in an adaptive manner and provide a fine mesh only where it’s needed to accurately represent your model for an optimal combination of speed and precision. 

EM.Picasso (Planar module) is a planar structure simulator for modeling and design of printed antennas, planar microwave circuits, and layered periodic structures. 

In 2001, EMAG Technologies Inc. introduced its first software product EMPiCASSO, Printed Circuit Antenna System Simulator and Optimizer. It was originally developed for the U.S. Army for modeling and design of large planar phased arrays. The product has since been showcased every year in the International Microwave Symposium Exhibition. EMPiCASSO's core functionality transitioned to EM.CUBE's planar.module. As part of this transition, the new planar.module now boasts a powerful CAD modeler that can easily create and mesh very sophisticated, interconnected, trace geometries on multilayer substrate configurations.

New features for 2013 include:

• A new streamlined substrate manager for defining the multilayer stack-up hierarchy. It also provides convenient trace-bound work planes for insertion of metal and slot traces or embedded objects
• A new, robust mesh generator combines hybrid rectangular and triangular cells in arbitrary geometries to create an optimal surface mesh. Planar objects can now be overlapped without any restriction. The array objects are meshed much faster than before.  
• The new source types of Planar Module include short dipoles, imported Wire MoM solutions as collections of short dipole sources and Huygens sources. The new observables include near field sensors parallel to the principal planes and Huygens surfaces.
• EM.CUBE’s Planar Module now features a new solver called based on numerically constructed characteristic basis functions (NCCBF) that can accurately simulate large finite-sized arrays with incredible speed.

Other features:

• PEC and Conductive Sheet Traces, Slot (PMC) Layouts and Vertical Interconnects and Embedded Objects
• Unlimited Number of Substrate Layers and Trace Planes
• Full Periodic Structure Capability with Unit Cell Continuity
• Gap Sources on Lines and Vias (Coaxial Probe Feeds)
• Gap Arrays with Amplitude/Phase Distribution
• Periodic Gaps with Beam Scanning
• Multi-port or Coupled Port Definitions
• Plane Wave Excitation
• RLC Lumped Elements on Lines and Vias
• Optimized Automatic Mesh with User-Defined Edge Cells
• Regular Triangular and Maximally Rectangular Mesh
• Variable Mesh Resolution Based on Traces
• 2.5-D Mixed Potential Integral Equation (MPIE) Formulation of Planar Structures
• 2.5-D Spectral Domain Formulation of Periodic Layered Structures
• Accurate Scattering Parameter Extraction Using Prony's Method
• Plane Wave Excitation with Arbitrary Angles of Incidence
• A Variety of Matrix Solvers Including LU, BiCG and GMRES
• Uniform and Fast Adaptive Frequency Sweep
• Uniform and Fast Adaptive Angular Sweep for Plane Waves
• Polarization Sweep for Generation of Reflection and Transmission Coefficient Macromodels
• Current Distribution Intensity Plots
• Far Field Radiation Patterns: 3-D Pattern Visualization and 2-D Cartesian and Polar Graphs
• 3-D Array Factor Augmentation of Radiation Patterns
• Far Field Radiation Patterns of Finite-Sized Periodic Arrays
• Reflection and Transmission Coefficients of Periodic Structures
• Port Characteristics: S/Y/Z Parameters and Smith Chart

EM.Terrano (Propagation module) features an asymptotic SBR simulator for physics-based, site specific modeling of radio wave propagation.

EMAG's popular EMTerrano product, first introduced in 2003, reemerged as EM.CUBE's propagation.module. EMTerrano was originally developed for the U.S. Army to model communication system connectivity in urban battlefield environments. Its simulation engine was extensively validated by the U.S. Army in a number of real-world urban scenarios, and its performance surpassed all the competition tools by large margins. In its reincarnation as propagation.module, the older product is now equipped with a versatile and dynamic scene generator capable of treating arbitrary building geometries and interacts with EM.CUBE's full-wave analysis modules.

New features for 2013 include:

• New full 3D engine, more than 10x faster than old engine.
• Multilayer terrain capability and multilayer walls for both outdoor and indoor propagation.
• Statistical analysis of a propagation scene after running a frequency or parametric sweep.
• Automated generation of Okamura-Hata-like compact channel models for a given scene.
• Individual ray analysis from transmitter to receiver, and extensive definition of transmitter and receiver chain parameters for link budget analysis and connectivity maps.

EM.Illumina Physical Optics.module is a 3-D structure simulator for modeling metal structures. Its full-wave Method of Moments (MoM) simulation engine analyzes wire structures or wire-frame models of metallic surfaces and volumes with utmost modeling accuracy.

New for EM.Illumina 2013:

Huygens blocks. EM.Picasso, EM.Tempo and EM.Libera's Wire MoM engine all can run "Huygens Sweeps" of a structure illuminated by a plane wave source. Upon completion, they generate macromodels for the equivalent surface electric and magnetic currents on a specified Huygens box enclosing the full-wave structure as functions of the incidence angles. When the rays emanating from an excitation source hit these Huygens surfaces, they excite surface electric and magnetic currents, which reradiate into the free space. Using the new Huygens blocks, you can approximately model dielectric blocks or complex non-metallic structures in the PO module.

Features include:

• Metal (PEC) solids and surfaces in free space
• PMC and impedance surfaces in free space
• Import STL CAD files as native polymesh structures
• Huygens blocks imported from full-wave modules
• Short dipoles
• Import previously generated wire mesh solution as collection of short dipoles
• Plane wave excitation with linear and circular polarizations
• Multi-ray excitation capability (ray data imported from Propagation Module or external files)
• Huygens sources imported from PO or other modules with abritrary rotation and array configuration
• Regular or structured surface triangular wire-frame mesh
• Physical Optics solution of metal scatterers and impedance surfaces
• Iterative PO for fast simulation of multiple shadowing effects and multi-bounce reflections
• Calculation of near fields, far fields and scattering cross section (bi-static and mono-static RCS)
• Frequency and angular sweeps with data animation
• Parametric sweep with variable object properties or source parameters
• Multi-variable and multi-goal optimization of structure
• Current distributions on metallic surfaces
• Near field intensity plots (vectorial - amplitude & phase)
• Huygens surface data generation for use in PO or other EM.CUBE modules
• Far field radiation patterns: 3-D pattern visualization and 2-D Cartesian and polar graphs
• Bi-static and monostatic radar cross section: 3-D visualization and 2-D graphs
• Custom output parameters defined as mathematical expressions of standard outputs

Metal3D.module is a 3-D structure simulator for modeling metal structures. Its full-wave Method of Moments (MoM) simulation engine analyzes wire structures or wire-frame models of metallic surfaces and volumes with utmost modeling accuracy.

New features for 2013 include:

Huygens blocks: EM.Picasso, EM.Tempo and EM.Libera's Wire MoM engine all can run "Huygens Sweeps" of a structure illuminated by a plane wave source. Upon completion, they generate macromodels for the equivalent surface electric and magnetic currents on a specified Huygens box enclosing the full-wave structure as functions of the incidence angles. A Huygens block in EM.Libera's Wire MoM Module is an array configuration of such Huygens surfaces with their associated surface current macromodels. When the rays emanating from an excitation source hit these Huygens surfaces, they excite surface electric and magnetic currents, which reradiate into the free space.

Features include:

• Analysis of metallic wires and curve objects and wireframe models of solids and surfaces
• Gap Sources and Gap Arrays with Amplitude/Phase Distribution
• Multi-port or Coupled Port Definitions
• Plane Wave Excitation
• RLC Lumped Elements on Wires
• Regular and Structured Surface Triangular Wireframe Grids
• Automatic Connection of Lines to Surfaces and Solids
• 3-D Pocklington Integral Equation Formulation of Wire Structures
• Infinite Material Half-Space Green's Functions for Calculation of Far Fields in Presence of a Lossy Ground
• Uniform and Fast Adaptive Frequency Sweep
• Far Field Radiation Patterns: 3-D Pattern Visualization and 2-D Cartesian and Polar Graphs
• 3-D Array Factor Augmentation of Radiation Patterns
• Port Characteristics: S/Y/Z Parameters and Smith Chart

CAD.module is an easy-to-use 3D modeler for generation, import and export of complex large-scale structures and scenes with micro-scale details.

New features for 2013 include:

• Solids and surfaces can be discretized and converted to polymesh objects with triangular cells.
• Curves can be discretized and converted to polylines using Polygonize tool.
• Insert or delete nodes in nodal objects.
• The mesh data can be exported to mesh files, and you import mesh files using surface and solid generator tools.
• Draw flexible Polystrip and Polyline objects linked to the vertices of other objects.

All parameters can be expressions based on variables, which can then be used in parameters sweeps and optimizations. 

EM.CUBE's streamlined and intuitive user interface places an extensive array of CAD, simulation and visualization tools at your fingertips. The common interface environment allows you to migrate easily and intuitively among different modules or move various parts of structures and scenes back and forth across these modules.

Minimum System Requirements

• Windows 2000/XP 32bit
• Intel Pentium 4 1GHz
• 512MB of RAM with 60MB of disk space
• SVGA Display (1024 x 768)
• OpenGL compliant video card

These are the minimum requirements for EM.CUBE to run efficiently. If you have any questions regarding the ability of your system to run EM.CUBE, please contact us.

Click Here To Download:
•Product Brochure: EM.CUBE Modular 3-D Simulation And Design Environment
•EM.CUBE Demo Download And Installation Instructions