Project

RF, Digital Radio and Metamaterial Fundamentals

Project

3D Simulation and Antennas

Overview

Work in assigned project groups.

The objective of this project is to do 3D simulation of waveguide and antennas.

NOTE: Use the Project Report Template and keep answers to questions on consecutive sheets of paper with all plots at the end.

IN NO CASE may code or files be exchanged between students, and each student must answer the questions themselves and do their own plots, NO COPYING of any sort! Nevertheless, students are encouraged to collaborate in the lab session.

Part 1: 3D simulation of waveguide

In this part, we simulate a waveguide structures using HFSS software

First, construct a WR90 waveguide and measure its S-parameters and cutoff frequency

Log into a linux termnal
Run Applications::ElecEngineering::AnsysHFSS
Then in HFSS run MenuBar::Project::InsertHFSSdesign as illustrated below

Note: use MenuBar::View::ProjectManager if the project manager disappears on the left
MenuBar::HFSS::SolutionType::Modal and NetworkAnalysis
MenuBar::Modeler::Units select mm
Next draw the waveguide as a box: MenuBar::Draw::Box And at the bottom of the screen enter x=0 y=0 z=0 mm, (yellow arrows below) and then type "enter "or "carriage return" then type dx=100 dy=22.9 dz=10.2 mm, and then type "enter "or "carriage return"

Alterntively, click the DrawBox tool icon (yellow arrow below), draw any box, click the "createBox" item (red arrow below), and edit the properties (blue arrow below) to set the Position=(0,0,0) and dimensions dx=100 dy=22.9 dz=10.2 mm as given above.
Press the "fitAll" toolbar item (orange arrow below) to view the object.

To refit the view, use MenuBar::View::FitAll::AllViews
Select the waveguide box using MenuBar::Edit::Select::Object

then right-click the waveguide and AssignMaterial air (this sets the entire volume of the box to be air)

MenuBar::Edit::Select::Faces then right-click the long waveguide top face,

then select the box and the top face will hilight, then right-click::nextBehind to get the bottom plate,
then right-click assignBoundary Perfect-E
and repeat this for the long top face.
In the same fashion assign the two long sidewalls as Perfect-E boundaries.

Right-click the front face, and AssignExcitation::WavePort,

in the popup: set name=input1, numberofmodes=1,
click on the "integration lines=none" and select newline
then click on the integration line field and select newline,
and draw a line (yellow circle below) from the center bottom of the port to the center top of the new port as in the example below,
click next, do not renormalize, and finish.

Repeat this for the second port at the far end of the waveguide, naming it input2

Highlight the excitation ports in the ProjectManger pane (blue arrow below)

The toolbar icons can be used to move the view (orange arrows above)

Next, set up the analysis

MenuBar::HFSS::AnalysisSetup::AddSolutionSetup
select the General tab and set

SolutionFrequency 12 GHz, leaving other defaults,
click OK

If the project manager is invisible (blue arrows below), use MenuBar::View::ProjectManager
Then in the projectManager pane at the left of the window

Right-click the Analysis::Setup1 item in projectManager under your project, and select AddFrequencySweep

Setting

SweepType: Discrete
Start: 6.0 GHz
End: 12.0 GHz
25 steps

Your analysis and sweep should appear in the ProjectManager pane (blue arrow below), where the sweep properties should appear when the Sweep item is highlighted

Save your work, MenuBar::File::Save
MenuBar::HFSS::ValidationCheck and Everything should check OK
MenuBar::HFSS::AnalyzeAll (red arrow above) to run the simulation (the exclamation point in menubar)
Click ShowProgress and showMessagesat the bottom of the window
Watch for any errors at the bottom message areas (red arrows below)

Fig 001

To see the results, run right-click Results (red circle below) select CreateModalSolutionDataReport::RectangularPlot (red arrows below)
In the popup, select Sparameters::s21::dB (blue arrows below) and click newReport (blue circle below)

You should see your s21 plot as below

Fig 002

To plot the results you may need to click a minimize icon to show plots/reports hidden behind the top plot/report
Adjust your plot to go from -50 to 10 dB by double-clicking the y axis, and double click the lines and make the width=3
Make sure that the legend does not obscure any portion of your plotted curves (move it as above).
Based on the dimensions of the waveguide, what size waveguide is this (i.e., wr22,wr51,etc? Hint http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waveguide_(electromagnetism)
What is the theoretical cutoff frequency of the lowest-order mode for the waveguide?
At what frequency do you observe that S21 is approximately 14 dB below its maximum value?

Save your work before exiting

Part 2: 3D simulation of antenna

In this part, simulations are performed on a conical monopole antenna using HFSS software.

Although antenna design is not a focus of the course, this simple demo illustrates antenna design capability of the software

Load and run the antenna example as follows:

Run HFSS from the linux window menu using Mosaic::Engineering::Electrical::HFSS
If this is the first time you run the software, make a note of the location of the default directory that will be created for your projects
Store all projects in this directory
Download the file mwMetaProj8a.aedt (you may need to hold down the shift key while you click on the link),

for older versions of HFSS download mwMetaProj8a.hfss

Move the file into the HFSS directory
Load the project from within HFSS using MenuBar::File::Open (red circle below)
Open the second design included in the downloaded project, "conicalMonopole1" (yellow arrow below)

Fig 002

Rerun the simulation as before (yellow circle above)

Double click the RadEfield to plot the radiation pattern (see two blue arrows above), save a snapshot of it for your report.

Double click the ConicalSmithS11 to Plot the Smith chart of the antenna input impedance (see two red arrows above), save a snapshot of it for your report.

Save your work before exiting

Report Data

============================ WARNING !! ====================================
**** WARNING **** YOU MUST USE THE PROJECT REPORT TEMPLATE Below:

See the Project Report Template at bottom of this page
A well-written report/paper is EXPECTED
STRONGLY RECOMMEND that you read IEEE authorship series: How to Write for Technical Periodicals & Conferences
Clearly describe everything, including:

variables in block diagrams
variables in formulas
units of variables kHz, pF, nH, m, s,
all traces on plots
all curves on plots
all results in any tables

Minimum required data content for your report and demos

Required theory/formulas numbered as below:

None for this project

Required figures:

Any illegible plots receive zero credit (must be able to read all numbers, axes, labels, curves, grids, titles, legends)
All plots must of professional quality as in IEEE papers

LEGIBLE HFSS 3D plot of waveguide similar to right panel of Fig 001, showing at least one waveport with appropriate caption.
LEGIBLE HFSS plot of waveguide S21 dB similar to upper right panel of Fig 001
LEGIBLE HFSS 3D plot of antenna similar to bottom right panel of Fig 002
LEGIBLE HFSS plot of antenna S11 Smith chart similar to upper right panel of Fig 002
LEGIBLE HFSS plot of antenna pattern similar to upper center panel of Fig 002

Required tabular data content:

Table of waveguide cutoff frequency (>10 dB frequency point): theoretical value GHz, simulated value GHz

Row 1: theoretical and simulated frequencies for cutoff

See report template below

NOTE ReportTemplate: Use the Project Report Template

YOU MUST ADD CAPTIONS AND FIGURE NUMBERS TO ALL FIGURES!!

ANSYS, and HFSS are registered trademarks of ANSYS, Inc. Cadence, Spectre and Virtuoso are registered trademarks of Cadence Design Systems, Inc., 2655 Seely Avenue, San Jose, CA 95134. Keysight is a registered trademarks of Keysight Technologies, Inc. MATLAB and Simulink are registered trademarks of The MathWorks, Inc. MATHCAD is a trademark of PTC INC.