Three-dimensional edge-based finite-element analysis for discrete bodies of revolution

An extension to three-dimensional (3-D) edge-based finite-element analysis for modeling electrically large fan-like bodies as discrete bodies of revolution is given. By exploiting the overlapping symmetries between a fan-like body and a modal expansion of the electromagnetic fields, only one lobe of the problem need be solved by the finite-element method without introducing approximations. This computational scaling makes possible the solution of electrically large structures much more efficiently. However, a periodic phase-boundary condition (PBC) must be applied to the faces of the mesh describing a single slice of the body and this condition must be enforced on both the electric and magnetic fields for a robust solution. Details on the implementation of the PBCs are given along with results which validate the overall technique.