Overview on the Evolution of Near Magnetic Field Coupling Prediction Using Equivalent Multipole Spherical Harmonic Sources

In the electromagnetic compatibility behavior of power electronic converters, parasitic magnetic couplings between components are one of the main causes of dysfunctions or poor filtering. These couplings may be either conducted or near-field interferences. To handle interaction problems, full knowledge of these magnetic couplings is essential. This paper is an overview of the work on near magnetic field interference undertaken in the last 15 years by the International Maxwell Laboratory. This paper details a predictive method that accurately and efficiently calculates near magnetic field coupling between two sources. The method uses near-field multipolar expansion in spherical harmonics of electromagnetic sources to determine close magnetic coupling between two sources from their equivalent models. This paper also shows how theoretical developments of large loop antennas have evolved from the van Veen antenna, a model with only two degrees of freedom, to a more complex model in terms of degrees, order, and types of harmonics. In parallel, it describes developments in the measurement method that provides input to the theoretical model. To illustrate how the research has evolved, we discuss coupling between two complex sources to assess the accuracy of this predictive method.