Finite Element Analysis

This chapter considers what is perhaps the most common method of numerical magnetic modeling—finite element analysis (FEA). It also considers the static conditions and the two‐dimensional case, and Maxwell's equations that govern electromagnetics. The most straightforward approach is using a Gauss–Seidel iteration wherein the FEA is conducted with constant permeability. Based on the flux density in each element, the permeability of that element is adjusted, and the process is repeated until the solution converges in every element. The chapter focuses on using FEA as a means of design validation, one should mention that it is certainly possible to use FEA as the computational engine for design, especially for problems wherein the magnetic analysis is particularly difficult. The chapter provides a formulation and implementation in Cartesian coordinates.