Uni-cell in HF offers different method of creating and simulating a large array.

The explicit method,

shown in Figure 1(a) might be the first method that comes to our mind. This is where you create the
exact CAD of the array andsolve it. While this is the most accurate method of simulating an array, it
is computationally extensive. This method may be non-feasible for the initial dign of a large array.
The use of unit cell (Figure 1(b)) and array theory helps us to start with an estimate of the array
performanceby a few assumptions. Finite Array Doain Decomposition (or FADDM) takes advantage
of unit cell simplicity and creates full model using the meshing information generated in a unit cell.
In this blog we will review the creation of unit cell. In the next blog we will expain how a unit cell can
be used to simulate a large array and FADDM.

Fig. 1 (a) Explicit Array

Fig. 1 (b) Unit Cell

Fig. 1 (c) Finite Array Domain Decomposition (FADDM)

In a unit cell, the following assumptions are made:

The pattern of each element is identical.

The array is uniformly excited in amplitude, but not necessarily in phase.

Edge affects and mutual coupling are ignored

Fig. 2 An array consisting of elements amplitude and phases can be estimated with array theory,
assuming all elements have the same amplitude and element radiation patterns. In unit cell
simulation it is assumed all magnitudes (An’s) are equal (A) and the far field of each single element is
equal.

A unit cell works based on Master/Slave (or Primary/Secondary) boundary around the cell.
Master/Slave boundaries are always paired. In a rectangular cell you may use the new Lattice Pair
boundary that is introduced in Ansys HFSS 2020R1. These boundaries are means of simulating an
infinite array and estimating the performance of a relatively large arrays. The use of unit cell reduces
the required RAM and solve time.

Primary/Secondary (Master/Slave) (or P/S) boundaries can be combined with Floquet port, radiation
or PML boundary to be used in an infinite array or large array setting, as shown in Figure 3.
Fig. 3 Unit cell can be terminated with (a) radiation boundary, (b) Floquet port, (c) PML boundary, or
combination of them.

To create a unit cell with P/S boundary, first start with a single element with the exact dimensions of
the cell. The next step is creating a vacuum or airbox around the cell. For this step, set the padding in
the location of P/S boundary to zero. For example, Figure 4 shows a microstrip patch antenna that
we intend to create a 2D array based on this model. The array is placed on the XY plane. An air box is
created around the unit cell with zero padding in X and Y directions.

Fig. 4 (a) A unit cell starts with a single element with the exact dimensions as it appears in the lattice

Fig. 4 (b) A vacuum box is added around it

You notice that in this example the vacuum box is larger than usual size of quarter wavelength that is
usually used in creating a vacuum region around the antenna. We will get to calculation of this size in
a bit, for now let’s just assign a value or parameter to it, as it will be determined later. The next step
is to define P/S to generate the lattice. In AEDT 2020R1 this boundary is under “Coupled” boundary.
There are two methods to create P/S: (1) Lattice Pair, (2) Primary/Secondary boundary.

Lattice Pair

The Lattice Pair works best for square lattices. It automatically assigns the primary and secondary
boundaries. To assign a lattice pair boundary select the two sides that are supposed to create infinite
periodic cells, right-click->Assign Boundary->Coupled->Lattice Pair, choose a name and enter the
scan angles. Note that scan angles can be assigned as parameters. This feature that is introduced in
2020R1 does not require the user to define the UV directions, they are automatically assigned.

Fig. 5 The lattice pair assignment (a) select two lattice walls

Fig. 5 (b) Assign the lattice pair boundary

Fig. 5 (c) After, right-click and choosing assign boundary > choose Lattice Pair
Fig. 5 (d) Phi and Theta scan angles can be assigned as parameters

Primary/Secondary

Primary/Secondary boundary is the same as what used to be called Master/Slave boundary. In this
case, each Secondary (Slave) boundary should be assigned following a Primary (Master) boundary
UV directions. First choose the side of the cell that Primary boundary. Right-click->Assign Boundary-
>Coupled->Primary. In Primary Boundary window define U vector. Next select the secondary wall,
right-click->Assign Boundary->Couple->Secondary, choose the Primary Boundary and define U vector
exactly in the same direction as the Primary, add the scan angles (the same as Primary scan angles)

Fig. 6 Primary and secondary boundaries highlights.

Floquet Port and Modes Calculator

Floquet port excites and terminates waves propagating down the unit cell. They are similar to
waveguide modes. Floquet port is always linked to P/S boundaries. Set of TE and TM modes travel
inside the cell. However, keep in mind that the number of modes that are absorbed by the Floquet
port are determined by the user. All the other modes are short-circuited back into the model. To
assign a Floquet port two major steps should be taken:
Defining Floquet Port

Select the face of the cell that you like to assign the Floquet port. This is determined by the location
of P/S boundary. The lattice vectors A and B directions are defined by the direction of lattice (Figure
7).

Fig. 7 Floquet port on top of the cell is defined based on UV direction of P/S pairs

The number of modes to be included are defined with the help of Modes Calculator. In the Mode
Setup tab of the Floquet Port window, choose a high number of modes (e.g. 20) and click on Modes
Calculator. The Mode Table Calculator will request your input of Frequency and Scan Angles. After
selecting those, a table of modes and their attenuation using dB/length units are created. This is
your guide in selecting the height of the unit cell and vaccume box. The attenation multiplied by the
height of the unit cell (in the project units, defined in Modeler->Units) should be large enough to
make sure the modes are attenuated enough so removing them from the calcuatlion does not cause
errors. If the unit cell is too short, then you will see many modes are not attenuated enough. The
product of the attenuatin and height of the airbox should be at least 50 dB. After the correct size for
the airbox is calcualted and entered, the model with high attenuation can be removed from the
Floquet port definition.

The 3D Refinement tab is used to control the inclusion of the modes in the 3D refinement of the
mesh. It is recommended not to select them for the antenna arrays.
Fig. 8 (Left) Determining the scan angles for the unit cell, (Right) Modes Calculator showing the
Attenuation

In our example, Figure 8 shows that the 5th mode has an attenuation of 2.59dB/length. The height
of the airbox is around 19.5mm, providing 19.5mm*2.59dB/mm=50.505dB attenuation for the 5th
mode. Therefore, only the first 4 modes are kept for the calculations. If the height of the airbox was
less than 19.5mm, we would need to increase the height so accordingly for an attenuation of at least
50dB.

Radiation Boundary

A simpler alternative for Floquet port is radiation boundary. It is important to note that the size of
the airbox should still be kept around the same size that was calculated for the Floquet port,
therefore, higher order modes sufficiently attenuated. In this case the traditional quarter wavelength
padding might not be adequate.

Perfectly Matched Layer

Although using radiation boundary is much simpler than Floquet port, it is not accurate for large scan
angles. It can be a good alternative to Floquet port only if the beam scanning is limited to small
angles. Another alternative to Floquet port is to cover the cell by a layer of PML. This is a good
compromise and provides very similar results to Floquet port models. However, the P/S boundary
need to surround the PML layer as well, which means a few additional steps are required. Here is
how you can do it:

Reduce the size of the airbox* slightly, so after adding the PML layer, the unit cell height is the same
as the one that was generated using the Modes Calculation. (For example, in our model airbox
height was 19mm+substrte thickness, the PML height was 3mm, so we reduced the airbox height to
16mm).

Choose the top face and add PML boundary.

Select each side of the airbox and create an object from that face (Figure 10).

Select each side of the PML and create objects from those faces (Figure 10).
Select the two faces that are on the same plane from the faces created from airbox and PML and
unite them to create a side wall (Figure 10).

Then assign P/S boundary to each pair of walls (Figure 10).

*Please note for this method, an auto-size “region” cannot be used, instead draw a box for
air/vacuum box. The region does not let you create the faces you need to combine with PML faces.

similar performance.
Fig. 13 Comparison of radiation patterns using PML (red), Floquet Port (blue), and Radiation
boundary (orange).
S Parameters
To compare the accuracy, we can also check the S parameters. Figure 14 shows the comparison of
active S at port 1 for PML and Floquet port models. Active S parameters were used since the unit cell
antenna has two ports. Figure 15 shows how S parameters compare for the model with the radiation
boundary and the one with the Floquet port.

Fig. 14 Active S parameter comparison for different scan angles, PML vs. Floquet Port model.
Fig. 15 Active S parameter comparison for different scan angles, Radiation Boundary vs. Floquet Port
model.