Efficient analysis of planar microwave circuits with mixed-order prism vector finite macroelements

This paper introduces a new concept of a mixed-order prism macroelement, suitable for an efficient analysis of three-dimensional planar microwave circuits, using two-dimensional meshes and preprocessors. The mixed-order concept used here implies arbitrary orders of variation in different directions and differs essentially from the well-known mixed-order approximation that is an integral part of every Whitney element. It is the existence of a related systematic theory of higher-order vector finite elements, previously documented, that facilitates the introduction of such a concept, The second- and third-order elements, derived by this approach, are successfully applied in the analysis of planar microwave circuits, rendering the application of finite element method in such problems still a favorable option. Copyright (C) 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.