Unified split-step precise integration time-domain method for dispersive media

Based on the use of auxiliary differential equations, a unified split-step precise integration time-domain (SS-PITD) method is proposed for modelling wave propagation in linear dispersive media. The unification of this method is achieved by using a general expression to represent the Debye, Lorentz and Drude dielectric medium models. Moreover, due to the introduction of the SS scheme, the original two-dimensional (2D) or 3D electromagnetic problem reduces to a set of 1D sub-problems which can be efficiently solved by using the conventional PITD algorithm. It leads to a great reduction in the requirement of computation time and storage space. The proposed method is verified with a numerical example and compared with the finite-difference time-domain method.