A complete finite-element analysis of multilayer anisotropic transmission lines from DC to terahertz frequencies

A complete and efficient transmission line simulation framework and the techniques involved are reported in this paper. A highly efficient finite-element quasi-TEM technique with comparable full-wave accuracy is applied as our fundamental simulation method. The fast quasi-TEM analysis is first performed over the entire frequency band with a self-estimation of solution accuracy. Then, depending on the requirement of accuracy, a switch frequency can be determined and a full-wave modal solver is automatically initiated to solve the problem up to the high frequency end. In addition, we apply improved model-order reduction methods in both the quasi-TEM and full-wave analyses to further speed up a simulation. Thus, the quasi-TEM and full-wave techniques as well as their associated model-order reduction methods are integrated to provide an efficient and accurate simulation from dc to very high frequencies. As for the versatility of the solver, the material loss, anisotropism, and frequency dependence are all taken into account in our formulations in order to provide a more complete field-based transmission line modeling.