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== A Review of Computational Electromagnetics ==
Mathematically speaking, all electromagnetic modeling problems require solving some form of Maxwell's equations in conjunction with certain initial and boundary conditions. Radiation and scattering problems are defined over an unbounded domain. Circuit and device problems are often formulated as shielded structures within finite domains. Aside from a few well-known canonical problems, there are no closed-form solutions available for most electromagnetic problems due to the complexity of their domains and boundaries. Numerical analysis, therefore, is the only way to solve such problems.
A ubiquitous question surfaces very often in electromagnetic modeling: "Does one really need more than one simulation engine? A true challenge of electromagnetic modeling is the right choice of numerical technique for any given problem. Depending on the electrical length scales and physical nature of your problem, some modeling techniques may provide more accurate or computationally more efficient solutions than the others. Full-wave techniques provide the most accurate solution of [[Maxwell's Equations|Maxwell's equations]] in general. In the case of very large-scale problems, asymptotic methods sometimes offer the only practical solution. On the other hand, static or quasi-static methods may provide more stable solutions for extremely small-scale problems. Having access to multiple simulation engines in a unified modeling environment provides many advantages beyond getting the best solver for your particular problem. Some complex problems involve dissimilar length scales which cannot be compromised in favor of one or another. In such cases, a hybrid simulation using different techniques for different parts of the larger problem can lead to a reasonable solution.
== An Overview A Functional Comparison of EM.Cube's Numerical Solvers ==
[[EM.Cube]] uses a number of computational electromagnetic (CEM) techniques to solve your modeling problems. All of these techniques are based on a fine discretization of your physical structure into a set of elementary cells or elements. A discretized form of Maxwell's equations or some variations of them are then solved numerically over these smaller cells. From the resulting numerical solution, the quantities of interest are derived and computed.