Extraction: Capacitance

This feature calculates the capacity of/between conductors. For the calculation, any conductor will be split into panels with a constant charge. The 3d setup in the LayerManager is used for the z-coordinates. The charge calculation for a small amount of panels can be done inside the LayoutEditor. For bigger calculations the discretization data is stored and the external calculation tool FastCap is called. FastCap is included in the LayoutEditor package.

Usage:

• Open extraction tools (Utilities/Misc/Electrical Extraction)
• select the shape part of a single conductor (or ground)
• press addConductor to add as conductor (or addGround for ground)
• repeat these steps for any conductor
• set material data
• start the calculation

Algorithm

The FastCap algorithm is used for the calculations. FastCap and FastHenry , from MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) are two free parasitic extractor tools for capacity, induction and resistance. Quoted in many scientific articles, they are considered golden references in their field. It is a three dimensional calculation. FastCap is included as a compiled stand alone version in any LayoutEditor package and it can be used separate from the LayoutEditor by manual call.

Example