AWR, a leader in high-frequency electronic design automation (EDA), announced significant performance enhancements to its AXIEM 3D planar electromagnetic (EM) analysis software that greatly increase the softwares speed, accuracy and capacity. AXIEM's proprietary solver and meshing algorithms have made it possible for the first time to migrate EM analysis from a back-end, post-verification tool to an upfront design diagnostic solution. With nearly linear scaling achieved through its novel method-of-moments (MoM) engine, AXIEM even in its first year of commercial availability, outperforms competing 3D planar solutions that have been on the market for more than a decade.

Key enhancements within this second major release of AXIEM include:

New support for 64-bit PC platforms that makes it possible to solve designs with over a 100,000 unknowns far faster than with 32-bit operating systems.

Expanded support for multi-core configurations that further reduces simulation time.

Loss model improvements that deliver more robust data at low frequencies.

Extensive sources/ports and de-embedding options that provide greater flexibility and accuracy: Internal edge,finite difference/gap, and extraction ports; per-port, coupled line, and mutual group de-embedding.

Whether employed as an electromagnetic solver technology accessed from within AWR's Microwave Office design environment or as a stand-alone point tool, AXIEM offers significant advantages for the EM analysis of planar components such as RF printed circuit boards (PCB) and modules, low-temperature, co-fired ceramic (LTCC) packages, monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMIC) and RF integrated circuits (RFIC). As AWR expands AXIEMs performance and features, customers are increasingly relying on AXIEM to solve very complex problems.

Testimonials from companies such as Mimix Broadband and Legrand reveal that when AXIEM is part of the Microwave Office design flow, productivity gains are significant. "We were unable to analyze our entire MMIC structure using any other EM solver and ultimately turned to AWR. The benefits provided by AXIEM open up new vistas in millimeter-wave design for Mimix," said Simon Mahon of Mimix Broadband. Vincent Grigis of Legrand noted that "AXIEM simulation results proved to be highly accurate when compared to measured results, so were excited by its potential to cut our design time, streamline our flow, and positively impact our bottom line."