Generalized continuum sensitivity formula for optimum design of electrode and dielectric contours

This paper presents a generalized continuum sensitivity formula that is applicable to all cases of the optimization of electrostatic devices. Using the proposed approach, it is easy to deal with any design problems concerning electrode and dielectric contours to control space field distribution as well as surface field intensity. The derived sensitivity formula, in conjunction with the boundary-element method and the finite-element method, has been successfully applied to shape optimization of three representative examples in electrostatics.