Retaking the field

Electrical engineers often need to model electromagnetic waves that propagate from antennas or through complex structures. In the days before computers, such problems could tax the mathematics capabilities of an Einstein. Today, however, the task can be simple and even fun to do on ordinary desktop computers, thanks to packages like Femlab 3. Femlab 3 is a major update of a well-established product. Originally developed as an add-on application to Matlab, it takes full advantage of Matlab´s sophisticated graphics capabilities and simple user interfaces. This release has a welcome new addition: a stand-alone program that has its own math engine and runs independently of Matlab, along with the version that runs as an add-on to Matlab Version 6.5 or higher. The stand-alone program is much faster than the older Matlab-based versions, which will be a compelling reason for many users to upgrade. It has a host of smaller enhancements as well.