Numerical computation of fields in electrostatic devices: experience and applications

A computer package developed for the numerical field computation of electrostatic fields is presented. The package is composed of an interactive preprocessor for data definition, a field computation program based on the general purpose field computation code COMPELL, and a program for the interactive analysis of results and postprocessing. It has been devised to simplify as far as possible its management by users not skilled in numerical methods and is provided with a quasiautomatic grid-generation algorithm and a powerful data definition system for advanced users. The package has been field proven with good results on many practical cases, both of scientific and technical interest, and some obtained results are shown and discussed