Electromagnetic simulation of electrically large scenarios using the incoherent transmission line matrix method: Theory and application

Electromagnetic simulations in electrically large scenarios often require a huge amount of computation time and memory, due to the need for small discretization and therefore high numbers of discretization cells. We present the incoherent transmission line matrix (ITLM) approach which allows discretization intervals in the order of the wavelength or even larger. This is achieved by frequency averaging of the computed energy densities and neglecting interference phenomena. This results in an approximation comparable to geometrical optics. In complex environments the ITLM method requires less numerical effort than ray tracing. The paper discusses the theoretical foundations as well as a validation of the method by solving a benchmark problem and, as a practical application, by modelling the propoagation of a radar signal in an automobile production hall.