Electromagnetic effects in power electronics design are extremely important to overall circuit functionality and can lead to EMC (electromagnetic compatibility) and EMI (electromagnetic interference) problems at the system level. Under the POWERCAD project, realistic analog simulation models and software tools were developed, for modelling parasitics on a printed circuit board (PCB) layout and the effects from power supply transformers. These tools were adapted to existing computer aided design (CAD) based PCB design environments and allow EMC/EMI problems to be solved by simulation rather than the existing inefficient trial and error approach. They also reduce the design effort needed to meet the new stringent European and USA EMC regulations.
The magnetic design tool (MDT) aids the design of coils of ferromagnetic materials with different structures and topologies, while the MEMT modelling and simulation tools provide a 2-dimensional model of copper transmission lines on PCBs (calculating capacitance, inductance and resistance per unit length) and 3-dimensional models of discontinuities such as corners, bends and pins. The IPET/PEMT tools provide for the extraction of inductances, run time reflections, delay and crosstalk, and all the tools are integrated into a single system with a user friendly interface. Output is presented in a matrix and in SPICE equivalent circuits, to support existing industrial analog simulators.