Yield-Driven EM Optimization Exploiting Parallel Computation and EM Sensitivities

Abstract

The presence of the uncertainties introduced in the fabrication processes lead to inherent randomness in physical dimensions of microwave components. As such, it is of particular importance to perform statistical analysis and yield optimization before putting a component into production. As electromagnetic (EM)-based adjoint sensitivity techniques have become commercially available these years, it is possible to perform direct yield optimization using full-wave EM simulators. However, the requirement of intensive simulations to cover the entire statistic of possible outcomes makes direct yield optimization computationally prohibitive. In this paper, we propose to apply parallel computation, which is a powerful tool to speed up full-wave EM simulations, to yield optimization of microwave components. With parallel computation technique, the total yield optimization time is significantly reduced compared with the conventional sequential yield optimization method. The proposed technique is demonstrated by a four-pole waveguide filter.