Helmholtz Coil Simulation

The Physics

The Helmholtz coil refers to the arrangement of two conductor loops which generate an almost homogeneous magnetic field in the center of the structure (Fig. 1). With the assumption of an infinitely thin current path, the theoretical solution can be derived as shown e.g. in [1].

Using the Biot-Savart law, the magnetic field is determined on the z-axis of the arrangement of Fig.2 as:

The Model

Two curves are designed and a current is imprinted on them. The boundary conditions should be 'open' with a sufficient distance to the coils. It is possible to activate three symmetry conditions to reduce the mesh requirements – electric in the XZ and YZ planes, and magnetic in the XY plane. If the value for the radius is set (in this example, all given values are in m), the distance of the loops is determined automatically via the parameter list and so the dependencies are correctly considered. By evaluating the resulting fields on the z-axis, the field strengths can be compared to the numerical results. For this purpose the corresponding post-processing templates are used.

This model has a microstrip of  50 Ω that needs to be matched to a load of 100 Ω. By using Eq. 1 we find that the transforming line has 70.71 Ω. The microstrips must be realized on a substrate with ε_r=4.3, a thickness of 1.2 mm and a metallization of 0.035 mm. In Table 1 we summarize all the parameters of this project.

For the evaluation of the field values along the curve one has to ensure that adequate interpolation points are available. It is also helpful to have a dense mesh surrounding the current paths. To allow the mesh to be redefined within the mesh limitations of the CST Studio Suite Student Edition, dummy structures are introduced surrounding the current paths and along the z-axis (Fig. 3). These structures have the same material properties as the background material (vacuum) and ensure a finer mesh generation in this region. These are constructed with around the curves, with a radius of a/10 around each curve.

Discussion of results

Template Based Post Processing (Fig. 4) is used to calculate the BZ field along the line. Set up the template as shown in Fig. 5, and click "Evaluate" in the main Template Based Post Processing window to calculate the field distribution along the curve.

This can be compared directly with the theoretical results. Equation 1 can be represented in a calculable format as:

1/2*μ0*a^2*I*(1/(a^2+(A-d)^2)^(3/2)+1/(a^2+(A+d)^2)^(3/2)), where A is the Z coordinate.

By pasting this into the “Mix Template Results” post processing template (Fig. 6), which is found under "General 1D" in the Template Based Post Processing window, the numerical Bz along the z-axis can be calculated.

Comparing the theoretical and numerical results in Fig. 7 shows that a very good agreement is found. To achieve such a good agreement, the described usage of dummy structures is essential.

Questions