What is WASP-NET software?

WASP-NET®, the Waveguide and Antenna Synthesis Program for NETworks, helps you to get extraordinary time-saving benefits for your professional electromagnetic (EM) microwave and mm-wave computer-aided design (CAD) and optimization projects while not compromising full-wave accuracy and general 3D structure flexibility. This is achieved through WASP-NET’s unique hybrid multi-solver domain decomposition technology, which intelligently applies the technically most suitable and efficient EM solver type for each individual structural subdomain.

WASP-NET is acknowledged by market-leaders in the space and communication industries world-wide since more than three decades for efficiently solving challenging microwave, mm-wave, waveguide, antenna and array design problems (also directly including feed-networks) by fast direct EM-based optimizations.

An Integral Part of CST Studio

WASP-NET is available as integral part of the CST Studio Suite portfolio and also additionally as a quasi-stand-alone CAD tool in a specially tailored CST Studio Suite. WASP-NET ideally complements in this way your design and optimization capabilities to master high-performance EM CAD problems in extremely short design times with optimal full-wave solutions.

User-friendly synthesis wizards and a comprehensive designer data base with scalable, modifiable, pre-optimized component templates help you achieve demanding design results easily and quickly.

Hybrid Multi-Solver EM CAD Technology

WASP-NET’s high efficiency is based on the simple but very effective and proven principle of “divide and conquer” in conjunction with the well-known fact that each solver has its advantages and disadvantages, depending on which structural part it is used for. Instead of applying for the entire structure one and the same solver, as is usually the case, WASP-NET’s pioneering hybrid multi-solver domain decomposition technology composes structures from suitable subdomains, uses the most appropriate and efficient EM solver for each subdomain for that particular task, and combines all subdomains via the generalized scattering-matrix (GSM) accurately on the rigorous full-wave basis, automatically incorporating all necessary higher-order modes.

WASP-NET’s hybrid multi-solver MM/FE/MoM EM CAD technique uniquely combines in this way mode-matching (MM) speed with finite-element (FE) flexibility (extended by 2DFE, transfinite FE, body-of-revolution (BOR-)FE, FE tearing and interconnect (FETI), model-order reduction (MOR) techniques), and with method-of-moment (MoM) radiation computation efficiency. Special advanced algorithms (such as domain decomposition, reduced order modeling and asymptotic methods, e.g., iterative physical optics (IPO), as well as tailored algorithms for specific symmetries) are utilized to accelerate the methods.

The selection of the appropriate EM solver for the structural subdomains is carried out in WASP-NET automatically, so that the user does not have to worry about the best solver, achieves in this way the technically optimum speed and maintains full-wave accuracy and full 3D structure flexibility (including also parts with tensor permittivity or permeability, such as for circulators or anisotropic meta-material structures). The benefits for users are the extremely fast design and optimization of all types of advanced passive microwave and millimeter wave components, antennas, and arrays, including feed networks, directly at the accurate EM level, to meet demanding specifications within very short development times.

WASP-NET’s Capabilities

WASP-NET’s CAD Features
WASP-NET’s Design Help Tools

WASP-NET’s particular CAD strength is its efficient EM CAD solution for demanding waveguide, antenna and antenna array design problems with tough specifications. Physical limits can be exploited conveniently through extremely fast, direct, and rigorous EM-based full-wave optimizations, enabling sufficiently high numbers of iterations within short design times. This ensures together with WASP-NET’s powerful three optimizers perfectly optimized, advanced high performance designs tailored specifically to special needs and customized structures, whose design and optimization would often take an unreasonably long time using more standard methods.

Fast CAD of Waveguiding Structures

WASP-NET’s calculation speed for waveguide structures containing structural elements with canonical or arbitrarily shaped waveguide cross-sections is particularly high, as the very efficient quasi-analytical mode-matching method (MM) is used for such elements. Complete 3D flexibility is maintained by applying FEM in the more general subdomains, for instance, when anisotropic and tensor materials are included, e.g., ferrites of circulators). Losses (dielectric and due to finite wall conductivity) can be taken into account.

Fast CAD of Antenna Structures

WASP-NET’s efficient full-wave design and optimization capabilities efficiently cover the entire class of antennas, from wire antennas to dual shaped reflector antennas. Special structure characteristics (e.g. body-of-revolution (BOR) symmetries, large radiation portions) are adequately taken into account for achieving high computation speed. Due to WASP-NET’s high efficiency, complete feed-networks, such as OMTs, polarizers, tapers, can directly and accurately be included in the antenna design, and the entire antenna system efficiently be optimized as a whole to meet final overall specifications. This advanced design capability eliminates the traditional need for time-consuming calculations of antennas and feed-networks as separate parts. A powerful characteristic mode analysis (CMA) tool allows for investigating fundamental radiation characteristics of antenna structures.

Fast CAD of Antenna Arrays

WASP-NET’s efficient full-wave design and optimization capabilities efficiently cover the entire class of common arrays, from slot-arrays, horn arrays, phased arrays, to frequency selective structures (FSS). Large arrays are efficiently calculated by periodic boundaries. Finite array sizes are accurately taken into account by advanced domain decomposition methods. Due to WASP-NET’s full-wave hybrid solver and generalized S-matrix combination of sub circuits and elements, complete feed-networks can directly and accurately be included in the array design.