Figure 5: View of the full mesh. Choose File/Load script(MIN) in the menu or use the Open-file tool on the left hand side of the toolbar to load the contents of the file ElectronDiode.MIN . Then pick Process or click the tool with the green square. In response, Mesh analyzes the desired element sizes and the region vectors to create a set of small elements. To view the result, choose Plot/Repair from the menu or click the Plot/repair tool to show the display of Fig. 5 . The solution volume has been divided into the regions listed in the script to represent physical objects (electrodes and dielectrics). The cross section has been divided into triangular areas.
Note that the calculation represents a cylindrical system, a figure of revolution about the bottom boundary ( r = 0 . 0). When first viewing a z - r plot, many users ask where’s the bottom? The answer is that there is no bottom. Negative values of the radius r are undefined. On the other hand, a plot in a Cartesian slice plane like y = 0 . 0 would have both upper and lower components. In cylindrical solutions, elements are tori with triangular cross-sections that extend over the full range of azimuth ( θ = 0 o to 360 o ). Let’s take a closer look at the mesh. Choose View/Zoom window and specify the corners of a box by moving and left-clicking the mouse.
The magnified view of Figure 6 gives a better look at the element cross-sections. The inset at lower-right shows the view limits. Note that the triangles were flexed for a good match to region boundaries. The fitting allows high-accuracy calculations of surface fields. A mesh with element shapes customized to the geometry is called a conformal mesh. To conclude work with Mesh , return to the main menu and choose File/Save mesh (MOU) . Refresh the display in FP File Organizer (press F3). Two new files have been added to the folder: ElectronDiode.MLS : a text listing file of diagnostic information that may be useful if there is a problem. 9