CHAMP 3.1.0 Release

We are happy to announce the release of CHAMP 3.1.0. Besides the usual weeding out of a few bugs, this version brings major new features to assist you in your horn and reflector terminal design. Some of the most noteworthy are:

A new wizard, for axially corrugated horns. The need for this became evident when we first introduced dual reflector design in CHAMP and is now available. Based on two input parameters only, frequency band and directivity, a 45-degree flare angle horn is synthesized. It is parameterized such that the user can easily specify variables to enable further refinement of the horn geometry by means of optimization.

A new global optimization algorithm based on CMA-ES (Covariance Matrix Adaptation Evolution Strategy), has been added to facilitate design of cases where a good initial starting point is not obvious. The CMA-ES may generate a sub-optimal solution which however will serve as a good starting point for the standard Minmax algorithm.

The BoR-MoM analysis has been improved, leading to a reduction in CPU time by a factor of 2-3 for electrically large reflectors or horn exteriors. At the same time, the default settings for the BoR-MoM analysis will more often be sufficient to ensure convergence, particularly when the geometries are larger than 20 wavelenghts.

A new tutorial has been added, particularly aimed at those many customers who work with splash-plates that are attached to the horn via a dielectric insert or plug. The tutorial shows how to use a BoR mesh for the definition of the dielectric support structure.

To provide for a more convenient optimization it is now possible to specify one (or several) lists of frequencies at which the optimization shall be carried out – removing a basic limitation to equidistant frequencies.

CHAMP customers will receive a detailed release note listing all modifications.