Three-dimensional eddy current analysis by the boundary element method using vector potential

A boundary-element method using a magnetic vector potential for eddy-current analysis is described. For three-dimensional (3-D) problems, the tangential and normal components of the vector potential, tangential components of the magnetic flux density, and an electric scalar potential on conductor surfaces are chosen as unknown variables. When the approximation is introduced so that the conductivity of the conductor is very large in comparison with the conductivity of air, the number of unknowns can be reduced; also, for axisymmetric models the scalar potential can be eliminated from the unknown variables. The formulation of the boundary-element method using the vector potential, and computation results by the proposed method, are presented