Calculation of electromagnetic fields inside a building with layered reinforcing bar struck by lightning using the FDTD method

Lightning electromagnetic pulse (LEMP) is a severe threat to sensitive electronic devices installed in buildings. In order to protect these devices from LEMP effects, the evaluation of the electromagnetic fields inside the building is required. Numerous studies have been devoted to the analysis of these fields stemming from direct and indirect lightning strikes. In this paper, using a GPGPU-based, three-dimensional finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulation code, we calculate the electromagnetic field inside a full-scale building with layered reinforcing bars struck by lightning. The simulation results confirm that the layer structure of the reinforcing bars of the wall has a significant effect on the electromagnetic fields inside buildings.