Full-wave analysis of shielded planar circuits using different models of sources

A source method is developed for analysing N-port planar microwave circuits. It is proposed to model the circuit by a rigorous method including different definitions of sources. Two models of excitation terms are proposed: the source placed on the circuit plane (located source) and a vertical source (extended source). The advantages and limits of the method according to each definition are presented. Supportive numerical results for the characterisation of planar discontinuities are provided.