Indoor radio-wave propagation modeling by multilevel fast multipole algorithm

Three-dimensional indoor radio-wave propagation is accurately modeled by solving the volume electric-field integral equation (VEFIE). The integral equation is discretized by the method of moments (MoM), in which the building walls, ceilings, floors, as well as any internal obstacles are represented by a collection of small volumetric cells. This discretization is capable of modeling a 3-D room structure to fine details. The solution to the MoM matrix equation is facilitated by the multilevel fast multipole algorithm (MLFMA), which significantly reduces memory requirements and CPU time. Numerical examples are shown to demonstrate the accuracy of the solution and the capability of modeling dielectric structures of nearly realistic sizes. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 29: 168–175, 2001.