Decomposition methods for time‐domain Maxwell's equations

Decomposition methods based on split operators are proposed for numerical integration of the time‐domain Maxwell's equations for the first time. The methods are obtained by splitting the Hamiltonian function of Maxwell's equations into two analytically computable exponential sub‐propagators in the time direction based on different order decomposition methods, and then the equations are evaluated in the spatial direction by the staggered fourth‐order finite‐difference approximations. The stability and numerical dispersion analysis for different order decomposition methods are also presented. The theoretical predictions are confirmed by our numerical results. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.