Peter P. Silvester
Encyclopedia
Peter Peet Silvester was an electrical engineer who contributed to understanding of numerical analysis of electromagnetic fields and authored a standard textbook on the subject.
Silvester was born in Tallinn
, Estonia
. He graduated from the Camegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie-Mellon University) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1956. After a period of industrial practice, he continued his studies at the University of Toronto
, obtaining the MASc in 1958, and then at McGill University
(Montreal
), where he was awarded the PhD in Electrical Engineering
, in 1964. He initially joined the Department of Electrical Engineering at McGill as Lecturer, then as Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, and Full Professor. In 1996, he was honored with the titles of emeritus professor at McGill University, and Honorary Professor at the University of British Columbia
.
Silvester devoted a large part of his career to the numerical analysis of electromagnetic field], with applications to magnetics, microwaves, geomagnetics, antennas, and bioelectricity. His main research focused on the finite element method
, as applied to electromagnetics, where he was a pioneer. His paper, Finite-Element Solution of Homogeneous-Waveguide Problems, presented at the 1968 URSI
Symposium on Electromagnetic Waves, and later on, published in the Italian technical journal, Alta Frequenza, was definitely the first FEM application to electronic engineering.
In this field, his contributions were valuable, both from the theoretical and the applications side. He studied topics which ranged from potential and scalar-wave problems, in the first years, to applications to microwave devices, antennas, electric machines, as well as new kinds of elements and formulations, open-boundary problems, and parallel computing. His book, Finite Elements for Electrical Engineering, written with Ron Ferrari, has been the only textbook on this specific topic for many years, and it has been translated into many languages, among which are Russian
, Chinese
, Japanese
, and Spanish
.
He founded the Computational Analysis and Design Laboratory (CAD-Lab) at the Electrical Engineering Department of McGill University, in 1978, which has now become probably the largest research organization of its kind in Canada, and one of the largest in the world. Peter Silvester also was a founder of Infolytica Co. (Montreal), a consulting and software manufacturing
company.
Silvester maintained strong research ties with colleagues of several other institutions, notably the University of Cambridge
and the University of Florence
, creatively sharing his knowledge. He also acted as a consultant to a number of major corporations and government agencies.
He was a member of major professional organizations in his field, a member of steering committees and boards of various scientific and professional conferences, and was elected a Fellow of the IEEE for "...contributions to the art of finite-element analysis." He was also a Fellow of the IEE
, and of the Royal Society of Canada
.
Silvester was born in Tallinn
Tallinn
Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...
, Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
. He graduated from the Camegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie-Mellon University) in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1956. After a period of industrial practice, he continued his studies at the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
, obtaining the MASc in 1958, and then at McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
(Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
), where he was awarded the PhD in Electrical Engineering
Electrical engineering
Electrical engineering is a field of engineering that generally deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism. The field first became an identifiable occupation in the late nineteenth century after commercialization of the electric telegraph and electrical...
, in 1964. He initially joined the Department of Electrical Engineering at McGill as Lecturer, then as Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, and Full Professor. In 1996, he was honored with the titles of emeritus professor at McGill University, and Honorary Professor at the University of British Columbia
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...
.
Silvester devoted a large part of his career to the numerical analysis of electromagnetic field], with applications to magnetics, microwaves, geomagnetics, antennas, and bioelectricity. His main research focused on the finite element method
Finite element method
The finite element method is a numerical technique for finding approximate solutions of partial differential equations as well as integral equations...
, as applied to electromagnetics, where he was a pioneer. His paper, Finite-Element Solution of Homogeneous-Waveguide Problems, presented at the 1968 URSI
Ursi
Urşi may refer to several villages in Romania:* Urşi, a village in Leleasca Commune, Olt County* Urşi, a village in Popeşti Commune, Vâlcea County* Urşi, a village in Stoileşti Commune, Vâlcea County...
Symposium on Electromagnetic Waves, and later on, published in the Italian technical journal, Alta Frequenza, was definitely the first FEM application to electronic engineering.
In this field, his contributions were valuable, both from the theoretical and the applications side. He studied topics which ranged from potential and scalar-wave problems, in the first years, to applications to microwave devices, antennas, electric machines, as well as new kinds of elements and formulations, open-boundary problems, and parallel computing. His book, Finite Elements for Electrical Engineering, written with Ron Ferrari, has been the only textbook on this specific topic for many years, and it has been translated into many languages, among which are Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
, Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
, Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
, and Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
.
He founded the Computational Analysis and Design Laboratory (CAD-Lab) at the Electrical Engineering Department of McGill University, in 1978, which has now become probably the largest research organization of its kind in Canada, and one of the largest in the world. Peter Silvester also was a founder of Infolytica Co. (Montreal), a consulting and software manufacturing
Software manufacturing
Software manufacturing is the process of producing software in ways similar to the manufacturing of tangible goods. In this way of conducting business, each copy of the software is priced and sold as though it was a tangible product...
company.
Silvester maintained strong research ties with colleagues of several other institutions, notably the University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
and the University of Florence
University of Florence
The University of Florence is a higher study institute in Florence, central Italy. One of the largest and oldest universities in the country, it consists of 12 faculties...
, creatively sharing his knowledge. He also acted as a consultant to a number of major corporations and government agencies.
He was a member of major professional organizations in his field, a member of steering committees and boards of various scientific and professional conferences, and was elected a Fellow of the IEEE for "...contributions to the art of finite-element analysis." He was also a Fellow of the IEE
IEE
IEE may stand for:* Integrated Enterprise Excellence, an Industrial Engineering system documented in books by Forrest W. Breyfogle III* Institution of Electrical Engineers, in engineering, now part of the Institution of Engineering and Technology...
, and of the Royal Society of Canada
Royal Society of Canada
The Royal Society of Canada , may also operate under the more descriptive name RSC: The Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada , is the oldest association of scientists and scholars in Canada...
.
Books
- Peter P. Silvester, M. V. K. Chari, Finite Elements in Electrical and Magnetic Field Problems, John Wiley & Sons Inc, 1980. ISBN 0471275786
- Peter P. Silvester, Ronald L. Ferrari, Finite Elements for Electrical Engineers, 1ed, Cambridge University Press, 1983.
- Peter P. Silvester, D. A. Lowther Computer-Aided Design in Magnetics, Berlin, Springer-Verlag, 1986
- Peter P. Silvester, Ronald L. Ferrari, Finite Elements for Electrical Engineers, 2ed, Cambridge University Press, 1990.
- Peter P. Silvester, Giuseppe Pelosi, Finite Elements for Wave Electromagnetics, IEEE Press, New York, 1994, ISBN 0780310403
- Peter P. Silvester, Tatsuo ItohTatsuo ItohTatsuo Itoh is Professor and holder of the Northrop Grumman Chair in Microwave and Millimeter Wave Electronics in the Electrical Engineering Department at the University of California, Los Angeles , where he teaches and conducts research on microwave and millimeter wave electronics, guided wave...
, Giuseppe Pelosi, Finite Element Software for Microwave Engineering, Wiley-Interscience, 1996, ISBN 0471126365 - Peter P. Silvester, Institution of Electrical EngineersInstitution of Electrical EngineersThe Institution of Electrical Engineers was a British professional organisation of electronics, electrical, manufacturing, and Information Technology professionals, especially electrical engineers. The I.E.E...
(Corporate Author), University of FlorenceUniversity of FlorenceThe University of Florence is a higher study institute in Florence, central Italy. One of the largest and oldest universities in the country, it consists of 12 faculties...
(Corporate Author), Software for Electrical Engineering Analysis and Design III, Computational Mechanics, 1996, ISBN 1853123951 - Peter P. Silvester, Ronald L. Ferrari, Finite Elements for Electrical Engineers, 3ed, Cambridge University Press, 1996.