A waveguide is a structure that guides waves by restricting the transmission of energy to one direction. Common types of waveguides include acoustic waveguides which direct sound, optical waveguides which direct light, and radio-frequency waveguides which direct electromagnetic waves other than light like radio waves.
Waveguide supplying power for the Argonne National Laboratory Advanced Photon Source.
In this military radar, microwave radiation is transmitted between the source and the reflector by a waveguide. The figure suggests that microwaves leave the box in a circularly symmetric mode (allowing the antenna to rotate), then they are converted to a linear mode, and pass through a flexible stage. Their polarisation is then rotated in a twisted stage and finally they irradiate the parabolic antenna.
An optical waveguide is a physical structure that guides electromagnetic waves in the optical spectrum. Common types of optical waveguides include optical fiber waveguides, transparent dielectric waveguides made of plastic and glass, liquid light guides, and liquid waveguides.
Optical waveguides formed in pure silica glass as a result of an accumulated self-focusing effect with 193 nm laser irradiation. Pictured using transmission microscopy with collimated illumination.