Microwave structure utilizing ferrite coupling means

Claim 1

A MICROWAVE SLOW-WAVE STRUCTURE WHICH COMPRISES (A) A PLURALITY OF PARALLEL RESONANT ELEMENTS ALIGNED IN AN ARRAY AND ADAPTED TO TRANSMIT RF SIGNAL ENERGY WITHIN A PREDETERMINED FREQUENCY RANGE WHEN COUPLING IS PROVIDED THEREBETWEEN, (B) SIGNAL INPUT AND OUTPUT MEANS COUPLED TO THE ARRAY, (C) A BODY OF FERRITE MATERIAL POSITIONED LATERALLY OF THE SPACE BETWEEN EACH PAIR OF RESONANT ELEMENTS IN A REGION OF SUBSTANTIALLY CIRCULAR POLARIZATION AND RELATIVELY HIGH INTENSITY OF THE RF MAGNETIC FIELD TO PROVIDE COUPLING OF THE RESONANT ELEMENTS FOR RF TRANSMISSION IN ONE DIRECTION BUT SUBSTANTIALLY NO COUPLING FOR RF TRANSMISSION IN THE OPPOSITE DIRECTION, (D) SAID FERRITE BODIES HAVING A PEAK IN THE PERMEABILITY CHARACTERISTIC THEREOF IN THE PRESENCE THEREIN OF AN RF MAGNETIC FIELD AND A D.C. MAGNETIC FIELD OF CORRESPONDING STRENGTH, (E) AND MEANS FOR APPLYING A D.C. MAGNETIC FIELD TO THE FERRITE BODIES PREDETERMINED TO PRODUCE A PERMEABILITY PEAK AT AN RF FREQUENCY WITHIN SAID PREDETERMINED RANGE AND THEREBY COUPLING OF THE RESPECTIVE PAIR OF RESONANT ELEMENTS, (F) THE COUPLING BETWEEN THE RESONANT ELEMENTS WITHIN SAID RF RANGE BEING SMALL IN THE ABSENCE OF THE D.C. MAGNETIC FIELD.