Microwave coupled line device having insulated coupled inner conductors within a common outer conductor

Claim 1

HIGH FREQUENCY APPARATUS OPERATIVE OVER A FREQUENCY RANGE EMBRACING A PREDETERMINED CENTER FREQUENCY COMPRISING, FIRST AND SECOND INSULATED INNER CONDUCTORS, EACH HAVING INSULATION BONDED THERETO AND SEPARATED BY THE THICKNESS OF SAID INSULATION THEREBETWEEN FOR A DISTANCE CORRESPONDING SUBSTANTIALLY TO A QUARTER WAVELENGTH AT SAID CENTER FREQUENCY AND SEPARATED BY A GREATER DISTANCE ELSEWHERE, THE THICKNESS OF SAID SEPARATING INSULATION BEING LESS THAN THE THICKNESS OF EACH CONDUCTOR, MEANS INCLUDING AN OUTER CONDUCTOR DEFINING A CAVITY SURROUNDING AND INSULATEDLY SEPARATED FROM SAID INNER CONDUCTORS AND MAINTAINED IN FIXED RELATIONSHIP, WITH THE RADIAL DISTANCE BETWEEN SAID OUTER CONDUCTOR AND SAID INNER CONDUCTORS BEING GREATER THAN THE COMBINED THICKNESS OF SAID INNER CONDUCTORS WITH SAID SEPARATING INSULATION AND BEING MANY TIMES GREATER THAN THE DISTANCE BETWEEN SAID INNER CONDUCTORS, ESTABLISHED BY SAID SEPARATING INSULATION, MEANS DEFINING FOUR TERMINALS PAIRS OUTSIDE SAID CAVITY, EACH TERMINAL PAIR HAVING A SIGNAL TERMINAL COUPLED TO A RESPECTIVE END OF SAID CONDUCTORS AND A REFERENCE TERMINAL INTERCOUPLED WITH THE OTHER REFERENCE TERMINALS BY SAID OUTER CONDUCTOR.