waveguide

American

[weyv-gahyd] / ˈweɪvˌgaɪd /

noun

Electronics, Optics.

a conduit, as a metal tube, coaxial cable, or strand of glass fibers, used as a conductor or directional transmitter for various kinds of electromagnetic waves.

waveguide British

/ ˈweɪvˌɡaɪd /

noun

electronics a solid rod of dielectric or a hollow metal tube, usually of rectangular cross section, used as a path to guide microwaves

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of waveguide

First recorded in 1930–35; wave + guide

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

When the beam propagating inside the waveguide enters the liquid crystal layer it modifies the light's phase and polarization when an electric field is applied.

From Science Daily • Mar. 4, 2024

To test the devices, the researchers injected laser light in the waveguide and then varied the voltage applied to the liquid crystal layer, which modulated the light.

From Science Daily • Mar. 4, 2024

The glasses’ lens-over-lens design looks uniquely silly, especially because the frame and the waveguide are completely different shapes despite Oppo designing them to work together.

From The Verge • Jul. 11, 2022

Oppo’s waveguide projects any LED color you want, as long as it’s green.

From The Verge • Jul. 11, 2022

An acoustic waveguide in the atmosphere, Ewing reasoned, would allow the U.S.

From Science Magazine • Apr. 26, 2022

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023