Dielectric-Shielded G-Line

A dielectric shield is proposed to protect a G-line from environmental conditions, such as ice, without altering the basic characteristics of the surface wave. A solution is obtained for a multilayered cylindrical surface waveguide and is used to predict the guide wavelength and attenuation rate of a dielectric-shielded G-line and the effect of a layer of ice, which can be very detrimental to the performance of a G-line. A dielectric shield is shown to effectively protest the G-line without appreciably changing its transmission characteristics. Experimental confirmation of the calculations is demonstrated.