Phase change control devices and circuits for guiding electromagnetic waves employing phase change control devices

A circuit for coupling to electromagnetic waves for having current flow induced throughout the circuit, comprising:

• a substrate for supporting components of the circuit;
• and
• at least one switch comprising:
• (a) a first conductive element on said substrate for connection to a first component of said circuit;
• (b) a second conductive element on said substrate for connection to a second component of said circuit;
• and
• (c) a switch element made up of a switching material on said substrate and connecting the first conductive element to the second conductive element, said switching material comprised of a compound which exhibits a bi-stable phase behavior, and switchable between a first capacitive reactance value and a second capacitive reactance value by application of energy thereto, affecting current flow between said first conductive element and said second conductive element resulting from a change in the capacitive reactance of said compound.

A circuit for coupling to electromagnetic waves for having current flow induced throughout the circuit, comprising:

• a substrate for supporting components of the circuit;
• a grid of first and second conductive elements that are spatially arranged for coupling to electromagnetic waves;
• and
• at least one switch element made up of a switching material on said substrate connecting one conductive element to a second conductive element of said grid, said switching material comprised of a compound which exhibits a bi-stable phase behavior, and switchable between a first capacitive reactance value and a second capacitive reactance value by application of energy thereto, to thereby affect current flow between said first conductive element and said second conductive element resulting from a change in the capacitive reactance of said compound.

A circuit for coupling to electromagnetic waves for having current flow induced throughout the circuit, comprising:

• a substrate for supporting components of the circuit;
• a grid comprising multiple pairs of first and second conductive elements that are arranged to form a frequency selective array for coupling to electromagnetic waves;
• and
• at least one switch element made up of a switching material on said substrate connecting the first conductive element to the second conductive element of each of the multiple pairs of said grid, said switching material comprised of a compound which exhibits a bi-stable phase behavior, and switchable between a first capacitive reactance value and a second capacitive reactance value by application of energy thereto, to thereby affect current flow between the first conductive element and the second conductive element resulting from a change in the capacitive reactance of said compound.