ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Planar transmission line

Okay, so you know how sometimes you have to send a message or a signal from one place to another? Like you might have to tell your friend something important, but they're too far away to just shout it to them. Well, grown-ups have to do that too, but in a much more complicated way.

One way they do it is by using something called a transmission line. That's like a special pathway that the message or signal can travel along to get where it needs to go.

Now, some transmission lines are flat like a pancake instead of round like a garden hose. Those are called planar transmission lines. It's like if you had a really thin, flat hose that the message or signal could travel through.

But, it's not just any flat piece of material. It has to be something called a conductor, which is like a special metal that can carry the message or signal really well. And there's another layer of material called a dielectric that helps keep everything in place and stop the signal from leaking out.

So, put all these pieces together and you have a planar transmission line. It's like a special road that the message or signal can travel on, made out of special materials that help it get to where it needs to go.