James R. Bortolini

Photonic packaging using laser/receiver arrays and flexible optical circuits

Optoelectronic modules and multifiber optical connectors were successfully applied to intrasystem interconnection within a large telecommunication transmission terminal. The optoelectronic modules are 32-channel 850 nm vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL) and detector arrays packaged using multichip module technology system components include multimode silica optical fibers and silicon V-groove technology based multifiber optical connectors. The system architecture presented particularly difficult challenges for parallel optics because of complex cable assemblies required by the fan-out nature of the cables and the signal bifurcation needed to accomplish duplication, Nevertheless, the experiments completed demonstrate that parallel optics can dramatically increase the capacity of telecommunications equipment with no significant changes in system or physical architecture. The density of the optical modules and connectors clearly demonstrates that optical interconnection technology will be able to support the input/output (I/O) requirements of new generations of integrated circuit technology.