Abstract: An expanded beam ferrule includes a first ferrule halve having first reflective surfaces and a second ferrule halve having second reflective surfaces, which together retain optical fibers. The pair of reflective surfaces output collimated light parallel to the mid-plane of the ferrule. An external sleeve aligns the external surface of two similar ferrules, with corresponding second reflective surfaces of the ferrules facing each other. Output light from an optical fiber held in one ferrule is bent twice by the pair of reflective surfaces, with beam divergence after the first bent, and collimation after the second bent. The collimated light is transmitted to the facing second reflective surface in a facing second ferrule aligned by the sleeve, which is subject to optical reshaping in reverse to that undertaken in the first ferrule, so as to converge and focus light to input to the optical fiber held in the other ferrule.

Abstract: A hermetic optical fiber alignment assembly, including a first ferrule portion having a first surface provided with a plurality of grooves receiving the end sections of optical fibers, wherein the grooves define the location and orientation of the end sections with respect to the first ferrule portion, and a second ferrule portion having a second surface facing the first surface of the first ferrule, wherein the first ferrule portion is attached to the second ferrule portion with the first surface against the second surface, wherein a cavity is defined between the first ferrule portion and the second ferrule portion, wherein the cavity is wider than the grooves, and wherein a suspended section of each optical fiber is suspended in the cavity, and wherein the cavity is sealed with a sealant. The sealant extends around the suspended sections of the optical fibers within the cavity.

Abstract: An alignment coupler is provided to facilitate active alignment of the optical bench to the optical connector. The optical bench and the coupler together form an optical bench based connector.

Abstract: An edge coupler having an optical bench with a mirror array. Each mirror bends, reflects and/or reshapes incident light. The edge coupler is optically coupled to the optical elements in a PIC chip which direct light to the edge of the PIC chip. The edge coupler provides a demountable, passively aligned coupling between an optical fiber array and the PIC chip. The edge coupler may be a free space edge coupler without any optical element between the mirror array and the optical elements of the PIC chip, or may include grooves each receiving a section of optical fiber with its longitudinal axis along the first light path and terminating substantially at or extending beyond the edge of the edge coupler. The optical fiber array may include an optical fiber connector terminating and supporting the ends of the optical fibers in optical alignment with the mirror array of the edge coupler.

Abstract: To couple light between an optical fiber and a grating coupler of a photonic integrated circuits, a mirror is provided to turn light to/from the optical fiber to allow the axis of the optical fiber to be oriented at small angles or parallel to the surface of the PIC, and lowered close to the surface of the PIC. The mirror is further configured to reshape light from a flat polished optical fiber to produce a mode field resembling the mode field of an angled polished optical fiber, to match the design angle of existing grating couplers that are designed to work with angled polished optical fibers. The mirror and optical fiber alignment structure in the optical connector are integrally/simultaneous formed by precision stamping.

Abstract: A tensioning tool device includes a flexible or spring support having a spring bearing that translates a linearly applied external force at an input to linear displacement at an output of the spring bearing. An external force applied to the input of the spring bearing causes the output to pull on a section of the optical fiber and imparts axial strain and tension in the optical fiber. The spring bearing includes one or more sets of parallel flexible beams cantilever-coupled to the input and output, to provide a flexible/spring structure that couples an external force input to an output coupled to the first section of the optical fiber. The external force is applied to displace the input to flex the fixed-guided beam(s) to impart axial tension in the optical fiber at the output of the flexible bearing.

Abstract: Optical alignment of optical subassembly and optoelectronic device is achieved using an external source and an external receiver, passing optical signal through a passive waveguide in the optoelectronic device, via alignment reflective surface features provided on the optical subassembly. The optical subassembly is provided with a first alignment reflective surface directing alignment signal from the source to a grating coupler at the input of the waveguide, and a second alignment reflective surface directing to the receiver the alignment signal directed from a grating coupler at the output of the waveguide after the alignment signal has been transmitted from the input to the output through the waveguide.

Abstract: A process of making a coupling device for physically and optically coupling an optical fiber to route optical signals to/from optical receiver/transmitter. The coupling device includes a structured reflective surface that functions as an optical element that directs light to/from the input/output ends of the optical fiber by reflection, and an optical fiber retention groove structure that positively receives the optical fiber in a manner with the end of the optical fiber at a defined distance to and aligned with the structured reflective surface. The open structure of the structured reflective surface and fiber retention structure lends itself to mass production processes such as precision stamping. The coupling device can be attached to an optical transmitter and/or receiver, with the structured reflective surface aligned to the light source in the transmitter or to the detector in the receiver, and adapted in an active optical cable.

Abstract: A hermetic optical subassembly includes an optical bench having a mirror directing optical signals to/from an optical waveguide, a carrier supporting a photonic device, and an intermediate optical bench having a mirror directing optical signals between the photonic device and the optical bench. The optical bench and the intermediate optical bench optically aligns the photonic device to the waveguide along a desired optical path. In one embodiment, the photonic device is an edge emitting laser (EML). The mirror of the optical bench may be passively aligned with the mirror of the intermediate optical bench. The assembled components are hermetically sealed. The body of the optical benches are preferably formed by stamping a malleable metal material to form precise geometries and surface features. In a further aspect, the hermetic optical subassembly integrates a multiplexer/demultiplexer, for directing optical signals between a single optical fiber and a plurality of photonic devices.

Abstract: A hermetic optical fiber alignment assembly includes a ferrule portion having a plurality of grooves receiving the end sections of optical fibers, wherein the grooves define the location and orientation of the end sections with respect to the ferrule portion. The assembly includes an integrated optical element for coupling the input/output of an optical fiber to the opto-electronic devices in the opto-electronic module. The optical element can be in the form of a structured reflective surface. The end of the optical fiber is at a defined distance to and aligned with the structured reflective surface. The structured reflective surfaces and the fiber alignment grooves can be formed by stamping.

Abstract: An expanded beam ferrule includes a first ferrule halve having reflective surfaces and a second ferrule halve, which together retain optical fibers. The reflective surfaces output light perpendicular to the mid-plane of the ferrule. A sleeve aligns the external surface of two similar ferrules, with the reflective surfaces of the respective ferrules facing each other. Output light from an optical fiber held in the first ferrule is bent and collimated by a reflective surface, transmitted to the facing reflective surface in a second ferrule aligned by the sleeve, which bends the light to input to the optical fiber held in the second ferrule. The ferrule components and/or sleeve are precision formed by high throughput metal stamping. The ferrule is incorporated in an optical fiber connector.

Abstract: An optical bench subassembly including an integrated photonic device. Optical alignment of the photonic device with the optical bench can be performed outside of an optoelectronic package assembly before attaching thereto. The photonic device is attached to a base of the optical bench, with its optical input/output in optical alignment with the optical output/input of the optical bench. The optical bench supports an array of optical fibers in precise relationship to a structured reflective surface. The photonic device is mounted on a submount to be attached to the optical bench. The photonic device may be actively or passively aligned with the optical bench. After achieving optical alignment, the submount of the photonic device is fixedly attached to the base of the optical bench. The optical bench subassembly may be structured to be hermetically sealed as a hermetic feedthrough, to be hermetically attached to a hermetic optoelectronic package.

Abstract: An optical coupling device for routing optical signals for use in an optical communications module, in which defined on a base are a structured surface having a surface profile that reshapes and/or reflect an incident light, and an alignment structure defined on the base, configured with a surface feature to facilitate positioning an optical component on the base in optical alignment with the structured surface to allow light to be transmitted along a defined path between the structured surface and the optical component. The structured surface and the alignment structure are integrally defined on the base by stamping a malleable material of the base. The alignment structure facilitates passive alignment of the optical component on the base in optical alignment with the structured surface to allow light to be transmitted along a defined path between the structured surface and the optical component. The structured surface has a reflective surface profile, which reflects and/or reshape incident light.

Abstract: A composite structure includes a base and an auxiliary portion of dissimilar materials. The auxiliary portion is shaped by stamping. As the auxiliary portion is stamped, it interlocks with the base, and at the same time forming a desired structured feature on the auxiliary portion, such as a structured reflective surface, an alignment feature, etc. With this approach, relatively less critical structured features can be shaped on the bulk of the base with less effort to maintain a relatively larger tolerance, while the relatively more critical structured features on the auxiliary portion are more precisely shaped with further considerations to define dimensions, geometries and/or finishes at relatively smaller tolerances. The auxiliary portion may include a composite structure of two dissimilar materials associated with different properties for stamping different structured features.

Abstract: A ferrule for an optical fiber connector has an external surface for alignment with a complementary surface of an alignment sleeve (i.e., the inside surface of a generally cylindrical or tubular sleeve). The external surface of the ferrule is generally cylindrical, having a sectional contact surface profile that is generally oval in shape. More specifically, a plurality of points of contact between the ferrule and the sleeve are defined along a curve in cross-section, wherein the center of curvature at each of the contact points along this contact point curve (i.e., the curve containing contact points that contribute to alignment) does not lie in the plane of the axis of the array of optical fibers.

Abstract: A ferrule for an optical fiber connector has an external surface for alignment with a complementary surface of an alignment sleeve (i.e., the inside surface of a generally cylindrical or tubular sleeve). The external surface of the ferrule is generally cylindrical, having a sectional contact surface profile that is generally oval in shape. More specifically, a plurality of points of contact between the ferrule and the sleeve are defined along a curve in cross-section, wherein the center of curvature at each of the contact points along this contact point curve (i.e., the curve containing contact points that contribute to alignment) does not lie in the plane of the axis of the array of optical fibers.

Abstract: An expanded beam ferrule includes a first ferrule halve having first reflective surfaces and a second ferrule halve having second reflective surfaces, which together retain optical fibers. The pair of reflective surfaces output collimated light parallel to the mid-plane of the ferrule. An external sleeve aligns the external surface of two similar ferrules, with corresponding second reflective surfaces of the ferrules facing each other. Output light from an optical fiber held in one ferrule is bent twice by the pair of reflective surfaces, with beam divergence after the first bent, and collimation after the second bent. The collimated light is transmitted to the facing second reflective surface in a facing second ferrule aligned by the sleeve, which is subject to optical reshaping in reverse to that undertaken in the first ferrule, so as to converge and focus light to input to the optical fiber held in the other ferrule.

Abstract: A hermetic optical fiber alignment assembly, including a first ferrule portion having a first surface provided with a plurality of grooves receiving the end sections of optical fibers, wherein the grooves define the location and orientation of the end sections with respect to the first ferrule portion, and a second ferrule portion having a second surface facing the first surface of the first ferrule, wherein the first ferrule portion is attached to the second ferrule portion with the first surface against the second surface, wherein a cavity is defined between the first ferrule portion and the second ferrule portion, wherein the cavity is wider than the grooves, and wherein a suspended section of each optical fiber is suspended in the cavity, and wherein the cavity is sealed with a sealant. The sealant extends around the suspended sections of the optical fibers within the cavity.

Abstract: Optical alignment of optical subassembly and optoelectronic device is achieved using an external source and an external receiver, passing optical signal through a passive waveguide in the optoelectronic device, via alignment reflective surface features provided on the optical subassembly. The optical subassembly is provided with a first alignment reflective surface directing alignment signal from the source to a grating coupler at the input of the waveguide, and a second alignment reflective surface directing to the receiver the alignment signal directed from a grating coupler at the output of the waveguide after the alignment signal has been transmitted from the input to the output through the waveguide.

Abstract: The present invention provides a spring bias that is particularly suited for use to preload a low profile ferrule of an optical connector. In accordance with the present invention, an axial preload is applied to a connector ferrule by a spring structure provided external of the connector. In one embodiment, spring structure is provided outside a plurality of optical fiber connectors, which provides axial preload of multiple ferrules. Each ferrule could be of the type that supports a plurality of optical fibers of a fiber cable. In one embodiment, the spring bias is effected by a planar flexure external of the connector. The ferrule is coupled to the planar flexure with its longitudinal axis through the center of the planar flexure.