Amulti-channel active fiber-optic feedthrough with stamped mirrors for avionic transceivers

This paper describes an “active” version of a hermetic fiber-optic feedthrough for avionic transceivers; active means that the Tx and Rx versions of the feedthroughs include a VCSEL array or a photodiode array, respectively. The hermetic feedthrough is an assembly of stamped components that align all of the optics to precision sufficient for single-mode applications. A stamped micro mirror array bends the light beams 90 degrees so that optical fibers are arranged parallel to the substrate. Active hermetic feedthroughs can be attached onto the ends of fiber-optic jumpers to make an active, mirrored, optical fiber sub-assembly (AM-OFSA). AM-OFSAs allow transceiver manufacturers to eliminate complex optical alignment processes within the hermetic package and only require low-tolerance electrical connections.