Arrayed Multimode Fiber to VCSEL Coupling for Short Reach Communications Using Hybrid Polymer-Fiber Lens

We report the novel method that can give high coupling efficiency between a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) array and a multimode optical fiber ribbon by using a hybrid-polymer-fiber lens technique. The coupling efficiency as high as 91% was achieved by optimizing the polymer lens curvature for the single source to the single fiber case. The longitudinal and the transverse coupling tolerances were enhanced with the introduction of a coreless silica fiber (CSF) segment between the fiber and the lens tip. The tradeoff between the high coupling efficiency and the large tolerance was experimentally observed. The technique was further applied to the coupling between a four-channel VCSEL array and a four-core fiber ribbon for short reach applications. The procedure of fabrication and the analysis of their optical characteristics are reported.