The present invention relates generally to optical components, and more particularly, to a compact laser package having integrated temperature control.
It is well known that varying the temperature of a laser diode (which is a type of laser emitter) may affect the wavelength (λ) of the emitted optical signal. For some applications, the wavelength of the optical signal is not critical, and a heat sink is generally sufficient for cooling a laser diode for these applications. Optical signals with precise wavelengths are required for some applications such as Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing (DWDM), however. For those applications, a laser diode must be maintained at a precise temperature, and a heat sink alone is not sufficient.
Some conventional laser diode packages contain a large built-in temperature controller to control the temperature of the laser diode. Some laser packages even contain an elaborate built-in coolant-circulation system for cooling the laser diode. Because of their large size, such conventional laser diode packages cannot be easily incorporated into pluggable fiber optic transceiver or transmitter modules, which typically have strict form factor requirements.
In addition, conventional laser diode packages containing large built-in temperature controllers consume a significant amount of power. Many industry standards for pluggable transceiver or transmitter module have strict limitations on power consumption. These limitations make it even more difficult to incorporate conventional laser packages with large temperature controllers into pluggable transceiver or transmitter modules.
Accordingly, there exists a need for an apparatus for precisely controlling the temperature of a laser diode without using a laser diode package that contains a large built-in temperature controller such that temperature control functionality can be implemented in an optoelectronic transceiver or transmitter modules.
An embodiment of the present invention is a laser package that includes a housing, a window through the housing, a laser emitter disposed in the housing, and an active temperature control device disposed in the housing. In this embodiment, the laser emitter is affixed to the active temperature control device and aligned such that optical signals generated by the laser emitter can be emitted through the window without a waveguide. Additionally, the housing has an outline similar to that of a transistor-outline can. Thus, the compact laser package can be utilized in optoelectronic transceiver or transmitter modules that meet standardized form factor requirements.
In one embodiment, the housing of the laser package includes a header structure and a header can that is configured to mate with the header structure. In some embodiments, a hole in the header can may be used as the window. Alternatively, a piece of glass and/or a lens may be integrated with the header can to form the window.
In one embodiment, the active temperature control device includes thermoelectric elements (TEC) configured to regulate temperature of the laser emitter. Additionally, the active temperature control device may include a temperature measuring device operable to measure temperature of the laser emitter and a light intensity sensing device operable to measure the intensity of the optical signals emitted by the laser emitter.
For a better understanding of the invention, reference should be made to the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
Preferred embodiments of the invention are described below. In the interest of clarity, not all features of an actual implementation are described. It will be appreciated that in the development of any such implementation, numerous implementation-specific decisions must be made to achieve the developers' specific goals, such as compliance with system-related and business-related constraints and compliance with the requirements of various existing and yet to be determined form factors. Moreover, it will be appreciated that such a development effort might be complex and time-consuming, but would nevertheless be a routine undertaking for those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of this disclosure.
In furtherance of the present embodiment, the physical dimensions of the transceiver or transmitter module are as follows: width, 3 cm or less; length, 6.5 cm or less, and height, 1.2 cm or less. A GBIC standard (SFF-8053 GBIC standard version 5.5) requires the dimensions of a module housing to be approximately 3 cm×6.5 cm×1.2 cm. Thus, the transceiver or transmitter module of this embodiment meets the form factor requirements of the GBIC standard.
In another embodiment, the physical dimensions of the module housing are: width, 0.54 inches or less; length, 2.24 inches or less; and height, 0.34 inches or less. The SFP MSA (Small Form Factor Pluggable Multisource Agreement) requires the dimensions of a compliant module housing to be approximately 0.54″×2.24″×0.34″. Thus, the module housing of that embodiment meets the form factor requirements of the SFP standard. Note that the present invention is not limited to the form factor requirements described above. A person of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of this disclosure will appreciate that the present invention is adaptable to various existing or yet to be determined transceiver or transmitter module form factors, some of which can be smaller.
As shown in
In one embodiment, the laser emitter 106 is an edge emitter. In alternative embodiments, a Vertical Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (VCSEL) or any other suitable source of optical signals may be used.
As is understood by one skilled in the art, an edge emitter laser emits optical signals in both the forward direction and the backward direction. Forward direction refers to the direction in which the optical signals have the strongest intensity, while backward direction refers to the opposite direction. The laser intensity in the backward direction is proportional to the laser intensity in the forward direction. Thus, it is useful to measure the intensity of the laser in the backward direction in order to track the laser intensity in the forward direction. Accordingly, a photo-diode 126 is positioned to sense the intensity of the optical signals emitted by the laser emitter 106 in the backward direction. The photo-diode 126 is mechanically attached to the active temperature control device 200 via a photo-diode submount 128. The temperature of the photo-diode 126 is regulated by the active temperature control device 200. Thus, temperature sensitive fluctuations in the light intensity measurements made by the photo-diode 126 can be substantially eliminated.
Also shown in
Attention now turns to
With reference again to
In one embodiment, the header structure 102 may be made by metal injection molding (MIM). The material used for making the header structure 102 should be suitable for MIM, resistance welding of the header can, glass sealing of leads for hermiticity, and plating. In addition, high thermal conductivity is desired. While many materials meet the aforementioned requirements, cold-rolled steel is presently preferred. Other materials that may be used include an alloy know as “Alloy42” and Copper Tungsten (CuW).
Bond wires 110, which are not shown in
In present embodiments, the bond wires 110 are preferably made of gold with diameters of about {fraction (1/1000)} of an inch. The lengths of the bond wires 110 are preferably as short as possible so that they can transmit optical signal data at a high rate. The impedance of the bond wires in present embodiments is matched to those of the leads 104 so as to avoid signal-reflections.
Attention now turns to
Attention now turns to the dimensions of the laser package. According to one embodiment, the diameter of the header can 300 is preferably smaller than 0.295 inches. The height of the header can 300 is preferably smaller than 0.225 inches. When the header can 300 is mated with the header subassembly 100, the resulting laser package may have a height of approximately 0.265 inches, excluding the leads 104. In one preferred embodiment, the housing 100 has the same size as a convention transistor outline housing and the header can 300 has the same size as the header can of a conventional transistor outline housing for a laser diode or photo-diode. A person of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of this disclosure will appreciate that the present invention is adaptable to various existing or yet to be determined laser package form factors, some of which can be smaller than the dimensions described above.
In comparison to conventional laser packages with built in temperature controllers, such as “Butterfly” packages, the laser package of the present embodiment is significantly smaller in size, and can be much more easily integrated into many optoelectronic transceiver modules constructed according to standardized form factor requirements. Additionally, the power consumption of the laser package of the present embodiment is lower than that of conventional laser packages with a large built-in heat sink. As such, the laser package of the present embodiment can be more easily integrated into optoelectronic transceiver modules that have power consumption restrictions.
The present invention, a compact laser package with integrated temperature control, has thus been disclosed. The foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments of the present invention are presented for purposes of illustration and explanation. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its practical applications, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the invention. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed. Various modifications may occur to those skilled in the art having the benefit of this disclosure without departing from the inventive concepts described herein. Accordingly, it is the claims, not merely the foregoing illustration, that are intended to define the exclusive rights of the invention.
In general, exemplary embodiments of the invention are concerned with optical packages that provide for integrated temperature control while conforming with optical transceiver and transmitter form factors and standards. In one example, an optical package includes a header assembly having a base portion to which is attached a header structure that is split into first and second portions that are separated from each other by a space. The header structure further includes one or more electrical leads extending through the base portion and into one of the first and second portions of the header structure. An active temperature control device is included in the optical package and resides in the space between the first and second portions of the header structure. Finally, an optical element, such as a laser, is provided that is arranged for thermal communication with the active temperature control device so that operation of the optical element can be controlled by way of the active temperature control device.
This application is a continuation, and claims the benefit, of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/101,260 entitled COMPACT LASER PACKAGE WITH INTEGRATED TEMPERATURE CONTROL, filed Mar. 18, 2002, which, in turn, claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/317,835 entitled COMPACT LASER PACKAGE WITH INTEGRATED TEMPERATURE CONTROL, and filed Sep. 6, 2001. All of the aforementioned patent applications are incorporated herein in their respective entireties by this reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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60317835 | Sep 2001 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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Parent | 10101260 | Mar 2002 | US |
Child | 11011807 | Dec 2004 | US |