Optical waveguides – With disengagable mechanical connector – Optical fiber to a nonfiber optical device connector
Reexamination Certificate
2000-11-27
2002-07-23
Palmer, Phan T. H. (Department: 2874)
Optical waveguides
With disengagable mechanical connector
Optical fiber to a nonfiber optical device connector
C385S092000, C385S093000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06422766
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a housing configuration for a laser module with a hermetically sealed module housing. The module housing contains the laser module and has at least one transparent wall portion. A carrier plate either forms the base of the module housing or carries a housing base of the module housing. The housing configuration also includes a device for coupling a wave guide to the module housing.
A conventional housing for cooled laser modules, a so-called butterfly housing, includes a metallic baseplate, on which a cooling element, with a laser module provided on it, and possibly further optical elements are attached. The housing is closed in a hermetically sealed manner with a metal cover that is welded or soldered to the housing. The coupling-of the optical fiber takes place via a fiber flange attached to the housing in the region of a housing window. With such a housing, data rates of over 2.5 Gbit/s can be achieved. However, due to the requirement for a hermetic sealing, the housing as such, its electrical lead-throughs and the sealing of the optical window have to meet high requirements. Furthermore, only components and materials that release no gas or vapors can be used in the housing. For these reasons, optoelectronic components provided with such housings are relatively expensive.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,566,265 discloses a so-called TO (Transistor Outline) housing, which is used for the operation of uncooled laser modules. This housing can be produced at low cost. However, it is disadvantageous that this housing cannot be used for wavelength-stable laser modules, since the temperature cannot be stabilized, and that, due to the presence of RF lead-throughs on the baseplate side in the form of glazed-in pins, which hinder RF coupling at high frequencies, this housing is only partly suitable for data rates of over 2.5 Gbit/s.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide a housing configuration for a laser module which overcomes the above-mentioned disadvantages of the heretofore-known housing configurations of this general type and which can be produced at low cost, makes a high data rate possible and, in particular, is also suitable for wavelength-stable cooled laser modules.
With the foregoing and other objects in view there is provided, in accordance with the invention, a housing configuration for a laser module, including:
a hermetically sealed module housing configured for receiving a laser module;
the hermetically sealed module housing having at least one laser-light-transparent exit wall portion and having a carrier plate as a base;
the hermetically sealed module housing having a cap formed of a laser-light-transparent material selected from a laser-light-transparent glass or a laser-light-transparent silicon, the cap being integrally formed and coupled to the carrier plate in a hermetically sealed manner;
the carrier plate including an RF conductor track carrier formed of a dielectric material;
an RF conductor track section guided along the RF conductor track carrier for providing an electrical RF contact to the lager module; and
a coupling device connected to the hermetically sealed module housing and to be connected to an optical wave guide.
With the objects of the invention in view there is also provided, a housing configuration for a laser module, including:
a hermetically sealed module housing configured for receiving a laser module;
the hermetically sealed module housing having at least one laser-light-transparent exit wall portion and having a carrier plate as a base;
the hermetically sealed module housing having a circumferential wall formed of a laser-light-transparent pipe section;
a top plate terminating the pipe section, the top plate being a ceramic plate or a metal plate;
the carrier plate including an RF conductor track carrier formed of a dielectric material;
an RF conductor track section guided along the RF conductor track carrier for providing an electrical RF contact to the laser module; and
a coupling device connected to the hermetically sealed module housing and to be connected to an optical wave guide.
With the objects of the invention in view there is further provided, a housing configuration for a laser module, including:
a hermetically sealed module housing configured for receiving a laser module;
the hermetically sealed module housing having at least one laser-light-transparent exit wall portion and having a carrier plate as a base;
the hermetically sealed module housing having a circumferential wall formed of a pipe section, the pipe section being a ceramic pipe section or a metal pipe section;
a laser-light-transparent top plate terminating the pipe section;
the carrier plate including an RF conductor track carrier formed of a dielectric material;
an RF conductor track section guided along the RF conductor track carrier for providing an electrical RF contact to the laser module; and
a coupling device connected to the hermetically sealed module housing and to be connected to an optical wave guide.
With the objects of the invention in view there is additionally provided, a housing configuration for a laser module, including:
a hermetically sealed module housing configured for receiving a laser module;
the hermetically sealed module housing having at least one laser-light-transparent exit wall portion and having a carrier plate;
the hermetically sealed module housing having a housing base, that is different from the carrier plate, and having a circumferential wall;
the circumferential wall being cap-shaped in accordance with a TO housing cap and having a cover side;
the carrier plate including a body of a material with a good thermal conductivity and including an RF conductor track carrier formed of a dielectric material provided on the body on a side thereof facing the housing base;
a laser-light-transparent window being attached in a hermetically sealed manner at the cover side;
an RF conductor track section guided along the RF conductor track carrier for providing an electrical RF contact to the laser module;
the housing base being formed with a contacting bore;
a contacting pin extending in an electrically isolated manner through the contacting bore and being electrically contacted with the RF conductor track section; and
a coupling device connected to the hermetically sealed module housing and to be connected to an optical wave guide.
To achieve the object of the invention, the carrier plate includes an RF conductor track carrier formed of a dielectric material, and an RF conductor track section is guided on the RF conductor track carrier for an electrical RF contacting of the laser module.
The RF conductor track section running on or in the carrier plate achieves the effect that the module housing has the desired good RF properties. At the same time, it is ensured by the carrier plate—in that it bears the housing base of the module housing or even itself forms the base of the module housing—that a good thermal coupling of the carrier plate to the laser module can always be achieved. This makes it possible for the laser module to be operated at a stable temperature and consequently for wavelength-stable laser modules to be provided, as are required for optical transmission systems with WDM (Wavelength Division Multiplexing) transmission.
A further major advantage of the invention is that a low-cost overall construction is made possible for several reasons. Firstly, the module housing as such can be produced in a very cost-saving way. If the carrier plate forms the base of the housing, the latter can be made up in a simple way of a cap placed onto the carrier plate in a hermetically sealed manner. In the other case (i.e. if the carrier plate bears the housing base), already existing, low-cost TO housings can be used for constructing the housing configuration according to the invention after shortening their lead-through pins and mounting them on the carrier plate according to the invention in the manner of an SMD (Surface Mounted Device). As
Althaus Hans-Ludwig
Auracher Franz
Greenberg Laurence A.
Mayback Gregory L.
Palmer Phan T. H.
Siemens Aktiengesellschaft AG
Stemer Werner H.
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