Photonic-electronic circuit boards
First Claim
1. A photonic-electronic multiple-layer circuit package family having electrical intra-layer and electrical inter-layer interconnection means, optical intra-layer and optical inter-layer interconnection means, plus electronic and optical escape means, and including electronic and optical transducer means both intra-layer and inter-layer characterized by:
- an electrical interconnected pattern layer having a selected pattern for connectivity to operational elements, and having physical gaps appropriately positioned for optical vias; and
optical inter-layer interconnection via means positioned for unobstructed optical passage through intervening layers at said gaps in the electrical interconnect pattern.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Significant advances in semiconductor microelectronics technologies have resulted in greatly enhanced chip performance. Systems studies have continuously shown that on-board interconnects between chips are the bottleneck in achieving board level performance that is comparable with this chip performance. This invention provides a multiple-layer photonic-electronic circuit board family that solves this interconnect performance problem. Multiple layers of patterned optical channel waveguides and patterned electrical conductors co-exist in a single circuit board structure, with optical vias to transport light between different photonics layers and electrical vias to transport electrical signals and power between different electronics layers. An all-lithographic fabrication technology is used to build the entire board structure with mutually compatible planar processing steps. Novel techniques are used to produce channel optical waveguides connected to in-plane 45 degree turning mirrors and channel optical waveguides connected to optical vias with out-of-plane 45 degree turning mirrors. The mirrors can have either total internal reflection or metallized facets.
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Citations
27 Claims
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1. A photonic-electronic multiple-layer circuit package family having electrical intra-layer and electrical inter-layer interconnection means, optical intra-layer and optical inter-layer interconnection means, plus electronic and optical escape means, and including electronic and optical transducer means both intra-layer and inter-layer
characterized by: -
an electrical interconnected pattern layer having a selected pattern for connectivity to operational elements, and having physical gaps appropriately positioned for optical vias; and
optical inter-layer interconnection via means positioned for unobstructed optical passage through intervening layers at said gaps in the electrical interconnect pattern. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A photonic-electronic multiple-layer circuit in which said integral rounded optical waveguides are produced by depositing and pattern-etching a thick layer of a first TIR-complementary photoresist over a first TIR-complementary base material, to form a TIR-complementary rounded-bottom half channel corresponding to the bottom half of an optical fiber to be connected;
- depositing an optical waveguide material over said photoresist and half channel to a thickness which, combined with the thickness of said first photoresist, approximates the diameter of the optical fiber to be connected;
patterning a central channel mask of a second photoresist material over said optical waveguide material, centered above said half channel so that etching will result in rounding the top of the optical waveguide material;
etching away said optical waveguide material down to said first photoresist, and removing said second photoresist, to leave a half-embedded half-exposed rounded waveguide approximating an optical fiber; and
covering said photoresist layer and said rounded waveguide material with a TIR-complementary material, so as to complete the TIR encapsulation of said waveguide material and leave effectively rounded TIR waveguides ready for low-loss connection to rounded optical fibers. - View Dependent Claims (11)
- depositing an optical waveguide material over said photoresist and half channel to a thickness which, combined with the thickness of said first photoresist, approximates the diameter of the optical fiber to be connected;
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12. The method of making a photonic-electronic circuit package termination characterized as follows:
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Step 1 Deposit, pattern, and develop a photoresist layer to leave a slope-sided run of photoresist over a base;
Step 2 Deposit waveguide material B filling said slope-sided run and over the remainder of said photoresist layer;
Step 3 Deposit protective mask layer D, of width related to the diameter of the desired rounded cross-section of waveguide, over said waveguide run; and
Step 4 Etch unwanted B down to layer A, leaving a waveguide run of material B of rounded cross-section, to approximate a ridge waveguide with rounded terminations. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15)
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16. The method of making a photonic-electronic circuit package, in the following steps:
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Step 1 Provide a composite layer of waveguide-forming material (C 11) with a complementary waveguide-forming material (A12) and a layer of photoresist (R1 13);
Step 2 Pattern and develop said photoresist layer (R1 13) into a turning pattern (14) for a waveguide layer (12);
Step 3 Remove sacrificial portion of waveguide layer (12) to leave patterned waveguide (15);
Step 4 Coat with overlayer (B 16) to leave a channel waveguide with a turning mirror right angle effectuated by total internal reflection.
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17. The method of making a photonic-electronic circuit package, in the following steps:
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Step 1 Provide a composite layer of waveguide-forming material (C 11) with a complementary waveguide-forming material (A12) and a layer of photoresist (R1 13);
Step 2 Image and develop to form a rectangular well (24) appropriately placed and angled for a turning mirror;
Step 3 Etch to transfer the well into the layer (A 12) to complete the well opening (25) stopping at the base layer (C 11);
Step 4 Metallize with a mirror layer (26) on walls of the well;
Step 5 Strip resist (R1 23), leaving mirrorized wall (27) in the well;
Step 6 Apply planarizing photoresist layer (R2 28), expose waveguide regions and etch all areas exce4pt waveguide regions, so that all non-waveguiding regions and desired mirror (30) are exposed, forming a ridge waveguide. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. The method of making a photonic-electronic circuit package, in the following steps:
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Step 1 Provide a composite layer of waveguide-forming material (C 11) with a layer of photoresist (R 41);
Step 2 Image and develop to form a pillar (42) appropriately placed and angled for a turning mirror, but having a set of undesired curves as well as a desired mirror base portion;
Step 3 Develop and bake to cure said pillar (42);
Step 4 Metallize with a mirror layer (43) on said pillar;
Step 5 Deposit underlayer (44) to cover at least one of said undesired curves of said pedestal (42); and
Step 6 Apply waveguide material layer over said underlayer, so that the waveguiding region addresses said desired mirror base portion of said pedestal (42);
leaving a vertical light beam exit perpendicular to said waveguide material layer. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27)
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Specification