A communication system that includes a master communication device at a first location in a defined indoor area, a service communication device at a second location in the defined indoor area, and passive optical routing devices at a plurality of locations in the defined indoor area. The master communication device obtains a first signal from a data source or a modem and directs a first laser beam carrying the first signal in a downstream path to a service communication device directly or via the plurality of passive optical routing devices based on defined connectivity criterions. The service communication device demodulates the first signal from the first laser beam, distributes one or more wireless signals to end-user devices, and further obtains one or more second signals from end-user devices and re-transmits obtained signals over second laser beam in upstream path to master communication device directly or via the passive optical routing devices.

Photonic interposers that enable low-power, high-bandwidth inter-chip (e.g., board-level and/or rack-level) as well as intra-chip communication are described. Described herein are techniques, architectures and processes that improve upon the performance of conventional computers. Some embodiments provide photonic interposers that use photonic tiles, where each tile includes programmable photonic circuits that can be programmed based on the needs of a particular computer architecture. Some tiles are instantiations of a common template tile that are stitched together in a 1D or a 2D arrangement. Some embodiments described herein provide a programmable physical network designed to connect pairs of tiles together with photonic links.

An optical transmission/reception unit includes a carrier rotatable about a rotational axis, an optical receiver arranged at the carrier on the rotational axis to receive an optical reception signal from a first direction, an optical transmitter arranged adjacent to the optical receiver at the carrier to emit an optical transmission signal in a second direction, and a transmission/reception optic arranged at the carrier on the rotational axis above the optical receiver and extending across the optical receiver and the optical transmitter, wherein the transmission/reception optic includes a reception optic and a transmission optic arranged in the reception optic. The reception optic is configured to guide the optical reception signal incident on the transmission/reception optic towards the optical receiver on the rotational axis, and the transmission optic is arranged above the optical transmitter and is configured to shape the optical transmission signal emitted by the optical transmitter into an output beam.

Embodiments of the disclosure pertain to a system for transferring an optical signal from one photonics chip or integrated circuit (PIC) to another. The system includes a first PIC having (i) an optical emitter or optical transmission mechanism and (ii) a focusing mirror thereon, and a second PIC having an optical receiver and a reflecting mirror thereon. The reflecting mirror is configured to reflect light transmitted by the optical emitter or optical transmission mechanism back to the first PIC. The focusing mirror is configured to (i) further reflect the light reflected by the reflecting mirror and (ii) focus the further reflected light on the optical receiver. Methods of using and manufacturing the system are also disclosed.

An LED may include a third contact, for example to increase speed of operation of the LED. The LED with the third contact may be used in an optical communication system, for example a chip-to-chip optical interconnect.

Multi-chip modules in different semiconductor packages may be optically data coupled by way of LEDs and photodetectors linked by a multicore fiber. The multicore fiber may pass through apertures in the semiconductor packages, with an array of LEDs and photodetectors in the semiconductor package providing and receiving, respectively, optical signals comprised of data passed between the multi-chip modules.

A contactless connector includes: a circuit board; a light emitter arranged on the circuit board and capable of converting electrical signals into optical signals; a light emitter control chip arranged on the circuit board for controlling the operation of the light emitter; and a light-transmitting member at least partially covering the circuit board, the light emitter, and the light emitter control chip.

Optical communication system communicates between an array of originating tiles and an array of terminating tiles. Each array is associated with a lenslet array, such as a two-layer array which has two layers of lenslets. Each originating tile has an array of transmitters and each terminating tile has an array of receivers. Each tile is associated with a common lenslet or lenslet pair. A beamlet from a representative transmitter passes through the lenslet pair adjacent to its tile to become a collimated beam whose angle is related to the location of the transmitter. The collimated beam passes through the receiver lenslet pair adjacent to the tile containing the receiver associated with the representative transmitter, and is focused onto that receiver by that lenslet pair. The system may operate in the reverse direction, wherein the transmitters are transmitter-receivers, the receivers are receiver-transmitters, and a beam from a receiver-transmitter is directed to its corresponding transmitter-receiver.

An optical communications transmitter for use in free space communication from the transmitter to a receiver, the transmitter including a light input and an optical fiber array for directing the light input. The optical communications transmitter further includes an optical phased array for receiving the light input from the optical fiber array and transmitting a light output, the optical phased array being configured for modifying a relative phase of the light input such that the light output exhibits a predetermined far-field intensity pattern.

A wireless optical communication network includes a base station established for wireless optical communication using a wireless optical signal and including a participant apparatus moveable with respect to the base station including a communication unit established for wireless optical communication. Further, the participant apparatus includes a deflection unit configured to deflect at least part of the wireless optical signal between a first direction between the deflection unit and the communication unit and a second direction between the deflection unit and the base station.