Optical communication module

Abstract

To provide an optical communication module that has a configuration in which multiple optical transceivers are arranged in parallel and can realize high transmission band density.SOLUTION: An optical communication module includes a base material having multiple electrical connection terminals arranged in parallel along a predetermined arrangement direction, and multiple optical transceivers. The respective optical transceivers include a mounting board, an optical transmitter / receiver, and an electric connector. The mounting board includes a first main surface parallel to a surface crossing the predetermined arrangement direction, a second main surface that opposes the first main surface while being separated from it and is parallel to a surface crossing the predetermined arrangement direction, and a side periphery that opposes the base material. The electric connector is provided in the side periphery of the mounting board and is connected to electric wiring extending from the optical transmitter / receiver. The electric connectors of the multiple optical transceivers are connected to multiple electric connection terminals in a one-to-one relationship, and the mounting boards of the multiple optical transceivers are arranged in parallel along the predetermined arrangement direction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an optical communication module such as an optical transceiver having a function of converting an electrical signal into an optical signal and transmitting the optical signal to an optical transmission medium, and / or receiving an optical signal from the optical transmission medium and converting it into an electrical signal, and related technologies thereof.

Background Art

[0002] In recent years, with the progress of information and communication technology and the improvement of the computing speed of information processing devices, the amount of communication data between IT devices such as server devices, and the amount of communication data of short-distance communication between processors such as CPUs and GPUs, that is, the amount of communication data between nodes has been continuously increasing. It is considered difficult to realize a wide transmission bandwidth that will be required in the near future only with electrical interconnection using electrical wiring for the interconnection between nodes. To cope with such a situation, a technology called optical interconnection that uses optical communication for the interconnection between nodes is being introduced instead of electrical interconnection. In the form of optical interconnection, an optical transceiver having a function of converting an electrical signal into an optical signal and transmitting the optical signal to an optical transmission medium such as an optical fiber or an optical waveguide, and receiving an optical signal from the optical transmission medium and converting it into an electrical signal is used.

[0003] Prior art related to optical transceivers is disclosed, for example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2016-099534 (Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] At the transmitting and receiving section of the optical interconnection, a high transmission bandwidth density (transmission bandwidth per unit area or per unit length; for example, unit: Gbps / mm 2 ) is one way to achieve this. However, in a configuration where such optical transceivers are arranged in parallel, since a plurality of optical transceivers must be assembled and mounted within a limited space, there is a problem that there is a limit to increasing the transmission bandwidth density.

[0006] In view of the above, an object of the present disclosure is to provide an optical communication module capable of realizing a high transmission bandwidth density while having a configuration in which a plurality of optical transceivers are arranged in parallel.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] An optical communication module according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes a base material having a plurality of electrical connection terminals arranged in parallel with each other along a predetermined arrangement direction, and a plurality of optical transceivers mounted on the base material. Each optical transceiver of the plurality of optical transceivers includes a first main surface parallel to a plane intersecting the predetermined arrangement direction, a second main surface facing away from the first main surface and parallel to a plane intersecting the predetermined arrangement direction, and a mounting substrate having a side peripheral portion facing the base material, an optical transceiver disposed on the first main surface and capable of being coupled to input / output ends of an optical transmission medium, and an electrical connector provided at the side peripheral portion and connected to an electrical wiring extending from the optical transceiver. The plurality of electrical connectors of the plurality of optical transceivers are connected to the plurality of electrical connection terminals in a one-to-one correspondence, and the plurality of mounting substrates of the plurality of optical transceivers are arranged in parallel with each other along the predetermined arrangement direction.

[0008] The optical communication module may further include a heat-conductive cover member that covers at least one of the first main surface and the second main surface, and the heat-conductive cover member may cover both the first main surface and the second main surface.

[0009] The optical transmission medium can be configured as an optical fiber, and the optical transceiver can include an optical connector that can be coupled to the input / output ends of the optical fiber. Further, the optical connector can be arranged such that the direction of optical signal transmission between the optical connector and the input / output ends of the optical fiber is parallel to the first main surface.

Advantages of the Invention

[0010] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, it is possible to achieve a high transmission bandwidth density while having a configuration in which a plurality of optical transceivers are arranged in parallel.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0011]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Modes for Carrying Out the Invention

[0012] Next, various embodiments and modifications thereof will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. It should be noted that components denoted by the same reference numerals throughout the drawings have the same configuration and the same function.

[0013] FIGS. 1A and 1B are schematic views of an optical communication module 1 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis in the figures constitute a rectangular coordinate system, and the X-axis direction (width direction), Y-axis direction (depth direction), and Z-axis direction (height direction) are perpendicular to each other. FIG. 1A is a schematic perspective view of the optical communication module 1, and FIG. 1B is a front view of the optical communication module 1 when viewed from the negative Y-axis direction.

[0014] The optical communication module 1 includes a plate-shaped base material 10 such as a mother board, and a plurality of optical transceivers 20 mounted on the base material 10 1 , 20 2 , …, 20 K and so on. The base material 10 is provided with slots 11 which are electrical connection terminals arranged in parallel with each other along a predetermined arrangement direction 1 , 11 2 , …, 11 K . These slots 11 1 ~11 K are surface-mounted on the base material 10 and are electrically connected to the optical transceivers 20 1 ~20 K in a one-to-one correspondence.

[0015] On the base material 10, electronic components such as electrical circuits and semiconductor integrated circuits (not shown) may be provided, and the electronic components may be electrically connected to the slots 11 1 ~11 K . In this embodiment, the arrangement direction of the slots 11 1 ~11 K is parallel to the X-axis direction. Also, in this embodiment, the number K of the optical transceivers 20 1 ~20 K is an integer of 3 or more, but is not limited thereto. The number K may be an integer of 2 or 4 or more.

[0016] The optical transceivers 20 1 ~20 K have substantially the same configuration. FIGS. 2A and 2B are schematic perspective views of the k-th optical transceiver 20 k . FIG. 2A is a perspective view of the optical transceiver 20 k when viewed from the front diagonally to the left, and FIG. 2B is a perspective view of the optical transceiver 20 k when viewed from the front diagonally to the right.

[0017] As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the optical transceiver 20 kThe mounting substrate 21 has a front surface (first main surface) 21a and a back surface (second main surface) 21b that face each other. k It is provided with a mounting substrate 21. k The mounting substrate 21 can be made of, for example, an insulator material. The front surface 21a of the mounting substrate 21 in the present embodiment k is arranged to be parallel to a plane orthogonal to the X-axis direction (for example, the Y-Z plane). Instead of this, the front surface 21a may be arranged to be parallel to a plane that intersects the X-axis direction at a predetermined angle (for example, a plane inclined at a predetermined angle from the Y-Z plane). The mounting substrate 21 k The back surface 21b is spaced apart from the front surface 21a in the X-axis direction and faces it, and is arranged to be substantially parallel to the front surface 21a. As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the mounting substrates 21 1 ~21 K are arranged parallel to each other along the X-axis direction.

[0018] Referring to FIGS. 2A and 2B, the mounting substrate 21 k has a side peripheral portion 21p that faces the slot 11 on the base material 10 k in the Z-axis direction (height direction). An electrical connector 26 k electrically connected to the slot 11 is provided on this side peripheral portion 21p. The electrical connector 26 k has an elongated shape along the Y-axis direction. Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B, the electrical connectors 26 k of the optical transceivers 20 1 , 20 2 ,…, 20 K are arranged parallel to each other along the X-axis direction, and are connected to the slots 11 1 , 26 2 ,…, 26 K of the base material 10 in a one-to-one correspondence. 1 , 11 2 ,…, 11 K connected to the slots 11

[0019] Referring to FIGS. 2A and 2B, the optical transceiver 20 k further includes an optical transceiver 22 arranged on the front surface 21a of the mounting substrate 21 k ​k and a control unit 24 disposed near the optical transceiver 22 on the front surface 21a k are provided. The optical transceiver 22 k has an optical connector 22o that can be optically coupled to the input / output end of an optical fiber 30 which is an optical transmission medium k . The optical connector 22o of the present embodiment is arranged such that the direction of optical signal transmission between the optical connector 22o and the input / output end of the optical fiber 30 k is parallel to the front surface 21a. Thereby, the width dimension (dimension in the X-axis direction) of the optical transceiver 20 k can be reduced. k

[0020] Note that, in the examples of FIGS. 2A and 2B, the optical fiber 30 k extends in the negative Y-axis direction from the optical connector 22o, but is not limited thereto. FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view of an optical transceiver 20M k which is a modified example of the optical transceiver 20 k . As shown in FIG. 3, the optical transceiver 20M k has, on the front surface 21a of a mounting substrate 21 k , an optical transceiver 22M k having the same function as the optical transceiver 22 in FIGS. 2A and 2B k . This optical transceiver 22M k has an optical connector 22Mo that can be optically coupled to the input / output end of the optical fiber 30 k . This optical connector 22Mo is arranged such that the direction of optical signal transmission between the optical connector 22Mo and the input / output end of the optical fiber 30 k is parallel to the front surface 21a, and the optical fiber 30 k extends in the positive Z-axis direction from the optical connector 22Mo.

[0021] The optical transceiver 22 in FIGS. 2A and 2B k converts an electrical signal propagated from the slot 11 of the base material 10 k into an optical signal and transmits the optical signal to the optical fiber 30 k ​has an E / O function (electrical / optical conversion function) for transmission. Also, the optical transceiver 22 k is connected to the optical fiber 30 k and has an O / E function (optical / electrical conversion function) for converting the optical signal received by the optical connector 22o into an electrical signal. The optical transceiver 22 k further has an optical modulation function and an optical phase shift function. The optical transceiver 22 k only needs to have various components (not shown) such as a semiconductor laser light source such as a quantum dot laser, an optical modulator, and an optical waveguide in order to realize the E / O function, O / E function, optical modulation function, and optical phase shift function. The control unit 24 k is configured to control the operation of the functions of the optical transceiver 22 k .

[0022] Referring to FIG. 1B, inside the mounting substrates 21 1 ~20 K of the optical transceivers 20 1 ~21 K there are provided electrical wirings 21e extending from the optical transceivers 22 1 ~22 K to the corresponding electrical connectors 26 1 ~26 K . The electrical signals generated by the O / E function of the optical transceivers 22 1 ~22 K are output to the electrical connectors 26 1 ~26 K via the electrical wirings 21e.

[0023] As described above, in the optical communication module 1 of the present embodiment, electrical connectors 26 1 ~21 K are respectively provided at the lateral peripheral portions 21p of the mounting substrates 21 1 ~26 K , and these electrical connectors 26 1 ~26 K are connected in one-to-one correspondence with the slots (electrical connection terminals) 11 1 ~11 K on the base material 10. Also, the mounting substrates 21 1 ~21 KThe front surface 21a is arranged to be parallel to a plane orthogonal to the predetermined arrangement direction (X-axis direction) (for example, the Y-Z plane) or a plane intersecting the predetermined arrangement direction at a predetermined angle (for example, a plane inclined from the Y-Z plane). The mounting substrate 21 having such a front surface 21a 1 ~21 K are arranged parallel to each other along the predetermined arrangement direction (X-axis direction). As a result, as shown in FIG. 1B, a plurality of optical transceivers 20 1 ~20 K can be densely gathered in a region of height H1 and width L1 (particularly a region of width L1). Therefore, it is possible to provide an optical communication module 1 that realizes a high transmission band density while having a configuration in which the optical transceivers 20 1 ~20 K are arranged in parallel.

[0024] FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of an optical communication module of a comparative example. The optical communication module shown in FIG. 4 has a configuration in which three optical transceivers 100 1 ,100 2 ,100 3 are arranged in parallel. Each optical transceiver 100 k (k is an integer in the range of 1 to 3) includes a mounting substrate 121 having a front surface and a back surface k and an optical transceiver 122 k arranged on the front surface of the mounting substrate 121 k and an electrical connector 126 k arranged on the back surface of the mounting substrate 121 k . The optical transceiver 122 k is optically coupled to the input / output end of the optical fiber 130 k . In the arrangement of FIG. 4, it is difficult to densely gather the optical transceivers 100 1 ~100 3 . Further, since the electrical connectors 126 1 ~121 3 are provided on the back surface of the mounting substrate 121 1 ~126 3 , each optical transceiver 100 kThe thickness dimension is relatively large. Therefore, even if it were possible to change the orientation (normal) of the front surface of the mounting substrate 121 1 ~121 3 from the Z-axis direction to the X-axis direction, it would be difficult to densely gather the optical transceivers 100 1 ~100 3 in the X-axis direction. In contrast, in the present embodiment, electrical connectors 26 1 ~21 K are provided at the lateral peripheral portion 21p of the mounting substrate 21 1 ~26 K , and the orientation (normal) of the front surface 21a of the mounting substrate 21 1 ~21 K can be set to the X-axis direction or a direction slightly inclined from the X-axis direction. Thus, the optical transceivers 20 1 ~20 K can be arranged at high density.

[0025] Also, the optical transceivers 20 1 ~20 K of the optical communication module 1 of the present embodiment may operate at high temperatures. Although the optical communication module 1 has a configuration in which the optical transceivers 20 1 ~20 K are densely arranged, gaps are formed between adjacent optical transceivers. Therefore, there is an advantage that cooling by natural coolants such as air or immersion cooling with a liquid (such as a fluorine-based inert liquid or silicone oil, an insulating liquid) can be efficiently performed. Thus, the configuration of the optical communication module 1 of the present embodiment can have excellent heat dissipation characteristics.

[0026] Next, FIGS. 5A and 5B are schematic views of an optical communication module 2 according to another embodiment of the present disclosure. The X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis in the figures constitute a Cartesian coordinate system, and the X-axis direction (width direction), Y-axis direction (depth direction), and Z-axis direction (height direction) are orthogonal to each other. FIG. 5A is a schematic perspective view of the optical communication module 2, and FIG. 5B is a front view of the optical communication module 2 when viewed from the negative Y-axis direction.

[0027] The configuration of the optical communication module 2 is the same as that of the optical communication module 1 in FIGS. 1A and 1B, except that each of 1 1 ~20 K is covered with a thermally conductive cover member 40C. The optical communication module 2 includes a plate-like base material 10 such as a mother board, and a plurality of optical transceivers 40 1 ,40 2 ,…,40 K mounted on the base material 10. Each optical transceiver 40 k (k is an arbitrary integer within the range of 1 to K) includes an optical transceiver 20 as a component k (hereinafter referred to as "optical transceiver component 20 k ").) and includes a thermally conductive cover member 40C that covers the optical transceiver component 20 k . The thermally conductive cover 40C may be made of a metal material such as aluminum. In order to enhance the heat dissipation characteristics, it is preferable to fill the space between the thermally conductive cover 40C and the optical transceiver component 20 k with a thermally conductive resin.

[0028] As described above, in this embodiment, an optical communication module 2 having a conduction cooling function can be provided.

[0029] As described above, various embodiments and their modifications have been described. However, the above embodiments and their modifications are merely examples and do not limit the scope of the present invention. It should be understood that changes, additions, and improvements to the above embodiments can be appropriately made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. The scope of the present invention should be construed based on the description in the claims and should be understood to include its equivalents.

Description of Reference Numerals

[0030] 1,2: Optical communication modules, 10: Base material, 11 1 ~11 K : Slots (electrical connection terminals), 20 1 ~20K : Optical transceiver, 21 1 ~21 K : Mounting substrate, 21a: Front surface (first main surface) of the mounting substrate, 21b: Back surface (second main surface) of the mounting substrate, 21e: Electrical wiring, 21p: Lateral peripheral portion of the mounting substrate, 22 1 ~22 K : Optical transceiver, 22o: Optical connector, 24 1 ~24 K : Control unit, 26 1 ~26 K : Electrical connector, 30 1 ~30 K : Optical fiber, 40 1 ~40 K : Optical transceiver, 40C: Heat conductive cover member, 100 1 ~100 3 : Optical transceiver, 121 1 ~121 3 : Mounting substrate, 122 1 ~122 3 : Optical transceiver, 126 1 ~126 3 : Electrical connector, 130 1 ~130 3 : Optical fiber.

Claims

1. a substrate having a plurality of electrical connection terminals arranged parallel to one another along a predetermined arrangement direction; a plurality of optical transceivers mounted on the substrate; Equipped with Each optical transceiver of the plurality of optical transceivers comprises: a mounting substrate having a first main surface parallel to a plane intersecting the predetermined arrangement direction, a second main surface opposed to and spaced apart from the first main surface and parallel to the plane intersecting the predetermined arrangement direction, and a side peripheral portion opposed to the base material; an optical transceiver arranged on the first main surface and capable of being coupled to an input / output terminal of an optical transmission medium; an electrical connector provided on the side peripheral portion and connected to an electrical wiring extending from the optical transceiver; Including, the electrical connectors of the optical transceivers are connected to the electrical connection terminals in a one-to-one correspondence; the mounting boards of the optical transceivers are arranged parallel to one another along the predetermined arrangement direction; 1. An optical communication module comprising:

2. 2. The optical communications module according to claim 1, further comprising a thermally conductive cover member covering at least one of the first main surface and the second main surface.

3. 3. The optical communications module according to claim 2, wherein the thermally conductive cover member covers both the first main surface and the second main surface.

4. 4. The optical communication module according to claim 2, wherein the thermally conductive cover member is made of a metal material.

5. 3. The optical communication module according to claim 1, the optical transmission medium is configured as an optical fiber; the optical transceiver includes an optical connector that can be coupled to an input / output end of the optical fiber; The optical connector is arranged so that a direction in which an optical signal is transmitted between the optical connector and an input / output end of the optical fiber is parallel to the first main surface.

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