Optical connector and module with optical connector

Abstract

To provide a compact, thin optical connector which offers high optical coupling efficiency and can be used in optical / electrical hybrid devices.SOLUTION: An optical connector provided herein comprises an engaging member 100 having a cavity and an optical waveguide chip 200 inserted to the cavity of the engaging member, the optical waveguide chip comprising a base plate and one or more tapered optical waveguides formed on the base plate.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an optical connector and a module with an optical connector. [Background technology]

[0002] In a conventional optical / electrical hybrid device having an optical transmission / reception function, an optical fiber for inputting and outputting an optical signal has been directly connected to the device (see, for example, FIG. 8c of Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2014 / 156962 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In order to miniaturize optical-electrical hybrid devices, it is necessary to make it possible to mount small, thin optical connectors with high optical coupling efficiency on the devices. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, one aspect of the present invention is an optical connector comprising a mating member having a cavity and an optical waveguide chip inserted into the cavity of the mating member, the optical waveguide chip comprising a base plate and one or more tapered-shaped optical waveguides formed on the base plate.

[0006] In another aspect of the present invention, in the above aspect, the optical waveguide chip includes an array of the tapered optical waveguides.

[0007] In another aspect of the present invention, in the above-mentioned aspect, the array of tapered optical waveguides includes a first group of tapered optical waveguides in which a cross-sectional area of ​​the waveguide increases from one end to the other end of the base plate, and a second group of tapered optical waveguides in which a cross-sectional area of ​​the waveguide decreases from the one end to the other end of the base plate.

[0008] In another aspect of the present invention, in the above-mentioned aspect, the one or more tapered optical waveguides are configured such that the height of the waveguide in the thickness direction of the base plate varies along the longitudinal direction of the optical waveguide.

[0009] In another aspect of the present invention, in the above-mentioned aspect, the one or more tapered optical waveguides are configured such that a width of the waveguide in a direction perpendicular to a thickness direction of the base plate varies along a longitudinal direction of the optical waveguide.

[0010] In another aspect of the present invention, in the above-mentioned aspect, the one or more tapered optical waveguides include a reflecting structure for bending an optical path at an end portion opposite the fitting member.

[0011] In another aspect of the present invention, in the above aspect, the reflection structure is an inclined end face of the optical waveguide.

[0012] In another aspect of the present invention, in the above-mentioned aspect, the inclined end surface of the optical waveguide is a spherical or aspherical focusing mirror.

[0013] In another aspect of the present invention, in the above-mentioned aspect, the one or more tapered optical waveguides are configured using grooves formed on the base plate.In another aspect of the present invention, in the above-mentioned aspect, the one or more tapered optical waveguides are configured from a resin embedded in the grooves.

[0014] In another aspect of the present invention, in the above aspect, a reflective coating is formed on the groove on the base plate.

[0015] In another aspect of the present invention, in the above-mentioned aspect, the optical waveguide chip has a first groove portion in a portion inserted into the engaging member, and the engaging member has a second groove portion in the cavity corresponding to the first groove portion, and when the optical waveguide chip is inserted into the engaging member, the first groove portion and the second groove portion form an alignment hole when connecting the optical connector to another optical connector.

[0016] Another aspect of the present invention is a module with an optical connector, comprising an optical / electrical hybrid device having an optical transmitting / receiving function, and the optical connector of the above aspect mounted on the optical / electrical hybrid device. The optical connector of the above aspect has an alignment marker on the optical waveguide chip for aligning the optical connector and the optical / electrical hybrid device. Effect of the Invention

[0017] According to the present invention, it is possible to realize miniaturization of an opto-electrical hybrid device. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0018] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view showing a configuration of an optical connector according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 1 is an exploded perspective view of an optical module to which an optical connector according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied; [Diagram 3] 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration example of an optical / electrical hybrid device; [Figure 4] 1 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration example of an optical / electrical hybrid device; [Diagram 5] 3A and 3B are diagrams showing a detailed configuration of an optical waveguide chip that constitutes the optical connector according to the present embodiment. [Figure 6]1 is a perspective view showing the arrangement of an optical waveguide provided in an optical waveguide chip and a second optical waveguide provided in an optoelectronic hybrid device. FIG. [Figure 7] 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration in the vicinity of an end portion of an optical waveguide. FIG. [Figure 8A] 3A to 3C are diagrams showing the steps of manufacturing an optical waveguide chip that constitutes the optical connector according to the present embodiment. [Figure 8B] 3A to 3C are diagrams showing the steps of manufacturing an optical waveguide chip that constitutes the optical connector according to the present embodiment. [Figure 8C] 3A to 3C are diagrams showing the steps of manufacturing an optical waveguide chip that constitutes the optical connector according to the present embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0019] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0020] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a configuration of an optical connector according to an embodiment of the present invention. The optical connector 10 includes a fitting member 100 and an optical waveguide chip 200. The fitting member 100 has a cavity 103 penetrating between a first surface 101 and a second surface 102 that is a surface opposite to the first surface 101, and a part of the optical waveguide chip 200 is inserted into this cavity 103. The first surface 101 of the fitting member 100 is a surface that comes into contact with another optical connector when the optical connector 10 is connected to the other optical connector (see FIG. 2). An end surface 201 of the optical waveguide chip 200 on the side inserted into the cavity 103 of the fitting member 100 is aligned with the first surface 101 of the fitting member 100. That is, the optical waveguide chip 200 is inserted into the cavity 103 of the fitting member 100 so that the end face 201 and the first surface 101 of the fitting member 100 are flush with each other. As another example, the end face 201 of the optical waveguide chip 200 does not have to be flush with the first surface 101 of the fitting member 100, and it is sufficient that the end face 201 is in contact with the optical waveguide of the other optical connector when the optical connector 10 is connected to the other optical connector. The optical waveguide chip 200 has a flat plate shape, and the cavity 103 has a wide shape so as to be able to accommodate the optical waveguide chip 200.

[0021] The optical waveguide chip 200 has an optical waveguide 203 on its top surface 202. The optical waveguide 203 is formed on a base plate 210. The number of optical waveguides 203 may be arbitrary. In the optical connector 10 of FIG. 1, the optical waveguide 203 is configured as an array of optical waveguides in which a plurality of optical waveguides are arranged in close proximity to each other in parallel. In another example, the optical waveguide 203 may be a single optical waveguide. The optical waveguide 203 extends from an end surface 201 of the optical waveguide chip 200 (i.e., a surface that is coplanar with the first surface 101 of the fitting member 100) to an opposite end surface 204. One end (end face) 205 of the optical waveguide 203 is positioned on the end face 201 of the optical waveguide chip 200, and light is transmitted between the optical connector 10 and another optical connector through this end 205, i.e., through the end face 201 of the optical waveguide chip 200. The other end 206 of the optical waveguide 203 is located outside the fitting member 100 and near the end face 204 of the optical waveguide chip 200. A reflecting mirror (described later) is provided at the end 206 of the optical waveguide 203. The reflecting mirror reflects light so that the outgoing light from the end 206 of the optical waveguide 203 and the incoming light to the end 206 of the optical waveguide 203 (the outgoing light and the incoming light are collectively indicated by the reference numeral 207) are at an angle perpendicular or close to perpendicular to the top face 202 of the optical waveguide chip 200.

[0022] A semi-cylindrical groove 208 that leads to the end face 201 is formed on the upper surface 202 of the optical waveguide chip 200, which is a portion that is inserted into the fitting member 100. Similarly, a semi-cylindrical groove 104 that leads to the first surface 101 is formed on the ceiling portion of the cavity 103 of the fitting member 100, at a position opposite to the groove 208 of the optical waveguide chip 200. The groove 208 and the groove 104 are combined to form a cylindrical hole 105 that opens to the first surface 101 of the fitting member 100.

[0023] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of an optical module to which an optical connector according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied. The optical module 20 is configured by mounting the optical connector 10 described with reference to FIG. 1 on an optical / electrical hybrid device 300. The optical / electrical hybrid device 300, the detailed configuration of which will be described later with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, at least includes an optical transmitter 300A, an optical receiver 300B, and a driver IC 308. The optical transmitter 300A and the optical receiver 300B are configured to have an optical signal input / output portion 306a (end face of an optical waveguide) on the upper surface 301 of the device 300. The optical transmitter 300A outputs an optical signal from the output portion 306a at an angle perpendicular or close to the perpendicular to the upper surface 301 of the device 300. An optical signal perpendicular or close to the perpendicular to the upper surface 301 of the device 300 is input to the optical receiver 300B from the input portion 306a.

[0024] As shown in Fig. 2, the optical connector 10 is mounted on the upper surface 301 of the optical-electrical hybrid device 300 with the interface surface 202 (upper surface 202 in Fig. 1) of the optical waveguide chip 200 facing the optical-electrical hybrid device 300. On the upper surface 301 of the device 300, the end 206 (see Fig. 1) of the optical waveguide 203 in the optical connector 10 is aligned with the input / output portions 306a of the optical transmitting unit 300A and the optical receiving unit 300B. As a result, the optical signal output from the output portion 306a of the optical transmitting unit 300A is optically coupled to the optical waveguide 203 of the optical connector 10 via the reflecting mirror 211 (see Fig. 6) provided at the end portion 206 of the optical waveguide 203, and the optical signal output from the optical waveguide 203 of the optical connector 10 via the reflecting mirror 211 of the end portion 206 is optically coupled to the input portion 306a of the optical receiving unit 300B. The alignment between the optical connector 10 and the input / output portion 306a can be performed by passive alignment using, for example, an alignment marker 209 on the optical waveguide chip 200 (see FIG. 1).

[0025] The optical connector 10 is further mechanically connected to another optical connector 400 by using a mating pin 450. The other optical connector 400 includes an optical fiber 402. The mating pin 450 is inserted into a hole 105 (see FIG. 1 ) provided on a first surface 101 of the mating member 100 on the optical connector 10 side and a similar hole provided on the other optical connector 400 side, thereby aligning the optical connector 10 with the other optical connector 400. By connecting the optical connector 10 with the other optical connector 400 in this manner, the optical transmitting unit 300A and the optical receiving unit 300B of the optical module 20 can transmit and receive optical signals through the optical fiber 402.

[0026] Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a configuration of the optical-electrical hybrid device 300 in the optical module 20 of Fig. 2. Fig. 3 shows a cross section including an optical transmitter 300A. The optical-electrical hybrid device 300 includes a substrate 302, a semiconductor laser 303, an optical modulator 304, a first optical waveguide 305, a second optical waveguide 306, a grating coupler 307, a driver IC 308, and electrical wiring 309. The electrical wiring 309 includes a via 309a for electrically connecting the upper surface 301 of the optical-electrical hybrid device 300 and the surface of the substrate 302, and an electrical wiring 309b formed on the surface of the substrate 302. 3 is a view of the opto-electrical hybrid device 300 seen from its cross-sectional direction, and therefore only one set of the semiconductor laser 303, the optical modulator 304, the first optical waveguide 305, the second optical waveguide 306, the grating coupler 307, and the electrical wiring 309 is illustrated, but multiple sets of the semiconductor laser 303, the optical modulator 304, the first optical waveguide 305, the second optical waveguide 306, the grating coupler 307, and the electrical wiring 309 may be arranged in a direction perpendicular to the cross section in Fig. 3. In addition, the opto-electrical hybrid device 300 may include multiple driver ICs 308.

[0027] The substrate 302 is a Si (silicon) substrate or an SOI (silicon on insulator) substrate, and an optical modulator 304, a first optical waveguide 305, a grating coupler 307, and an electrical wiring 309b are formed on the surface of the substrate 302. The optical modulator 304 is optically connected to the grating coupler 307 via the first optical waveguide 305. The optical modulator 304, the first optical waveguide 305 (e.g., a Si waveguide), and the grating coupler 307 can be formed on the surface of the substrate 302 using silicon photonics technology.

[0028] Further, a semiconductor laser 303 and a driver IC 308 are mounted on the surface of the substrate 302. The semiconductor laser 303 is disposed close to one end of the first optical waveguide 305 so that the emitted light from the semiconductor laser 303 is incident on the first optical waveguide 305. The driver IC 308 is mounted on the substrate 302 using a connection electrode 315 (e.g., a ball grid array (BGA) or the like) that electrically connects an electric terminal (not shown) on the driver IC 308 side to an electric wiring 309b on the substrate 302 side. The driver IC 308 is connected to the semiconductor laser 303, the optical modulator 304, and the via 309a through the electric wiring 309b, and is configured to drive the semiconductor laser 303 and the optical modulator 304 based on an electric signal input from the via 309a.

[0029] Further, a second optical waveguide 306 is formed on the substrate 302, standing vertically or obliquely with respect to the substrate 302. The inclination angle of the second optical waveguide 306 with respect to the substrate 302 is, for example, in the range of 0 to 10°. An end portion of the second optical waveguide 306 on the substrate 302 side is located directly above the grating coupler 307, and an end portion 306a of the second optical waveguide 306 opposite to the substrate 302 is located on the upper surface 301 of the opto-electrical hybrid device 300.

[0030] The second optical waveguide 306 erected on the substrate 302 can be fabricated, for example, by irradiating a thin UV light beam from above the substrate 302 onto a UV-curable resin applied to a predetermined thickness on the substrate 302, and curing the UV-curable resin into a columnar shape only in the portion through which the UV light beam has passed. In a mode in which the second optical waveguide 306 is formed erected at an angle to the substrate 302, in order to prevent the UV light beam from reflecting obliquely off the surface of the substrate 302 and curing unintended portions of the UV-curable resin, preferably a UV absorbing film (not shown) for absorbing the UV light beam and suppressing its reflection is formed in advance on the surface of the substrate 302.

[0031] In the opto-electrical hybrid device 300 (optical transmission section 300A) configured as described above, an electrical signal for operating the driver IC 308 is input to the opto-electrical hybrid device 300 from the via 309a. The driver IC 308 drives the semiconductor laser 303 and the optical modulator 304 based on this electrical signal. The light emitted from the semiconductor laser 303 is modulated by the optical modulator 304, diffracted by the grating coupler 307, and its optical path is converted to a direction approximately perpendicular to the substrate 302, and is output from an end 306a on the upper surface 301 of the opto-electrical hybrid device 300 through the second optical waveguide 306. The output light from this end 306a is input to the optical waveguide chip 200 of the optical connector 10 mounted on the opto-electrical hybrid device 300, as described above.

[0032] Fig. 4 is another cross-sectional view showing one configuration example of the optical-electrical hybrid device 300 in the optical module 20 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 shows a cross section including the optical receiving section 300B. Figs. 3 and 4 show different cross sections of the same optical-electrical hybrid device 300. In Fig. 4, the same components as those in Fig. 3 described above are denoted by the same reference numerals. As shown in Fig. 4, the optical-electrical hybrid device 300 includes a light receiving element (photodiode) 310 below a second optical waveguide 306 on a substrate 302.

[0033] The light receiving element 310 can be formed directly on the surface of the substrate 302 using, for example, silicon photonics technology, or a separately manufactured chip-type light receiving element 310 may be mounted on the substrate 302. The light receiving element 310 is connected to the driver IC 308 via electrical wiring 309b. The driver IC 308 may be a transimpedance amplifier (TIA) for performing IV (current-voltage) conversion of the photoelectrically converted current signal output from the light receiving element 310.

[0034] In the optical / electrical hybrid device 300 (optical receiving section 300B) having the configuration shown in FIG. 4, an optical signal from the optical connector 10 mounted on the optical / electrical hybrid device 300 is input to the second optical waveguide 306 through its end portion 306a, and is incident on the light receiving element 310. The light receiving element 310 performs photoelectric conversion of the optical signal to generate a current signal. The current signal is sent to the driver IC 308 through the electrical wiring 309b, and the driver IC 308 performs IV conversion of the current signal to generate and output a voltage signal. The electrical signal from the driver IC 308 is output to the outside of the device 300 through the via 309a.

[0035] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of the optical waveguide chip 200 constituting the optical connector 10 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the arrangement of the optical waveguide 203 provided in the optical waveguide chip 200 and the second optical waveguide 306 provided in the opto-electric hybrid device 300 (however, for ease of understanding, elements other than the optical waveguide 203 and the second optical waveguide 306 are omitted). The optical waveguide 203 formed on the optical waveguide chip 200 is composed of a first group of optical waveguides 203A and a second group of optical waveguides 203B. The first group of optical waveguides 203A are optical waveguides connected to the optical transmitting unit 300A when the optical connector 10 is mounted on the opto-electric hybrid device 300, and the second group of optical waveguides 203B are optical waveguides connected to the optical receiving unit 300B. The first group of optical waveguides 203A and the second group of optical waveguides 203B are configured to have a tapered shape in which the cross-sectional area of ​​the waveguide changes along the longitudinal direction of the waveguide.

[0036] More specifically, the first group of optical waveguides 203A is configured in a tapered shape such that the cross-sectional area of ​​the waveguide increases from the end face 201 side to the end face 204 side of the optical waveguide chip 200. Preferably, the cross-sectional area of ​​the end 206 of the first group of optical waveguides 203A is set to be larger than the cross-sectional area of ​​the exit portion (end portion of the second optical waveguide 306) 306a of the optical transmitter 300A connected to the first group of optical waveguides 203A. This allows the light emitted from the exit portion 306a of the optical transmitter 300A to be incident on the end 206 of the first group of optical waveguides 203A with high coupling efficiency, and reduces the optical loss between the optical transmitter 300A and the optical connector 10.

[0037] On the other hand, the second group of optical waveguides 203B is configured in a tapered shape such that the cross-sectional area of ​​the waveguide decreases from the end face 201 side to the end face 204 side of the optical waveguide chip 200. Preferably, the cross-sectional area of ​​the end 206 of the second group of optical waveguides 203B is smaller than the cross-sectional area of ​​the entrance part (end part of the second optical waveguide 306) 306a of the optical receiving unit 300B connected to the second group of optical waveguides 203B. This allows the light emitted from the end 206 of the second group of optical waveguides 203B to be incident on the entrance part 306a of the optical receiving unit 300B with high coupling efficiency, and reduces the optical loss between the optical connector 10 and the optical receiving unit 300B.

[0038] As shown in FIG. 5, the cross-sectional area of ​​the optical waveguide 203 can be changed by changing the width W of the optical waveguide 203 (i.e., the dimension parallel to the top surface 202 of the optical waveguide chip 200 and perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the waveguide) and / or by changing the height H of the optical waveguide 203 (i.e., the dimension in the thickness direction of the optical waveguide chip 200).

[0039] FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing a configuration near the end 206 of the optical waveguide 203. As described above, the end 206 of the optical waveguide 203 is provided with a reflecting mirror 211 (see FIG. 6) for bending light between the optical waveguide 203 of the optical connector 10 and the second optical waveguide 306 of the optical-electrical hybrid device 300. The reflecting mirror 211 can be a total reflection mirror produced by forming the end 206 of the optical waveguide 203 at an angle to its optical axis. As shown in FIG. 7, the reflecting surface of the total reflection mirror 211 may be either a flat surface 211a or a spherical or aspherical surface 211b. When the reflecting surface of the total reflection mirror 211 is a spherical or aspherical surface 211b, this mirror 211 functions as a light collecting mirror, and light is collected between the optical waveguide 203 of the optical connector 10 and the second optical waveguide 306 of the optical-electrical hybrid device 300, which is preferable because it is highly efficient in coupling.

[0040] 8A to 8C are diagrams showing the manufacturing process of the optical waveguide chip 200 constituting the optical connector 10 according to this embodiment. This diagram shows the optical waveguide chip 200 as viewed from the direction of the arrow C shown in FIG. 5. First, a resin 212 is molded to a uniform thickness on a base plate 210 (FIG. 8A). Next, a mold 213 having a shape corresponding to the optical waveguide 203 and semi-cylindrical groove 208 to be manufactured is embossed into the resin 212, and the shapes of the optical waveguide 203 and the groove 208 are transferred to the resin 212 (FIG. 8B). Next, a transparent resin 214 having a predetermined refractive index is poured into the groove made by embossing in the part that will become the optical waveguide 203, and is hardened (FIG. 8C). The shape of the mold 213 is made to be the shape of an optical waveguide whose width and height change in the longitudinal direction, thereby completing the tapered optical waveguide 203 as shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6. By using the mold 213, it is possible to manufacture the optical waveguide 203 in which the height of the waveguide changes in the longitudinal direction by a simple process. In addition, by using the mold 213, it is possible to form the reflection mirror 211 at the end 206 of the optical waveguide 203 and the groove 208 which is a part of the alignment hole 105 at the same time as the optical waveguide 203.

[0041] The base plate 210 may be made of any material, such as resin, glass, or metal. When the base plate 210 is made of transparent resin or glass, the resin 212 to be stamped may also be transparent. In this case, the refractive index of the transparent resin 214 to be embedded in the stamped groove is selected to be greater than the refractive index of the resin 212. This forms an optical waveguide in which the transparent resin 214 in the groove serves as a core and the resin 212 serves as a clad. A reflective coating film (e.g., a metal film) may be formed in advance on the surface of the groove in which the transparent resin 214 is embedded. In this case, the resin 212 and the base plate 210 may be opaque. In addition, when the base plate 210 is made of metal (e.g., aluminum), instead of stamping the resin 212 (without using the resin 212) as described above, a groove may be formed by precision press processing the base plate 210 itself, and the transparent resin 214 may be poured into the groove to form an optical waveguide. If a reflective coating film is formed on the surface of the groove in the portion that will become the optical waveguide 203, or if the base plate 210 is made of metal, the groove may be left as an air layer rather than being filled with transparent resin 214, and the optical waveguide 203 may be formed from the air layer.

[0042] The optical waveguide chip 200 can also be fabricated by a method other than the above-mentioned method of pressing the mold 213 into the resin 212. For example, a transparent base plate 210 and the above-mentioned mold 213 can be arranged with a gap therebetween, an ultraviolet-curable resin can be injected into the gap, and the resin can be cured by irradiating ultraviolet rays from the transparent base plate 210 side, thereby forming grooves (groove 208 and the groove in the optical waveguide 203 portion) having the same shape as that shown in FIG.

[0043] Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to this, and various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0044] 10 Optical Connector 20 Optical Module 100 Fitting member 101 Page 1 102 Side 2 103 Cavity 104 Groove 105 holes 200 Optical Waveguide Chip 201 End face 202 Top surface (interface surface) 203 Optical waveguide 203A First Group of Optical Waveguides 203B Second group of optical waveguides 204 End face 205 End of optical waveguide 206 End of optical waveguide 207 Incident and outgoing light 208 Groove 209 Alignment Marker 210 Base Plate 211 Reflecting mirror 213 Mold 300 Optical / Electrical Hybrid Device 300A Optical transmitter 300B Optical receiver 301 Top surface 302 Substrate 303 Semiconductor Laser 304 Optical Modulator 305 1st optical waveguide 306 Second optical waveguide 306a End of second optical waveguide 307 Grating Coupler 308 Driver IC 309 Electrical Wiring 310 Photodetector 315 Connection electrode 400 Other Optical Connectors 402 Optical Fiber 450 Mating Pin

Claims

1. A fitting member having a cavity; an optical waveguide chip inserted into the cavity of the fitting member; An optical connector comprising: The optical waveguide chip includes: A base plate; one or more tapered optical waveguides formed using grooves formed on the base plate; the one or more tapered optical waveguides each have a reflecting structure at an end opposite the engaging member for bending an optical path; the optical waveguide chip has a first groove at a portion inserted into the fitting member; the fitting member has a second groove in the cavity corresponding to the first groove, When the optical waveguide chip is inserted into the fitting member, the first groove and the second groove form a hole for alignment when connecting the optical connector to another optical connector. Optical connector.

2. The optical connector of claim 1 , wherein the optical waveguide chip comprises an array of the tapered optical waveguides.

3. The array of tapered optical waveguides comprises: a first group of tapered optical waveguides whose cross-sectional areas increase from one end of the base plate to the other end; a second group of tapered optical waveguides, the cross-sectional area of ​​which decreases from the one end of the base plate to the other end of the base plate; The optical connector of claim 2 , comprising:

4. 4. The optical connector according to claim 1, wherein the one or more tapered optical waveguides are configured such that the height of the waveguide in the thickness direction of the base plate varies along the longitudinal direction of the optical waveguide.

5. 5. The optical connector according to claim 1, wherein the one or more tapered optical waveguides are configured such that a width of the waveguide in a direction perpendicular to a thickness direction of the base plate varies along a longitudinal direction of the optical waveguide.

6. The optical connector according to claim 1 , wherein the reflective structure is a sloped end face of the optical waveguide.

7. 7. The optical connector according to claim 6, wherein the inclined end surface of the optical waveguide is a spherical or aspherical focusing mirror.

8. 2. The optical connector according to claim 1, wherein the one or more tapered optical waveguides are constructed from a resin embedded in the groove.

9. 9. The optical connector according to claim 1, wherein a reflective coating is formed in the groove on the base plate.

10. an optical / electrical hybrid device having optical transmission and reception functions; The optical connector according to claim 1 , which is mounted on the optical / electrical hybrid device; A module with an optical connector comprising:

11. 11. The module with optical connector according to claim 10, wherein the optical connector has an alignment marker on the optical waveguide chip for aligning the optical connector with the optical-electrical hybrid device.

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