Optoelectronic Component Embedded in Photopolymerizable PCB
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing optoelectronic components, such as VCSELs, emit light vertically, making integration with printed circuit boards challenging due to upright assembly requirements, complicated bonding, and large board thickness, especially when using separate light deflection elements.
Innovation Solution
A method for producing optoelectronic components with an integrated deflection mirror embedded in an optical material, allowing for flat placement and automatic assembly, with the deflection mirror focusing light into an optical waveguide, enabling small board thickness and cost-effective production.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If optoelectronic components are installed upright to emit light parallel to the main plane of the printed circuit board, then light emission alignment is achieved, but assembly complexity increases and automatic assembly becomes problematic
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the conventional installation orientation by placing the optoelectronic component flat on the printed circuit board instead of upright. The light emission direction is changed from parallel to the board plane to perpendicular to the board plane, allowing standard flat assembly processes while achieving the desired light coupling through vertical waveguide structures.
2Manufacturing precision
If separate light deflection elements are used to redirect light into the plane of the printed circuit board, then light direction control is achieved, but device thickness increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the light deflection function directly into the optical waveguide structure by forming the waveguide at an angle or with a curved path within the board substrate. This eliminates the need for separate external deflection elements and reduces overall device thickness while maintaining precise light direction control.
3Ease of manufacture
If vertical laser beams are emitted from flat-mounted VCSEL components, then simple flat installation is achieved, but coupling into horizontal optical waveguides requires large deflection radii and increases layer thickness
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from two-dimensional planar light coupling to three-dimensional volumetric coupling by forming optical waveguides that extend through multiple layers of the printed circuit board at various angles. This allows vertical light emission from flat-mounted components to be coupled into waveguides that propagate light in three dimensions, eliminating the need for large deflection radii in a single plane.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables simple and cost-effective standard assembly, automatic placement, and extremely low overall thickness of printed circuit board elements with simultaneous light focusing, suitable for high-data-rate multi-mode or single-mode waveguide data transmissions.
Implementation Method 1
it is already known to produce an optical waveguide structure in an organic or inorganic optical, photopolymerizable material using photon absorption processes, the optical material being locally converted when irradiated with photons in such a way that it has a larger refractive index compared to the unstructured original optical material
Implementation Method 2
A deflection of the light by 90° therefore requires a radius (and thus also a layer thickness of the optical material) of several mm to cm
Data Source
Figure 1A~1B
Figure 2A~2B
Figure 3
AI summary
The invention relates to a printed circuit board element (10) which comprises at least one optoelectronic component (1), embedded in an optically photopolymerizable layered material (13), and at least one optical waveguide (14) optically coupled thereto which is structured in the optical photopolymerizable material (13) by photon irradiation, the component (1), on its light exit surface (3), having a curved deviation mirror (5) that deviates the light radiation (15) e.g. by 90°.