EXTREME ENVIRONMENT OPITCAL INTERCONNECT TECHNOLOIGES FOR INTRA-BOX AEROSPACE APPLICATIONS

The goal of this Phase-I SBIR effort is to establish the feasibility, performance, and advantages of novel module-to-module, card-to-card, card-to-box, and related optical interconnect devices for extreme environment aerospace applications. These technologies support both single mode and multi mode fibers and waveguides, are compact with small footprints, lightweight, support hundreds of channels, and are optimized for use in extreme aerospace environments tolerating the effects of shock, vibration, temperature, humidity, pressure extremes, and EMI effects. Connectorized versions allow for simple removal and replacement of cards in the box, and are both tolerant of contamination and readily cleanable. Finally, these devices are capable of low insertion loss, low crosstalk, and broad spectral performance. Specialized versions are optimized for a number of specific functions. The Phase-I effort includes design, modeling, and experimental demonstration of the feasibility of these devices, and a PHASE-II Engineering Development and Demonstration plan is developed. BENEFIT: The anticipated benefit from this research is the creation of a family of high performance intra-box optical interconnect devices that both decrease system size, weight, volume, and cost as well as increase system reliability and maintainability. This technology is initially focused on DoD markets, but will be expanded into commercial aerospace and Fly-by-Light markets, digital information handling systems, automotive systems, and related markets.