Tolerance analysis for three-dimensional optoelectronic systems packaging

A series of optoelectronic processing systems is under development at the Optoelectronic Computing System Center (OCSC) at the University of Colorado. The demonstrations consist of two facing optoelectronic modules that communicate with each other using bidirectional free-space optical channels. An analysis of the fabrication tolerances required for correct operation of these systems is presented. An overview of the system and the techniques used for fabrication is given, along with the tolerances achieved in practice. A comparison with theoretical results indicates the critical alignments within the system. Methods to obtain the alignments required for larger systems are discussed.