Large-Scale Silicone-Rubber-Based Optical Interconnect Packaged With FR4

Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)-based large-scale electrical-optical circuit boards (EOCBs) have been developed based on a combination of a large-scale PDMS waveguide fabrication technique and a process for efficient interfacial bonding between PDMS optical layers and standard FR4 (fiberglass-reinforced epoxy and grade 4 on flame retardance) printed circuit board materials using a specially developed surface adhesion promoter (SAP). The main mechanism of forming a good bonding between PDMS and FR4 has been identified. The optical properties of the PDMS waveguide layer remained unchanged by the addition of the SAP. According to the defined test procedures from the Institute of Printed Circuits, the International Electro Technical Commission, and Telcordia, the environmental stability of packaged EOCBs has been tested with the result that they exhibited excellent mechanical, optical, and thermal stabilities. The mechanical stability limit of the tested EOCBs is determined only by the intrinsic mechanical stability of the used PDMS materials. The optical waveguide propagation loss at 850 nm is less than 0.1 dB/cm after surviving from the defined environmental test procedures.