We investigate the use of low-threshold 980-nm vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers for free-space optical interconnects. The vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers and backilluminated detectors are monolithically integrated with microlenses on the back sides of the growth substrates to eliminate the necessity of external optics. With a channel pitch of 250 mum, an interconnect length between boards of the order of 5 to 10 mm with a ?50-mum lateral alignment tolerance can be achieved without external relay optics. The complete link is modeled to predict the system's efficiency and maximum bit rate. Data transmission at 500 Mbits/s per channel is demonstrated. The data rate was limited by parasitics, not the inherent bandwidth of the laser diodes.

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A monolithic optoelectronic device structure with the potential to enable VCSEL-based photonic integrated circuits on GaAs is presented. Using integrated diffraction gratings, the device structure enables the optical output of VCSELs to be coupled to an internal horizontal waveguide, while the optical signals in the waveguide are tapped off to resonant cavity detectors. Since horizontal waveguides are used to route the optical signals between devices, the output mirror transmission of the VCSELs can be eliminated, although we have chosen to retain a small amount of transmission in the top DBR to enable on-wafer testing. The design and fabrication of the monolithically integrated structure, including epitaxial regrowth, is discussed and initial device characteristics are presented.