Patent Publication Number: US-2012039611-A1

Title: Communication system providing hybrid optical/wireless communications and related methods

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to the field of communications, and, more particularly, to a communication system, devices and associated methods for hybrid optical/wireless communications and conversions. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Communications systems are often used to route data, voice, and/or video signals among users. One typical communications system is the Local Area Network (LAN) that interconnects a plurality of computer workstation users. Perhaps the most common way in which computers or other devices are connected together in a LAN is through electrically conductive wires. For example, wall or floor connectors may be located throughout a building to which computer workstations are connected, and metal wires are run from the wall connectors to one or more central locations where they may be connected to centralized computing devices, such as a server. 
     Certain disadvantages may accompany the use of wired networks. For instance, because electrical power is being transmitted over the wires, the installation of the wires may be subject to electrical codes that may make installation more difficult or even costly. Furthermore, the bandwidth that is available using typical metal wires (e.g., copper wires) may be less than desirable for some applications. 
     As a result of such limitations, other types of interconnections have been utilized in an attempt to provide “copperless” networks. For example, fiber-optic lines allow light signals which correspond to electrical signals to be transmitted between computers or other devices at a very high rate and bandwidth. Yet, fiber-optic communication is often more expensive than wires, and thus running fiber-optic lines to numerous wall connectors may be cost prohibitive in some circumstances. 
     Further, fiber-optic cables may be more difficult to extract signals from than wires. As a result, various approaches for addressing the difficulties of signal extraction from optical fibers have been developed. One such approach is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,265,710 in which light emerging from an optical fiber is directed by focusing elements at a photodetector or at the input face of another glass fiber. Another approach is to use gratings which are physically configured to capture light of a particular wavelength. An example of this approach is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,304,696 to Patterson et al. 
     Another way to interconnect one or more devices in a LAN is to use wireless communications links. For example, each device in the LAN may include a wireless radio frequency (RF) transceiver for sending and receiving data signals to other devices using one or more designated frequencies. While this approach has the advantage of requiring less, if any, wall connectors than a wired or fiber-optical network, the wireless communications links may be subject to interference, signal distortion, or signal loss as devices are moved to various locations. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In view of the foregoing background, it is therefore an object of the invention to provide a communication system that effectively uses the advantages of optical fiber and wireless communication. 
     This and other objects, features and advantages in accordance with the present invention are provided by a communication system including an optical fiber, and at least one optical-wireless device coupled to a optical fiber. By way of example, the at least one optical-wireless device may be coupled to the fiber by standard fiber connectors, microfabrication of grating structures within the fiber, surface polished fiber to serve as an electronic substrate, etc. Moreover, the optical-wireless device may include an optical fiber power unit coupled to the optical fiber for converting optical power therein into electrical power, and a wireless communication unit electrically powered by the optical fiber power unit and coupled to the optical fiber. The optical-wireless device may include a substrate mounting the optical fiber power unit and the wireless communication unit to the longitudinal side of the optical fiber. 
     The optical fiber power unit may include a photovoltaic device and a power optical grating coupling the photovoltaic device to the longitudinal side of the optical fiber. The wireless communication unit may include a radio frequency transmitter, and a signal optical grating coupling the transmitter to the longitudinal side of the optical fiber. 
     In accordance with another important aspect of the invention, the radio frequency transmitter may be an ultra-wideband transmitter. The ultra-wideband transmitter, in turn, may include an optical detector having an input coupled to the signal optical grating; an amplifier having an input connected to the output of the optical detector; a pseudorandom code generator; a multiplier having inputs connected to the outputs of the amplifier and pseudorandom code generator; and a pulse generator having an input connected to the output of the multiplier. 
     The ultra-wideband transmitter may also include an antenna connected to the output of the pulse generator. By way of example, the antenna may be a dipole antenna. For a particularly compact and efficient construction, the dipole antenna preferably includes first and second portions extending in opposite directions along the longitudinal side of the optical fiber. 
     The optical fiber may include a core and a cladding surrounding the core. Accordingly, the optical fiber power unit and the wireless communication unit may be coupled to the core of the optical fiber. 
     In those embodiments where the wireless communication unit includes a wireless transmitter, the system may further include at least one wireless receiver spaced from the wireless transmitter and receiving signals therefrom. Conversely, in those embodiments where the wireless communication unit comprises a wireless receiver, the system may also include at least one wireless transmitter spaced from the wireless receiver and transmitting signals thereto. Of course, in yet other embodiments, duplex communications may be provided. 
     The communication system is particularly applicable to copperless networks. In these embodiments, the at least one optical-wireless device may be a plurality of optical-wireless devices coupled to the optical fiber at spaced apart locations along the longitudinal side of the optical fiber. In some situations, a plurality of optical-wireless devices can be coupled to the optical fiber. 
     Different optical wavelengths may be used for powering and signals in the optical-wireless device. More particularly, the wireless communication unit may operate at a first optical wavelength, and the system may include an optical power source coupled to the optical fiber for powering the optical fiber power unit and operating at a second wavelength different than the first optical wavelength. Additionally, instead of different optical wavelengths, the optical-wireless devices could also operate from different modes, polarizations, codes, or otherwise differentiate signals and power between the optical-wireless devices. 
     A method aspect of the invention is for optical-wireless communication. The method may include coupling at least one optical-wireless device to a longitudinal side of an optical fiber, where the at least one optical-wireless device may include an optical fiber power unit and a wireless communication unit connected thereto. The method may also include supplying optical power into the optical fiber, converting the optical power in the optical fiber into electrical power using the optical fiber power unit, and electrically powering the wireless communication unit for optical-wireless communication using the electrical power converted from the optical power. In addition, external power could be supplied by methods such as solar cells, rectifying antennas, or by electrical wire, for example. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic diagram of a communication system according to the present invention including a plurality of optical-wireless devices coupled to an optical fiber. 
         FIG. 2  is partial cross-sectional view illustrating one embodiment of an optical-wireless device and the optical fiber of  FIG. 1  in greater detail. 
         FIG. 3  is a schematic block diagram of an ultra-wideband transmitter and power generation circuitry therefor for the optical-wireless device of  FIG. 2 . 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view illustrating mounting of an alternate arrangement of the optical-wireless device of  FIG. 2  on the optical fiber. 
         FIG. 5  is a schematic block diagram illustrating communications between an optical-wireless device according to the invention including an ultra-wideband transmitter and a receiver. 
         FIG. 6  is a schematic block diagram illustrating communications between a transmitter and an optical-wireless device according to the invention including an ultra-wideband receiver. 
         FIG. 7  is a flow diagram illustrating a method according to the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     The present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which preferred embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout, and prime notation is used to indicate similar elements in alternative embodiments. 
     Referring initially to  FIG. 1 , a communication system  10  according to the present invention illustratively includes an optical fiber  11 , and at least one optical-wireless device  12  coupled to a point(s) along a longitudinal side of the optical fiber. In the context of a LAN, for example, the optical fiber  11  may be connected to a server  16  or other central data source/node to which electronic devices such as personal data assistants  13 , cellular telephones  14 , and/or personal computers (PCs)  15  require access. Of course, those of skill in the art will appreciate that the communication system  10  of the present invention may be used in numerous other applications other than LANs, and also with other types of electronic devices. 
     As such, those of skill in the art will appreciate that the communication system  10  is particularly applicable to copperless networks. In such embodiments, a plurality of optical-wireless devices  12   a ,  12   b ,  12   c  may be coupled to the optical fiber  11  at spaced apart locations along the longitudinal side of the optical fiber. The optical-wireless devices  12   a ,  12   b ,  12   c  are used for respectively providing wireless communications with the personal data assistant  13 , the cellular telephone  14 , and the personal computer (PC)  15 . As will be discussed more fully below, the optical-wireless device  12  may advantageously be used to convert optical signals sent on the optical fiber  11  (e.g., by the server  16 ) to wireless signals and transmit the same to a respective electronic device. Conversely, the optical-wireless device  12  may also convert wireless signals sent from a respective electronic device to corresponding optical signals and send the same on the optical fiber  11  (e.g., to the server  16 ), as illustratively shown with arrows in  FIG. 1 . 
     As a result of the optical-wireless device  12  of the present invention, the communication system  10  may advantageously realize certain advantages of both optical and wireless communications while avoiding some of their respective drawbacks. More particularly, one or more optical fibers  11  may be used to route signals from a server  16  or other central data source throughout an entire physical network area (e.g., a floor of a building, a ship, etc.) without having to run optical fibers to numerous workstation connection points. 
     Further, because optical signals can travel relatively long distances over optical fibers with minimal degradation, the range over which the communication system  10  extends may be much larger than that of a purely wireless network, and may even extend between buildings, etc., without the need for wireless signal repeaters. Plus, since the wireless signals transmitted between the optical-wireless device  12  and a respective electronic device generally do not have to travel as far as in a purely wireless network (i.e., they only have to travel to the nearby optical fiber  11  and not all the way to the server  16 ), interference and signal degradation may potentially be reduced as well. 
     Turning now more particularly to  FIGS. 2-4 , the optical-wireless device  12  will now be described in greater detail. The optical fiber  11  may include a core  23  and a cladding  24  surrounding the core, as will be appreciated by those of skill in the art. The optical-wireless device  12  may include an optical fiber power unit  20  coupled to the core  23  for converting optical power therein into electrical power, as will be described further below. 
     Further, a wireless communication unit  25  may also be coupled to the core  23  of the optical fiber  11  and electrically powered by the optical fiber power unit  20 . In some embodiments, such as the one illustrated in  FIG. 2 , portions of the optical fiber power unit  20  and the wireless communication unit  25  may be embodied in a single integrated device. A dotted line is therefore shown in  FIG. 2  to aid in illustrating that the two separate functions are performed in the same optical-wireless device  12 , although no particular segmentation or arrangement of the various circuit components is required. 
     The optical fiber power unit  20  may include one or more photovoltaic devices  21  and a respective power optical grating  22  designed specifically to extract light from the core  23  of the optical fiber  11  to be used for power generation. As such, the power optical grating  22  is preferably “tuned” to extract light having a particular optical wavelength λ 1  from the core  23 , which is converted to electrical power for the wireless communications device  25 . As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, a micro-optic structure to extract light for power generation may be “tuned” to specific wavelengths, polarizations, modes, etc. The optical fiber power  20  unit  20  may optionally include additional power conditioning circuitry as required, as will be appreciated by those of skill in the art, which is schematically shown in  FIGS. 5 and 6 . 
     By way of example, one particular type of photovoltaic device  21  which may be used is a relatively large-area planar-diffused InGaAs photodiode with a broadband anti-reflection coating on the photosensitive surface. Such diodes are known to those of skill in the art. Several such photovoltaic diodes  21  may be connected in series (illustratively shown in  FIGS. 5 and 6 ) to generate the requisite voltage to power the wireless communication unit  25  and reverse bias an optical signal detector  26  thereof (discussed further below). The photodiodes  21  are preferably placed over respective gratings  22  in a manner that optimizes the illumination efficiency. 
     As will be appreciated by those of skill in the art, to optimize the illumination efficiency of a photodiode it is important to have the maximum amount of light extracted from the core  23  absorbed within the depletion region of the photodiode  21 . Light extracted from the core  23  and not absorbed in the depletion region represents loss and a reduction in efficiency. Losses can result from reflections, misdirected or misfocused light, and absorption of photons outside the depletion region. Anti-reflection coatings, junction orientation, and beam focusing may be tailored in a particular design application to minimize losses, as will also be appreciated by those skilled in the art. 
     One exemplary approach for illuminating a photodiode  21  is to have the light incident normal to the photodiode junction. An alternate approach would be to have the incident light parallel to the photodiode  21  junction. The latter approach has the advantage of aligning the junction along the length of the core  23 . This may accommodate longer gratings  22  with enhanced functionality, for example. Other approaches may potentially be used as well, as will be understood by those skilled in the art. 
     It will also be understood that for maximum power delivery to a load from a power source, load resistance and equivalent source resistance is preferably made equal. Under illumination, a photodiode connected to an open circuit load will produce a photovoltage, V oc . Likewise, a photodiode connected to a short circuit load will produce a photocurrent, ISC. The equivalent source resistance, REQ, of the photodiode is then approximately V oc /I sc . To optimize power delivery to the optical-wireless device  12 , the source resistance and load resistance should preferably be tailored in each particular application to achieve an optimal match, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art. 
     In addition to optimizing illumination of the photodiodes, parasitic impedances introduced by the packaging into the electrical interconnect should preferably be held to a minimum. Parasitic resistance in the power source conductors will decrease power conversion efficiency, as will be appreciated by those of skill in the art. Care may also need to be taken to ensure that parasitic impedances between the transmitter  27  and antenna  34  ( FIG. 3 ) do not overly limit the bandwidth and/or shape of the radiated pulses. Various types of interconnections may be used in accordance with the present invention, and potential criteria for the selection thereof are that they should be simple, inexpensive, and accommodate mass production. 
     One such approach for forming the electrical interconnections is to use conductive epoxy. Forming interconnections in this manner is well known in the art, has lower parasitic inductance than wire bonding, and occupies less physical space than other conventional interconnections. The same epoxy forming the interconnect can also permanently hold the devices in place. In addition, additives can be used to alter the conductivity of the epoxy to form a resistor  39  ( FIG. 3 ) used to bias the signal detecting diode  26 . This is possible because of the very low power requirements of the biasing resistor  39  in the signal detector circuit. Further, non-conductive epoxy  44  may be used to isolate the photodiodes  21  form the signal detecting diode(s)  26 . 
     Multifunctional use of epoxy may reduce package complexity, size, the number of process steps required for assembly, and cost. Where wire bonds are more appropriately used, the parasitics associated therewith are preferably held to a minimum. Wire bonds can easily introduce nano-Henry level inductances into the package if care is not taken. One method to reduce the parasitics of a wire bond is to press the bond flat toward the package  19  or substrate  43  ( FIG. 4 ) This limits the wire curvature to reduce flux linkage, and brings the wire closer to the ground plane to act more as a transmission line with controlled impedance. 
     In particular, wire bonds  40  may be used for coupling the photodiodes  21  in series, as described above, and wire bonds  41  may be used for coupling the optical power fiber unit  20  to the wireless communications unit  25 . Additionally, wire bonds  42   a ,  42   b  may be used for coupling the wireless communications unit  25  to the dipole antenna elements  34   a ,  34   b  ( FIG. 1 ). 
     The wireless communication unit  25  may include a radio frequency (RF) transmitter  27 , and an&#39;optical signal grating  28  optimized for extracting optical data signals from the fiber  11 . Of course, the optical signal grating  28  and power grating  22  may be optimized differently. According to one important aspect of the invention, the RF transmitter  27  may be an ultra-wideband (UWB) transmitter. UWB provides wireless communications spread to very low power spectral density across a very wide band of frequencies. Data is transmitted by modulating and radiating discrete pulses of RF energy. As a result, UWB may be particularly advantageous for use in the communication system  10  because it may coexist with many existing continuous wave narrowband systems without interference. Furthermore, the broad spectral nature and/or low frequency content of UWB pulses makes it better suited to penetrate walls and obstacles than other existing technologies. Of course, those of skill in the art will appreciate that other forms of wireless communication may also be used in accordance with the present invention. 
     As illustratively shown in  FIG. 3 , for example, the ultra-wideband transmitter  27  may include an optical signal detector  26  having an input coupled to the signal optical grating ( FIG. 2 ). The signal detector  26  may also be a photodiode, such as the InGaAs photodiode described above. The same considerations described above with respect to placement, efficiency, etc. of the photodiodes  21  is also applicable to the photodiode  26 , and will therefore not be discussed further here except to note that typically only one photodiode  26  is required for signal detection (although more may be used). Further, optional signal conditioning circuitry (not shown) may also be included in some embodiments which, in those embodiments where the wireless communication unit  25  is implemented using semiconductor technology, may be implemented using the same technology. 
     An amplifier  30  has an input connected to the output of the optical detector  26 . The transmitter further includes a pseudorandom code generator  31 , a multiplier  32  having inputs connected to the outputs of the amplifier  30  and the pseudorandom code generator, and a pulse generator  33  having an input connected to the output of the multiplier. Other UWB transmitter circuitry arrangements are also possible, as will be understood by those of skill in the art. 
     The ultra-wideband transmitter  27  may also include an antenna  34  connected to the output of the pulse generator  33 . By way of example, the antenna  34  may be a dipole antenna connected to the ultra-wideband transmitter  27  (or other suitable RF device) by wire bonds  42   a ,  42   b  ( FIG. 1 ). For a particularly compact and efficient construction, the dipole antenna  34  preferably includes first and second portions  34   a ,  34   b  extending in opposite directions along the longitudinal side of the optical fiber  11 , as illustratively shown in  FIG. 2 . 
     To maintain a low profile, it would be preferable to use a broadband dipole antenna  34  that can be integrated onto the side of the optical fiber. Yet, as will be appreciated by those of skill in the art, most dipole antennas have an inherently narrow band because they are resonant structures that support standing waves. Accordingly, various approaches may be used to increase the bandwidth of the dipole antenna  34  to support ultra-wideband transmission more efficiently. One such approach is the traveling wave approach, in which the current distribution in the antenna is altered so that it supports a traveling wave. 
     More particularly, the amplitude of the current wave is made to decrease with distance away from the input terminals by using a resistive material to form the dipole. The antenna  34  may be truncated at the point where the current distribution becomes negligible without significantly affecting the performance of the antenna. With very little current to reflect from the dipole endpoints, resonance is avoided and the structure supports traveling waves. This approach improves bandwidth, but potentially at the cost of efficiency due to dissipative losses in the antenna  34 . It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the resistance profile of the antenna  34  may need to be varied along its length to optimize the trade-off between efficiency and bandwidth in some applications. Further information regarding this approach may be found in Tonn et al., “Traveling Wave Microstrip Dipole Antennas”, I.E.E.E., Electronics Letters, volume 31, issue 24, Nov. 23, 1995, pages 2064 to 2066. 
     Yet another approach is that of impedance loading, which purposely introduces parasitics to broaden the frequency response by making the effective length of the dipole frequency dependent. This is accomplished by preventing higher frequencies from having multiple resonances and confining them to a smaller portion of the dipole. Here again, this approach may improve bandwidth at the cost of efficiency due to dissipative losses in the parasitic loads. Thus, the impedance profile of the antenna  34  may need to be varied along its length to optimize the trade-off between efficiency and bandwidth in some applications. Further information on this approach may be found in “Numerical modeling and design of loaded broadband wire antennas” by Austin et al., I.E.E.E, Fourth International Conference on HF Radio Systems and Techniques, 1988, pages 125 to 129. 
     Accordingly, those skilled in the art may be required to determine which of the above approaches (or others) may be best suited for a particular implementation of the present invention. Furthermore, the impedance and/or resistance profile of the antenna can be tailored for reasons other than bandwidth and efficiency. The profile can be designed and optimized for functions such as pulse shaping and signal filtering. 
     As noted above, in accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the power optical grating  22  is used for extracting light from the core  23  to power the wireless communications unit  25 , and the optical signal grating  28  is used to either extract light from (in the case of signal transmission from the wireless communications unit) or introduce light into (i.e., in the case of signal reception by the wireless communications unit) the core. Of course, those of skill in the art will appreciate that other approaches exist for extracting light from an optical fiber  11 , such as evanescent coupling, power splitting, or even multiple fibers. Such approaches, as well as other suitable approaches known to those skilled in the art, are also included within the scope of the present invention. 
     Preferably, different optical wavelengths are used for powering and signals in the optical-wireless device  12 . More particularly, the wireless communication unit  25  may operate with light having an optical wavelength λ 2 , which is provided (in the case of transmission by the wireless communication unit) by an optical signal source  35  ( FIG. 5 ). In such case, the optical signal grating  28  is “tuned” to λ 2 , as will be discussed further below. Further, the communication system  10  may include an optical power source  36  coupled to the optical fiber, and, more particularly, the core  23 , for powering the optical fiber power unit  20  using light having the wavelength λ 1 , as noted above. Of course, in some embodiments it may be possible to extract both signals and power from a single source of light having the same wavelength. The optical power source  36  and the optical signal source  35  may be circuitry internal to the server  16 , for example. 
     Fabrication of the gratings  22  and  28  will now be discussed in further detail. To facilitate the fabrication process, a fiber bench  29  may advantageously be used. A fiber bench is a section of fiber where a portion of the cladding  24  is polished away to form a flat surface in close proximity to the fiber core  23 . It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the surface gratings  22 ,  28  fabricated on the fiber bench  29  can exploit the evanescent field to perform a variety of functions such as spectral filtering, dispersion compensation, mode matching, mode stripping, or light extraction and injection. The gratings  22 ,  28  can also be designed to perform these functions over selected wavelengths (e.g., λ 1  and λ 2 ) or modes, while not affecting others. 
     Interfacing with the optical fiber  11  in this manner has the advantages of lower insertion loss, reduced system complexity, enhanced functionality, and the potential for volume production. A conventional splice might otherwise suffer from higher losses in the optical fiber  11  when using multiple optical-wireless devices  12  operating from different wavelengths. The fiber bench  29  can also be used as a micro-sized substrate to host small devices such as MEMS, sensors (e.g., bio/chemical, acoustic, seismic, etc.), or other microsystems in certain embodiments. 
     The fiber bench  29  can be formed by placing the fiber in a silicon V-groove and filling the gaps with an epoxy. With the epoxy cured, the entire assembly is polished until the cladding  24  of the optical fiber  11  is within close proximity to the core  23 . A liquid drop test measurement may then be used to accurately control the proximity of the fiber bench  29  surface to the fiber core  23 . The process may be automated, and systems with fiber benches can potentially be mass produced at low cost. For further details on the use of fiber benches, see, e.g., Leminger and Zengerle, Journal of Lightwave Technology, Volume 3, 1985. 
     Additional benefits of this approach include the ability to use the silicon bench  29  portion of the device for integration with detector electronics. Moreover, it is feasible that additional optics and/or antenna elements (not shown) can be integrated on the silicon portion of the fiber bench  29 , as will be appreciated by those of skill in the art. 
     The liquid drop test measurement method assesses the proximity of the fiber bench  29  surface to the core  23  of the optical fiber  11 . Light is injected into one end of the optical fiber  11  so that it propagates through the region of the fiber bench  29  and eventually to a power meter. By placing a drop of liquid on the fiber bench  29  surface, light is outcoupled in the region of the liquid and can be measured by the power meter as loss. The fraction of light lost can be used to compute the distance from the bench surface to the core of the fiber. 
     One approach for fabricating the gratings  22 ,  28  involves tilting the core  23  during the formation thereof. As will be understood by those of skill in the art, gratings are inherently spectrally selective due to their dispersive properties, and can be designed to selectively redirect bands of wavelengths out of the core  23 . The outcoupled light would be subsequently focused onto the photodiodes  21 ,  26  using micro-optical elements fabricated on the flat side of the optical fiber  11 . Since this approach requires photosensitive glass to produce the gratings  22 ,  28  adjacent the core  23 , a strong variation in the index may be difficult to realize. A low index modulation requires a long interaction length to couple large amounts of optical power out of the fiber. This may complicate focusing and limit micropackaging options. 
     Accordingly, standard lithographic processes may be used to fabricate the surface gratings  22 ,  28  by etching them onto the polished surface of a optical fiber  11 . To reduce the interaction length, the index modulation may be greatly enhanced by applying a higher index material overcoat on the surface of the grating structure. 
     Tilted surface grating structures may also potentially be used to optimize light extraction and photodiode illumination efficiency. This can be achieved by placing the optical fiber  11  on a tilted fixture and using an anisotropic etch pattern on the fiber bench  29  surface. This approach can yield slant angles from 0 to 30 degrees, for example. To avoid the need for additional focusing optics, the interaction length of the grating structures  22 ,  28  is preferably no longer than the active regions of their respective photodiodes  21 ,  26 . In this manner, the outcoupled light will be inherently confined to the area of the active region. If additional focusing becomes necessary, diffractive optics may be used to focus light onto the photodiodes  21 ,  26 , as will be understood by those skilled in the art. 
     The above approach for extracting light is based on redirecting, or tapping, the guided light out of the optical fiber  11  from specific wavelengths, or modes, for power and signal extraction. An alternate approach views the problem as a spectrally selective directional coupler. The fiber core  23  and the photodiode substrate represent the two regions for light to propagate. By bringing these two regions in close proximity, it is possible to couple light from the fiber to the photodiode very efficiently by designing a spectrally selective grating to match the propagation constants of these two regions, effectively forming a directional coupler, as will be appreciated by those of skill in the art. 
     As noted above, light for signals and power may be provided on different wavelengths λ 1 , λ 2  and, using the wavelength selective gratings  22 ,  28 , the power and signal light can thereby be extracted separately. An alternate approach is to provide the light for signals and power on different propagating modes. For example, a process has been developed which uses a vortex lens to excite specific modes of a graded-index multimode which may be suitable for this purpose. This process is described by Johnson et al. in “Diffractive Vortex Lens for Mode-Matching Graded Index Fiber,” Optical Society of America, Topical Meeting on Diffractive and Micro-Optics, 2000. Therefore, it may also be feasible to use diffractive optics to specifically launch light into different spatial modes for the power and signal wavelengths λ 1 , λ 2 , as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art. Correspondingly, it will also be appreciated that diffractive optics may potentially be designed for spatially demultiplexing the power and signal modes, respectively. 
     Another approach is to utilize a duplex fiber assembly with one fiber devoted to providing power and the other fiber for signal distribution. This will have some advantages in that the power channel can be amplified, or re-supplied, at various places in the network, without interrupting the signal fiber. In this manner, the power source can be distributed, which may make the communication system  10  more reliable and robust. Moreover, the optical fiber  11  can be used with wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) or dense WDM (DWDM) schemes, for example, as will be appreciated by those of skill in the art. This approach can distribute the different signals using standard passive WDM technology and standard amplifier technology for the power channel. However, this integration potentially requires a larger amount of real estate than the single optical fiber approach disclosed above. Of course, it will be appreciated that both embodiments are included within the scope of the present invention, and that a separate conductive wire could even be used to provide power in some embodiments. 
     As noted above, portions of the optical-wireless device may advantageously be implemented in a semiconductor device having a packaging  19  ( FIG. 2 ). In this embodiment, the packaging  19  may serve as a substrate for mounting the optical fiber power unit  20  and the wireless communication unit  25  to the longitudinal side of the optical fiber  11 . In the embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 4 , a separate substrate  43  (e.g., a ceramic substrate) may be used for this purpose as well. 
     One potential micropackaging approach illustrated in  FIG. 4  involves making the various hardware portions modular. More particularly, a row of photodiodes  21 ,  26  is fixed to the front side of the ceramic substrate  43 . The back side of the substrate  43  is populated with the UWB radio hardware described above. Electrical interconnection is provided by conductive and resistive epoxies, metal traces in the ceramic substrate, and wire bonds, as also noted above. In this configuration, the ceramic and silicon substrates could be “snapped” together, for example. 
     It was also noted above that the optical-wireless unit  12  may both transmit and receive wireless signals. In those embodiments where the wireless communication unit  12  includes a wireless transmitter  27 , the communication system  10  may further include at least one wireless receiver  37  (and associated antenna  38 ) spaced from the wireless transmitter and receiving signals therefrom, as illustratively shown in  FIG. 5 . Conversely, in those embodiments where the wireless communication unit  12  includes a wireless receiver, the system may also include at least one wireless transmitter  60 ′ (and associated antenna  61 ′) spaced from the wireless receiver and transmitting signals thereto. Of course, in yet other embodiments, duplex communications may be provided, i.e., the wireless communications unit  12  may include a transceiver, for example. 
     Turning now to  FIG. 7 , a method aspect of the invention for optical-wireless communication will now be described. The method may begin (Block  70 ) with coupling, at Block  71 , at least one optical-wireless device  12  to a longitudinal side of an optical fiber  11 , with the at least one optical-wireless device including an optical fiber power unit  20  and a wireless communication unit  25  connected thereto, as previously described above. The method may also include supplying optical power into the optical fiber  11 , at Block  72 , converting the optical power in the optical fiber into electrical power using the optical fiber power unit  20 , at Block  74 , and electrically powering the wireless communication unit  25  for optical-wireless communication using the electrical power converted from the optical power, at Block  73 , thus concluding the method (Block  75 ). Additional method aspects will be understood from the above description and will therefore not be discussed further herein. 
     It will therefore be appreciated by those of skill in the art that numerous advantages are provided by the&#39;communication system  10  of the present invention. In particular, these advantages may include: seamless conversion between optical and wireless domains; reliable, untethered, and high capacity access to optical links; the potential benefits of ultra-wideband impulse radio; a high degree of covertness; a small compact form factor; distributing wireless node functionality along the optical fiber  11  without optical-electrical-optical splices; more survivable systems due to added redundancy; more mobile systems that are easier to manage than conventional optical-to-wireless systems; less complex systems than conventional optical-to-wireless converters; cabling minimization; systems that may be rapidly deployed at low cost; copperless LANs that are easier and quicker to install than conventional optical-to-wireless systems; significant increase in the reach of “conventional” UWB links and ad-hoc networks; latency and processing overhead may be substantially eliminated at optical/wireless interworking points; frequency allocation restraints may be bypassed; and system costs may be reduced. 
     Many modifications and other embodiments of the invention will come to the mind of one skilled in the art having the benefit of the teachings presented in the foregoing descriptions and the associated drawings. Therefore, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the specific embodiments disclosed, and that modifications and embodiments are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims.