Patent ID: 8265487

Claim:
A half-duplex, single-fiber (S-F) optical transceiver module for communication over an optical link, the S-F optical transceiver module comprising: a leadframe having at least a first leadframe portion, a second leadframe portion, and a plurality of electrically conductive leads, the first leadframe portion having an upper surface and a lower surface, the second leadframe portion having an upper surface and a lower surface; a photodiode having a cathode, an anode, an upper light-receiving surface, and a lower mounting surface, the photodiode being disposed on the upper surface of the first leadframe portion such that the lower mounting surface of the photodiode is adjacent the upper surface of the first leadframe portion; a light source having a cathode, an anode, an upper light-emitting surface, and a lower mounting surface, the light source being disposed on an edge region of the upper light-receiving surface of the photodiode such that the lower mounting surface of the light source is adjacent the upper light-receiving surface of the photodiode in the edge region of the upper light-receiving surface; a transparent molded encapsulation that encapsulates the photodiode, the light source, and a portion of the leadframe that includes at least the first and second leadframe portions; and an optical coupling system integrally formed in the transparent molded encapsulation, the optical coupling system including at least a lens portion and an alignment portion, the alignment portion being configured to provide at least one surface that abuts a first end face of an optical fiber when the first end face of the optical fiber is attached to the optical coupling system, and wherein the lens portion is configured to optically couple light passing out of the first end face of the optical fiber onto the upper light-receiving surface of the photodiode and to optically couple light emitted from the upper light-emitting surface of the light source onto the end face of the optical fiber and into a core of the optical fiber, and wherein the mounting of the light source on the edge region of the upper light-receiving surface of the photodiode ensures that the light source prevents only a very small portion of the light passing out of the first end face from being optically coupled by the lens portion onto the upper light-receiving surface of the photodiode, and wherein the first leadframe portion is tilted with respect to the second leadframe portion such that an optical axis of the light source is tilted at a non-zero tilt angle with respect to an optical axis of the optical fiber, the non-zero tilt angle being greater than 0 degrees and less than 90 degrees, and wherein the tilt of the optical axis of the light source with respect to the optical axis of the optical fiber ensures that light emitted from the light source is optically coupled efficiently into the core of the optical fiber.