Patent ID: 7062114

Claim:
A photonic integrated circuit (PIC) chip comprising: a plurality of integrated electro-optic components formed on a major surface of the chip; a region on the chip major surface that supports a plurality of aligned bonding pads electrically coupled to at least some of the circuit electro-optic components; a submount for supporting the PIC chip; a substrate that is cantilevered from the submount over a portion of the major surface of the chip forming an air gap between the submount substrate and the chip major surface; a surface of the substrate supporting a plurality of elongated electrical leads across the substrate surface and terminating with ends at an edge of the substrate surface such that the substrate edge is suspended over the chip major surface bonding pad region with the substrate edge substantially aligned with the alignment of bonding pads on the major surface therebeneath so that an electrical connection can be accomplished from the ends of the electrical leads above the bonding pads directly to the bonding pads below the substrate edge.