Patent ID: 7471865

Claim:
An apparatus, comprising: a molded substrate body made from a first optically transparent material having: (i) a plurality of integrally molded optical lenses shaped as part of the molded substrate body and made from the first optically transparent material having backside surface and a curved optical face on the side of the lens opposite from the backside surface; and (ii) a plurality of negative grooves molded into the substrate body wherein the grooves terminate at the backside surface of the integrally molded optical lenses and in optical alignment with the plurality of integral lenses, the molded substrate body, the plurality of integral optical lenses, and the plurality of negative grooves form a monolithic waveguide substrate; and a second optically transparent material provided within the plurality of negative waveguide grooves, the optically transparent material forming a plurality of waveguide cores that terminate at the backside surface of the integrally molded optical lenses such that the cores are in contact with and in optical alignment with the plurality of integral optical lenses, each of the plurality of integrally molded optical lenses are molded to taper toward the backside surface of said lens and taper toward an associated one of the plurality of negative grooves so as to contact an associated waveguide core.