Apparatus for enhancing impedance-matching in a high-speed data communications system

1. An optoelectronic device for use in a high-speed communication system including an external electrical device, the optoelectronic device comprising:

a housing;

a circuit board mounted in the housing;

at least one optoelectronic component mounted on the circuit board;

a plurality of spaced-apart contact pads mounted proximate to an edge of the circuit board, the plurality of contact pads for coupling with a plurality of complementary connectors of the external electrical device, each coupling between a contact pad and a complementary connector being associated with an excess shunt capacitance;

a plurality of inductive traces mounted on the circuit board, each inductive trace connected to a respective contact pad of the plurality of contact pads, each inductive trace associated with a compensating series inductance; and

a plurality of signal lines mounted on the circuit board, each signal line connected to a respective inductive trace of the plurality of inductive traces, the plurality of signal lines utilized in conjunction with optoelectronic communications by the at least one optoelectronic component;

wherein each inductive trace of the plurality of inductive traces is configured so that the compensating series inductance associated with the inductive trace substantially offsets the excess shunt capacitance associated with the coupling between the contact pad connected to the inductive trace and a complementary connector of the external device.

2. The optoelectronic device of claim 1 , wherein the optoelectronic device is for use in a high-speed communications system operating above 5.0 Gb/s.

3. The optoelectronic device of claim 1 , wherein each contact pad of the plurality of contact pads has a surface area having a width and a length, the surface area affecting the excess shunt capacitance associated with the coupling between the contact pad and a complementary connector of the external device, and further wherein the surface area of each contact pad of a subset of the plurality of contact pads is configured to be less than the product of the width and the length of the surface area, in order to reduce the excess shunt capacitance associated with the coupling between the contact pad and the complementary connector, while maintaining sufficient surface area for the complementary connector to couple with the contact pad.

4. The optoelectronic device of claim 1 , wherein the optoelectronic device is used in conjunction with one or more high-speed differential signal paths.

5. The optoelectronic device of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of inductive traces is less in number than the plurality of contact pads, and further including one or more additional signal lines, each additional signal line connected to a respective contact pad of the plurality of contact pads.

6. The optoelectronic device of claim 1 ,

wherein at least one complementary connector of the external electrical device is coupled to an external transmission line having a nominal impedance;

wherein a coupling between a contact pad and a complementary connector, as well as the inductive trace connected to the contact pad, have, jointly, an average impedance value based in part on the excess shunt capacitance associated with the coupling and the compensating series inductance associated with the inductive trace; and

wherein the average impedance of a coupling and an inductive trace is substantially equivalent to the nominal impedance of an external transmission line of the external electrical device.

7. The optoelectronic device of claim 1 , wherein each inductive trace and the contact pad connected thereto are configured to provide substantial impedance matching to the complementary connector to which the contact pad is coupled, when the optoelectronic device is communicating at data transmission rates greater than 5.0 Gb/s.

8. The optoelectronic device of claim 1 , wherein each inductive trace and the contact pad connected thereto are configured to provide substantial impedance matching to the signal line to which the inductive trace is connected, when the optoelectronic device is communicating at data transmission rates greater than 5.0 Gb/s.

9. The optoelectronic device of claim 1 , further comprising a grounding plane mounted on an opposite side of a dielectric layer of the circuit board from the plurality of contact pads and the plurality of inductive traces, and wherein the grounding plane does not extend into a region below at least a subset of the plurality of contact pads.

10. The optoelectronic device of claim 9 , wherein the grounding plane further does not extend into a region below at least a subset of the plurality of inductive traces.

11. The optoelectronic device of claim 1 , wherein the compensating series inductance associated with an inductive trace is a function of a length and a width of the inductive trace, and further wherein the length and the width of the inductive trace are configured to substantially offset the excess shunt capacitance associated with the coupling between the contact pad connected to the inductive trace and a complementary connector of the external device.

12. The optoelectronic device of claim 1 , wherein the width of each inductive trace is no greater than 35% of a width of the signal line connected to the inductive trace.

13. The optoelectronic device of claim 1 , wherein the width of each inductive trace is no greater than 25% of a width of the signal line connected to the inductive trace.

14. The optoelectronic device of claim 1 , wherein the optoelectronic device comprises a portion of an edge-card connector system.

15. An optoelectronic device for use in a high-speed communication system including an external electrical device, the optoelectronic device comprising:

a housing;

a circuit board mounted in the housing;

at least one optoelectronic component mounted on the circuit board;

a plurality of spaced-apart contact pads mounted proximate to an edge of the circuit board, the plurality of contact pads for coupling with a plurality of complementary connectors of the external electrical device, each coupling between a contact pad and a complementary connector being associated with an excess shunt capacitance; and

a plurality of signal lines mounted on the circuit board, each signal line connected to a respective contact pad of the plurality of contact pads, the plurality of signal lines utilized in conjunction with optoelectronic communications by the at least one optoelectronic component;

wherein each contact pad of the plurality of contact pads has a surface area having a width and a length, the surface area affecting the excess shunt capacitance associated with the coupling between the contact pad and a complementary connector of the external device;

wherein the surface area of each contact pad of a subset of the plurality of contact pads is configured to be less than the product of the width and the length of the surface area, in order to reduce the excess shunt capacitance associated with the coupling between the contact pad and the complementary connector, while maintaining sufficient surface area for the complementary connector to couple with the contact pad.

16. The optoelectronic device of claim 15 , wherein the optoelectronic device is used in conjunction with one or more high-speed differential signal paths.

17. The optoelectronic device of claim 15 , further comprising a grounding plane mounted on an opposite side of a dielectric layer of the circuit board from the plurality of contact pads, and wherein the grounding plane does not extend into a region below at least a subset of the plurality of contact pads.