Waveguide connector elements and optical assemblies incorporating the same

1. A waveguide connector element comprising:

a first end face and a second end face;

a pre-existing optical waveguide within or on a surface of the waveguide connector element;

a laser written optical waveguide optically coupled to an end of the pre-existing optical waveguide and extending toward one of the first end face and the second end face; and

a notch for receiving an optical printed circuit board,

wherein the waveguide connector element is a glass waveguide connector element drawn in a direction perpendicular to an optical axis of the waveguide connector element.

2. The waveguide connector element of claim 1 , wherein the laser written optical waveguide has a parallel displacement parallel to the waveguide connector element and a normal displacement normal to the waveguide connector element.

3. The waveguide connector element of claim 1 , wherein the pre-existing optical waveguide is one of an ion exchanged optical waveguide, a planar glass dielectric waveguide, an embedded optical fiber waveguide, and a polymer waveguide.

4. The waveguide connector element of claim 1 , wherein the pre-existing optical waveguide terminates at one of the first end face and the second end face.

5. The waveguide connector element of claim 4 , further comprises a laser bump at one of the first end face and the second end face and aligned with the pre-existing optical waveguide.

6. The waveguide connector element of claim 1 , further comprising a beam expanding lens at the first end face, wherein the beam expanding lens is a tapered structure that decreases in diameter from the first end face toward the second end face, the pre-existing optical waveguide extends from the second end face, the laser written optical waveguide optically couples the beam expanding lens to the pre-existing optical waveguide.

7. The waveguide connector element of claim 6 , further comprising a laser bump at the first end face and aligned with the beam expanding lens.

8. The waveguide connector element of claim 6 , wherein the beam expanding lens is one of an ion exchanged lens, a thermally extending core, and a laser written lens.

9. The waveguide connector element of claim 6 , wherein the beam expanding lens is one of a plurality of beam expanding lenses having a first pitch, and the pre-existing optical waveguide is one of a plurality of plurality of pre-existing optical waveguides having a second pitch, and the first pitch is greater than the second pitch.

10. The waveguide connector element of claim 1 , further comprising a step feature.

11. The waveguide connector element of claim 1 , wherein the first end face of the waveguide connector element is curved.

12. The waveguide connector element of claim 1 , further comprising a mechanical feature.

13. The waveguide connector element of claim 12 , wherein the mechanical feature is at least one of a ridge and a trench.

14. A waveguide connector element comprising:

a first end face and a second end face;

a two-dimensional array of beam expanding lenses at the first end face, wherein the beam expanding lens is a tapered structure that decreases in diameter from the first end face toward the second end face; and

a one-dimensional array of waveguides at the second end face, wherein the one-dimensional array of waveguides is optically coupled to the two-dimensional array of beam expanding lenses,

wherein the one-dimensional array of waveguides is a one dimensional array of laser written optical waveguides and wherein the two-dimensional array of beam expanding lenses has a first pitch, and the one-dimensional array of laser written optical waveguides has a second pitch at the second end face, and the first pitch is greater than the second pitch.

15. The waveguide connector element of claim 14 , wherein each beam expanding lens of the two-dimensional array of beam expanding lenses is one of an ion exchanged lens, a thermally extending core, and a laser written lens.

16. The waveguide connector element of claim 14 , wherein the one-dimensional array of waveguides is a one-dimensional array of pre-existing waveguides.

17. The waveguide connector element of claim 16 , wherein each beam expanding lens of the two-dimensional array of beam expanding lenses is a laser written lens.

18. The waveguide connector element of claim 14 , further comprising a step feature.

19. The waveguide connector element of claim 14 , wherein the waveguide connector element is a glass waveguide connector element drawn in a direction perpendicular to an optical axis of the waveguide connector element.

20. The waveguide connector element of claim 19 , wherein the first end face of the waveguide connector element is curved.

21. The waveguide connector element of claim 14 , further comprising a mechanical feature.

22. The waveguide connector element of claim 21 , wherein the mechanical feature is at least one of a ridge and a trench.

23. The waveguide connector element of claim 14 , further comprising a notch for receiving an optical printed circuit board.

24. A waveguide connector element comprising:

a first end face and a second end face;

a two-dimensional array of beam expanding lenses at the first end face, wherein the beam expanding lens is a tapered structure that decreases in diameter from the first end face toward the second end face; and

a one-dimensional array of waveguides at the second end face, wherein the one-dimensional array of waveguides is optically coupled to the two-dimensional array of beam expanding lenses,

wherein the one-dimensional array of waveguides is a one dimensional array of laser written optical waveguides, and wherein the one-dimensional array of laser written optical waveguides has a parallel displacement in a plane parallel to the optical printed circuit board and a normal displacement in a plane normal to the optical printed circuit board within the waveguide connector element.