Rohm and Hosiden have announced jointly the development an optical communication module-unit featuring a transmission rate of 2.5Gbps for inter-substrate communication within portable devices such as mobile phones. The module integrates a communication IC (processing), a laser diode (transmission), and a photodiode (reception) in a compact form factor (11.0mm × 3.25mm × 1.0mm).

Optical communication is achieved with power consumption of 30mW via intra-device transmission through an inexpensive single-core plastic fiber (0.6mmΦ), enabling transmission rates up to 2.5Gbps - 5 times greater than conventional copper wiring. The result is large data transmission at high speeds using 1/10 the wiring, contributing to simpler device designs and greater flexibility. In addition, the optical transmission method completely eliminates EMI noise.