I believe some people will see a laser diode module packaged like a spider. Do you know the name of this module? Where are its main applications?

Butterfly packaged laser diode is actually quite common in the industry, especially in the fields of optical communication, laser medical treatment and scientific research experiments. Its greatest advantage is its high integration, which not only contains laser chips, but also includes thermoelectric refrigeration units (TEC), temperature sensors and photoelectric monitors. Simply put, it can control the temperature, monitor the light and stabilize the power by itself, so that the light output will not drift when the output power is high or the ambient temperature changes greatly.

In terms of application, the range of butterfly packaged laser diodes is quite wide. For example, in optical communication, it is almost standard, and modules such as fiber amplifier, fiber transmission and wavelength division multiplexing basically rely on it to provide stable laser sources. It is also common in medical treatment, such as some laser therapeutic devices or skin phototherapy devices. In order to control the safety and accuracy of light output, this package is also like to be used. There are also scientific research fields. When many laboratories do spectral analysis, laser ranging and interference experiments, in order to control the temperature and optical power conveniently, they will choose butterfly packaging.

Another point that is easily overlooked is its heat dissipation structure. Generally, the base of butterfly package is made of cermet or copper, which has a good heat dissipation effect. With TEC temperature control, the chip can still be stable under high output.

Of course, it is not without its shortcomings. For example, the cost is higher than that of ordinary packaging, and the volume is a little larger. The process of assembly and fiber coupling is highly complex, and the assembly accuracy is particularly high. Sometimes when the optical fiber is adjusted by a few tens of microns, the output efficiency will drop by half, which is why it is mostly used in professional equipment and not suitable for civilian or low-cost products.

Generally speaking, if you want high stability, high precision and high power laser output, the butterfly package is indeed a very reliable choice. It is like a "high-end machine" in the laser industry. It not only encapsulates a chip, but integrates the functions of temperature control, detection, protection and optical coupling. Although it is expensive, it can save you a lot of debugging troubles in the later period.