Smart photonics, or the integration of optoelectronic (OE) devices and links with circuitry such as Si complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) very large scale integrated (VLSI) circuits, can yield both advanced optical links and possibly integrated solutions for optoelectronic interfaces and interconnections to standard electronic systems. Coupled with alignment tolerant designs, these implementations may yield cost effective solutions which are compatible and integrable with electronic systems. The options in stacking of thin films circuit or in the vertical optical interconnection of Si CMOS circuits using through-Si optical signals are explored in the context of hybrid thin film integration and packaging.