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TOSLINK is a fiber optic connection standard used in the audio field. It is a registered trademark of Toshiba Corporation, the name is short for TOShiba-LINK. The generic name for the standard is EIAJ optical.

What exactly is this type of connection?

Most of the connections used to manage PCs, media centers or audio and video devices use electrical signals. Whether it is analog or digital technology, the signals are transmitted in the form of an electrical impulse on a cable of conductive material. Any cable used in a modern HDMI connection or in an older 70s solution is composed of tiny metal filaments, the most of the copper vaults. The only exception to what has just been written is represented by the optical connections with fiber optic cables: in them the signal is transferred with pulses of laser light generated by LEDs. This standard was introduced in 1983 by Toshiba and was originally used for connecting CD players; this is also the reason why the optical connection is often referred to as Toshiba-Link or TOSLINK.