  We report on the development of a prototype integrated receiver front-end
that combines all conversions from RF to baseband, from analog to digital, and
from copper to fiber into one compact assembly, with the necessary gain and
stability suitable for radio astronomy applications. The emphasis in this
article is on a novel digital data link over optical fiber which requires no
formatting in the front-end, greatly reducing the complexity, bulk, and power
consumption of digital electronics inside the antenna, facilitating its
integration with the analog components, and minimizing the self-generated
radio-frequency interference (RFI) which could leak into the signal path.
Management of the serial data link is performed entirely in the back-end based
on the statistical properties of signals with a strong random noise component.
In this way, the full benefits of precision and stability afforded by
conventional digital data transmission are realized with far less overhead at
the focal plane of a radio telescope.
