An optical data link is provided for optically transmitting in free space data from a plurality of receiver coils in a magnetic resonance (MR) imaging system. This free space (e.g., through-the-air) optical data link provides a tether-less (i.e., no bundles of physical wires or optic fibers), essentially electro-magnetically immune (no interference as in radio-frequency wireless transmissions) and scalable solution to transmit data usable to create an MR image.