LEDs, lots and lots of LEDs
BEST OF BREED
ONLYTHE
BEST
rom its humble beginnings in the
early 1960s, the light-emitting diode,
or LED, has become a favourite
component for electrical engineers,
artists, and even kids. It’s hard
to imagine a piece of electronics
that doesn’t have at least one LED indicating its
power. What’s even more surprising is that this
electroluminescence phenomenon was discovered
over 100 years ago, in the early 1900s.
It’s no wonder the LED has become so popular,
from the fact they exponentially outlast incandescent
light bulbs, come in a variety of colours, including
smart LEDs that can be programmed to represent
almost any colour of the rainbow, and they are
incredibly inexpensive. What’s not to love?
In this Best of Breed, We’ll be looking at some of
our favourite products that contain lots of LEDs (LoL).
Some have hundreds of LEDs, and others only feature
a handful, but all of them are reliant on the usefulness
and beauty of the humble LED.
FUN FACT
Everyone knows that the LED emits light, but did you
know that it can detect light too? Through the
use of a microcontroller and carefully controlling
the power, creating a reverse bias of the circuit, you
can actually sense light and dark. It’s not perfect, but
it’s still a fun hack of a standard LED. There’s lots of
information online about how to build the circuit –
just don’t expect it to replace a photoresistor, as its
sensitivity is not as good.
F
Everyone’s favourite electroluminescent phenomenon
By Marc de Vinck @devinck
LEDs, lots, and lots
of LEDs
Left
You can never have
too many LEDs