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CD player diode?

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Dec 5, 2008
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I was looking through my drawers of random parts, and I found the sled from a ~5 year old CD player (the portable walkman kind, not the stereo kind), and I decided to harvest the diode out of it. I don't know what mA or mW it was operating at or anything as I only had the sled, but what cool stuff can you do using the diode from an average CD player?
I mean hell, there has to be something fun I can do with it :)

P.S. the diode has an "R" engraved or stamped on the back of it, if that means anything.
 





Being a player that old, It is probably a low powered IR laser diode. Won't do much but serve as a learning step to bigger things.

Mike
 
Thanks. Ya know, I may attempt to use it with my video camera... My camera uses an IR light and sensor as a sort of "night vision," so maybe I can use this as just more lighting.
 
Hemlock Mike said:
Being a player that old, It is probably a low powered IR laser diode. Won't do much but serve as a learning step to bigger things.

Mike

It's a "stepping stone" diode, watch out! :exclamation
 
If a CD burner's laser is pretty weak I can only imagine how weak a regular player's is. You'd probably get more light from an IR LED than that thing.
 
Kage said:
[quote author=Hemlock Mike link=1228889979/0#1 date=1228890383]Being a player that old, It is probably a low powered IR laser diode.  Won't do much but serve as a learning step to bigger things.

Mike

It's a "stepping stone" diode, watch out!  :exclamation[/quote]

LOL.
 
Yup you probably won't be able to do much with it though. Try a diode from an old DVD player, which should give you low-powered red laser light! :)
 
loneoceans said:
Yup you probably won't be able to do much with it though. Try a diode from an old DVD player, which should give you low-powered red laser light! :)

Funny thing is I've actually got a few lying around.
Well, off to go take one apart.
 


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