Are lasers safer with rechargeable batteries?
Рет қаралды 76,378
3 жыл бұрынI wonder what the best and easiest way to lower a laser's power output is? I have used an ND filter earlier, but it is not without issues.
Could I simply switch to rechargeable batteries in stead of alkalines? They have 20% lower voltage after all.
And how well does my ND filter work in reality? Like specified? I will also demonstrate how to test the strength of an unlabelled, mystery filter.
ND8 filter donated earlier by www.wickedlasers.com for their show laser, like I use it in my video on divergence: • Bad Beams? | How diver...
My Patreon-page: / brainiac75
Measuring my strongest lasers: • Strongest LASERs in my...
Measuring laser divergence: • Bad Beams? | How diver...
Building my beam dump: • Don't use strong laser...
Laser classes explained: • Even STRONGER Garden L...
Did you miss one of my videos?: / brainiac75
FULL MUSIC CREDITS
Time codes: 0:01 + 8:20
"Darkness is Coming" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
ISRC: USUAN1100584
(edited to be loopable by me)
Time codes: 0:45 + 4:52 + 9:01
"Luminous Rain" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
ISRC: USUAN1100169
Time code: 1:23
"Redletter" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
ISRC: USUAN1100714
Time code: 1:50
"Clear Waters" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
ISRC: USUAN1100290
Time codes: 3:24 + 7:49
"Darkening Developments" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
ISRC: USUAN1100267
Time code: 5:26
"Neo Western" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
ISRC: USUAN1100615
Time code: 6:30
"Perspectives" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
ISRC: USUAN1300027
All music above licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
creativecommons.org/licenses/b...
Time code: 7:05
Mix of two tracks:
1) The Shimmering by fran_ky (freesound.org/s/237363)
Licensed under Creative Commons 0 license
2) "Spacial Harvest" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
creativecommons.org/licenses/b...
ISRC: USUAN1100653
#LowerPower #Laser #Brainiac75
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
As mentioned in the video, comment with your suggestions on how to lower a laser beam's power. I will make a video where I test your ideas, crazy or creative as they may be... I prefer a separate comment in stead of a reply. Replies quickly turn messy and chaotic 😵 Thanks for your input!
@Hardcorelactation 3 жыл бұрын
i am so happy that u uploaded
@abhijeetbyte 3 жыл бұрын
One thing I would like to mention, whenever we are dealing with Electromagnetic Spectrum with such an instrument, why they don't have a distance/Proximity Sensor to Offset the Loss or gain (ones Calibrated )Because the EM radiation decrease over the distance from the source?
@TheMCCraftingTable 3 жыл бұрын
This isn't about lowering the power but... I think that weird filter of yours is actually a UV-pass filter. I saw similar filters when looking for filters on eBay. On a side note, there's a company called Lasence who makes 558-559nm and 575nm DPSS laser modules, for less than $100 each and comes with a driver. That's a good deal for yellow/near yellow module... They leak IR though so I installed an IR filter on my build.
@KogothLetsPlays 3 жыл бұрын
Insert resistor with batteries.
@microwavetransformer6378 3 жыл бұрын
Option A : use 1 battery and then fipl the resr with aluminum foil Option B : buy that device that leta you choose the amps and volts Option C : use used batterys or batterys low on charge Option D : this may not work but you chould try puting a device that uses power between the power source and laser , light bulb or electromagnet ( putting a magnet near and electro magnets offers even more resistance) Option E : get a very thin thing , like paper and try to shine a laser trough it Option F : use mirrors to make the laser lose lots of energy before it hits it target These are just ideas that work in my head , but i dont know if the work , but i hope it helps you get ideas :)
@yourick1953 3 жыл бұрын
1:10 "a bit sus", even brian can't get away from among us?
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Hehe, well it is all over the internet and I kinda like the term - especially because it is easier to pronounce than suspicious x) Thanks for watching, Rick!
@yourick1953 3 жыл бұрын
@@brainiac75 You're welcome, Brian!
@microwavetransformer6378 3 жыл бұрын
Funni
@EzeePosseTV 3 жыл бұрын
Really? I've been using that saying since the 1980's when I was a kid. These things are not new, just like how memes have been around for several decades but the kids today think they invented memes. lol
@juststeve5542 3 жыл бұрын
It's a common phrase in British English for as long as I can remember... I suspect someone on the team had been exposed to a Brit, or was a Brit.
@ApXucBuH 3 жыл бұрын
1:11 Even this good sire of amateur science failed to avoid _amogus_ . It's both laugh and cry for me
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Well, it's just a word and easier to pronounce for a Dane than suspicious ;) Thanks for watching!
@JjMn1000 2 жыл бұрын
Ha
@zzlg 3 жыл бұрын
Well, since light emitted from a laser is polarized, what about using a polarizing filter? When aligned correctly, should it block about 99% of the light?
@monhi64 Жыл бұрын
Wouldn’t that just destroy the filter? It’d absorb all the light and melt/catch fire. You’d need a special polarizer that can absorb all that energy
@monhi64 Жыл бұрын
Oh yeah I guess if you used a low power laser forgot those existed lmao
@SeanCMonahan Жыл бұрын
I don't think all types of lasers emit polarized light. They definitely emit in-phase light, but not necessarily in-plane.
@SeanCMonahan Жыл бұрын
I don't think all types of lasers emit polarized light. They definitely emit in-phase light, but not necessarily in-plane.
@explodingtoast9898 Жыл бұрын
@sean Monaghan why did you type waste?
@sleepkidd_ 3 жыл бұрын
You know its a good day when Brian uploads. :)
@CatAaron 2 жыл бұрын
Ikrr
@Ramdoncontentmadness 2 жыл бұрын
Agreed
@dnb5661 2 жыл бұрын
His name is Brian?
@NotChordsBoy 2 жыл бұрын
As someone whose name is Brian, I thank you
@purplenation3467 2 жыл бұрын
I agree
@123i123i1 3 жыл бұрын
Try lowering the power using a lab power supply - with that you can dial in the power
@Deadwindshadow 3 жыл бұрын
Will not work, a boost driver will draw more current to boost the voltage to the diode's correct 6v input :)
@PoignantPirate 3 жыл бұрын
@@Deadwindshadow constant current power supplies aren't uncommon.
@123i123i1 3 жыл бұрын
@@Deadwindshadow isn't that dependant on the laser? Some certainly have a intelligent power circuit, but others aren't equipped with such a feature... am I missing something?
@Deadwindshadow 3 жыл бұрын
@@PoignantPirate Okay, that would cause the driver to no longer properly regulate and have strange behavior. This could possibly damage the diode or the driver. Also, what use is a laser POINTER when its connected to a bench lab power supply lmao
@Deadwindshadow 3 жыл бұрын
@@PoignantPirate SO JUST PLUG IN THE DIODE DIRECTLY TO THE LAB POWER SUPPLY LOL
@microwavetransformer6378 3 жыл бұрын
Option A : use 1 battery and then fill the rest with aluminum foil Option B : buy that device that let a you choose the amps and volts Option C : use used batterys or batterys low on charge Option D : this may not work but you chould try puting a device that uses power between the power source and laser , light bulb or electromagnet ( putting a magnet near and electro magnets offers even more resistance) Option E : get a very thin thing , like paper and try to shine a laser trough it Option F : use mirrors to make the laser lose lots of energy before it hits it target These are just ideas that work in my head , but i dont know if the work , but i hope it helps you get ideas :)
@markjames2164 2 жыл бұрын
I tinkered with lasers since 98 none of those things you said would work to low powered and it simply won't light up most 5mw lasers need a constant supply of power to maintain output it might have a limited low output but from experience it will just cease to work
@microwavetransformer6378 2 жыл бұрын
@@markjames2164 well thank you for your feedback , but we still dont know what brian whats to do also this is mosty to just give ideas , again i dont know what he wants exept a weeker laser also you said you tested it in 98 , so the tech may be diffrent today then before , i have a laser from 2012 i think and the laser has a problem of not turning on some times and making a flash when turned on and a super unstable output (from a bearly visible dot to you being able to see it trough the air )
@josir1994 2 жыл бұрын
@@microwavetransformer6378 that's some bad quality control, but the physics of lasers haven't really changed any since its invention, still a 3/4 level system to facilitate population inversion and stimulated emission so that you get that nice coherent source. nice try but A-D: not turn on E: becomes a scattering point source, not exactly what you want when you start with a laser F: that takes an absurd amount of mirrors to do anything effective
@cavemann_ 3 жыл бұрын
I swear I laughed out loud when I heard you say "a bit sus" just because of how unexpected that was, that's a good one!
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Hehe, glad someone found it funny. Others seem to be very angry with me for using that term x)
@michaelcalvin42 3 жыл бұрын
@@brainiac75 It is the nature of people to attack memes they dislike. Don't worry about it. I chuckled.
@Gameboygenius 3 жыл бұрын
Suggestion: Some green lasers without an IR filter will output a secondary 808 nm beam. Isolate this beam (through diffraction or a green blocking filter for example) and see how well the high and the low quality neutral density filters attenuate this beam.
@TheCommuted 3 жыл бұрын
Rather than amperage, refer to internal resistance.
@hsooi2748 3 жыл бұрын
Max Amperage during short circuit is more intuitive for me. However, internal resistance is more useful for calculation.
@practicalguy973 3 жыл бұрын
@@hsooi2748 I would assume not every laser driver is designed the same and some may produce less amperage with lower voltage.
@Alpine_flo92002 2 жыл бұрын
@@practicalguy973 some lasers are simply driven by a battery with a series resistor. Some with a switch mode power supply (or similar)
@seraphina985 2 жыл бұрын
I mean to be fair the maximum short circuit current is more representative of the real limiting factor here it is literally the maximum rate the half reaction at the anode can liberate charge. Fundamentally for any given temperature and state of charge of the cell there is a finite amount of charge the cell can provide per second. Attempting to draw more than that will deplete the surplus of charge at the anode and cause the voltage to crash until the current flow balances with the finite rate the charges are being replenished.
@lightbulbgonewild3205 3 жыл бұрын
Thank you for entertaining us Brian ^w^
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Glad you like it - much more entertainment to come :)
@pastahajianpour5607 3 жыл бұрын
These usually use a simple constant current regulator made with a transistor, a cheap reference like the TL431, a shunt resistor, and something like an LM385 as the controller. The op-amp measures the drop across the shunt resistor and adjusts the current to the transistor to maintain the set current (which is provided by the reference). If you can access the board, you could tweak a pot if there is one, change the voltage of the TL431 or other references, or just change the shunt resistor. It'd be interesting if you could actually do it. Cheers!
@-Pexy 3 жыл бұрын
"class 3, a bit sus" im going insane
@SnrubSource 2 жыл бұрын
ding ding ding ding ding ding ding, ding ding ding
@KarinaMilne 3 жыл бұрын
Fascinating content - I’ve watched every video 😅 Happy to see someone so humble to their supporters ❤️ Mate don’t underestimate your contribution to knowledge on the net, it’s awesome!
@KarinaMilne 3 жыл бұрын
What industry is your day job in? I know this is your escape from work life. For me it’s nuclear, and I’m a nurse so you’re expanding my knowledge of lasers and magnets!!
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Hi, Karina. Believe it or not, my day job is in public accounting. Making youtube-videos is definitely an 'escape' from my daily work life :) More info on my background in the 250K subscriber celebration video called 'You've changed my life, thanks': kzfaq.info/get/bejne/p7eRert2vtTWm5s.html
@erickvond6825 2 жыл бұрын
In previous attempts to make a "low power setting" I've used diodes in series for their voltage drop. This works for the most part. The issue is that this isn't a good solution for lasers with a current controlled driver board as they pass the same amount of current at any voltage. That said, when the voltage drops below the maximum threshold of the laser diode the beam intensity also decreases. This also works for reverse voltage protection.
@justin8894 3 жыл бұрын
Very enlightening. I think we’re on the same wavelength.
@MarinusMakesStuff 3 жыл бұрын
Haha, I never knew that the ND filter changed the angle of reflection at 8:15 to make it go in under a flat angle and come out at a 90 degree angle on the filters surface ;) Great video once again, I'll be sure to put some new batteries in my laser as well!
@publicmail2 3 жыл бұрын
You can measure the voltage to the laser from different batteries while laser is loading battery.
@bluethunder6801 3 жыл бұрын
Brainiac good video again sir!!
@BarryTGash 3 жыл бұрын
Thank you for your thoroughness
@Sofia-qn6fs 3 жыл бұрын
Really happy that you started to upload again. Love your videos because science is simply amazing ☺️
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
When did I stop? I have uploaded every month for years :) You may want to check your notification setting or just go directly to my video list: kzfaq.infovideos Thanks for watching!
@Sofia-qn6fs 3 жыл бұрын
@@brainiac75 ok thanks sorry if I didn't notice it properly 😁
@soggybaguette8457 3 жыл бұрын
Video came out 3 minutes ago, but it’s 9 minutes long. Y’all gotta stop acting like you watched the whole thing already.
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Hehe, it is not uncommon to loose a lot of viewers within the first 30 seconds, so people quickly determine whether a video is worth watching or not. Thanks for watching right after video release!
@derdotte 3 жыл бұрын
Having been to an optics labratory with class 4 lasers all over the place and lots of optical instruments in the beam paths i can say that everything is on one level. There is no deviation in verticality. Everything is surrounded by 5cm thick walls covered in filter material and its not allowed to lower your head towards the level of the optical instruments. Its all because of the reflections which are devastating for class 4 lasers. When instruments are run you can actually see the beam path split and hit the walls.
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Yep, a common lab safety procedure is to keep the laser beams at one level - and never at eye level! It is also recommend to use a laser of lower power while setting up the optics and then switch to the more powerful laser for the actual experiment. Or lower the power of the main laser if it can be regulated while setting up the optics. Reflections are no joke! Thanks for watching and sharing!
@reggiep75 3 жыл бұрын
08:21 - I was curious to find if there was any reflective laser beam earlier on in the experiment but thankfully this showed me there is.
@LtKernelPanic 3 жыл бұрын
Since laser diodes are constant current devices lowering the voltage with rechargable batteries won't really work. An appropriate sized resistor should help lower the current and the power.
@PushyPawn Жыл бұрын
A video title like this deserves to be on the 'Idiocracy' channel. Also, did you know that cars are "safer" when running on premium fuel?
@genshineditsjoon 3 жыл бұрын
Nice work!
@jancurtis7827 3 жыл бұрын
Cross polarized filters should reduce the laser’s output significantly in visible spectrum.
@Leonardokite 3 жыл бұрын
Very interesting, and great safety information.
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Glad you like it. Safety first - and much more videos to come!
@skyoreece9805 3 жыл бұрын
Awesome ... love your channel ❤
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Thanks, Sky. Much more to come :)
@Twichl 2 жыл бұрын
I just got out of bed, and for some reason I thought this was the King of DIY, and was very confused for a solid 10 seconds.
@LegendSpecialist 3 жыл бұрын
Great video👍
@ayushagrawal8198 3 жыл бұрын
love your channel!!
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Thanks, Ayush. Much more to come!
@squidgysailor 3 жыл бұрын
Dude I love your videos
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Glad you like them! Makes me want to make more. And thanks for watching shortly after video release :)
@kshatriya1414 2 жыл бұрын
I heard about how an English supporter tried to blind a Danish football player during the match yesterday. Instantly made me think of you because your a Dane and talk about laser safety!.
@bertrolen 3 жыл бұрын
I suggest put the filter in a black tube and placed in a way the reflected beam hit the inner part of the tube (as a beam dump but with an exit so the filtred beam can reach his target)
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Good idea! If the filter is placed at a slight angle inside the tube, the reflected beam should not exit the tube. Or in the case of the ND8 filter, the reflected beam is actually at lower power than the transmitted beam. So why not use the reflected beam as a safer output and absorb the more powerful transmitted beam ;) Thanks for your creative input!
@anthonyvolkman2338 2 жыл бұрын
The 405 NM laser diode is actually driven by a boost driver, it's actually a switching boost converter so as the voltage goes down (or using rechargeable) batteries it will simply adjust the duty cycle of the driver to keep the voltage/current the same across the diode the same, however the other lasers are generally driven by a linear driver which will change the voltage directly due to them not being able to increase the voltage the across the diode, they can only keep the current the same.
@wernerviehhauser94 2 жыл бұрын
Two things I would consider - an ND filter as screw-on to eliminate any reflection, or adjusting the constant current source found in most cheap lasers. The better ones usually have a power control circuit using an internal photodiode in the laser assembly, so they can measure the light output and regulate. This photodiode is often also present in cheap lasers, but not used. Disassembly sucks, though, since many are simply press-fit into a metal tube (at least mine are)
@arjun_12 3 жыл бұрын
I love your videos ✌️
@tz8785 2 жыл бұрын
The mystery filter could be a piece of a protective filter for industrial application where you need to protect your eyes more against IR rather than UV. With arc welding, you also need protection against the upper end of the spectrum so maybe a fairly hot furnace or an IR laser.
@TiNredstoner 3 жыл бұрын
The reason that changing battery doesn't affect the Power output much is because the laser driver circuit has a voltage boost, thus the output voltage remain in the same ballpark. This will only happend with higher voltage laser (>5 volt). For example PLT5 510 running at about 6v to 6.5v
@antongolovko1149 3 жыл бұрын
You should put a bunch of mirrors in line so that the laser beam will keep on reflecting off of the mirrors. It should dim the beam, but I have no idea by how much, I guess it also depends on what kinds of mirrors you use and the amount of mirrors used.
@jrmcferren 3 жыл бұрын
I second Cross-Polarized filters, but with a twist. Instead of a traditional set of cross polarized filters, use a variable ND filter which is two circular polarizers that rotate to vary the amount of light let through.
@rpavlik1 3 жыл бұрын
Wonder if there's a way to modify the power supply somehow so it's pulsed instead of continuous, or if this would destroy the driver.
@Kyle-Veilleux 2 жыл бұрын
@9:10 having been around lasers for a while, my reflexes kicked in and i automatically turned away when i saw the beam reflection. lol
@2258kid 2 жыл бұрын
Great video as always. Do you have any extra safety glasses lying around your laboratory? I can pay for shipping.
@izobrr 3 жыл бұрын
The power drop completelly depends on the current regulation schema of the particular laser. If there is nothing except a resistor, then the power is quadratically depends on the voltage. If there is a good current regulator, then the power does not depend on voltage at all, it just stops lighting below some voltage threshold.
@rpavlik1 3 жыл бұрын
You know you're serious about lasers and such when you have a "scrap optics box" 😁
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Hehe, after decades of experimenting and collecting optics, you will end up with a box of optics of questionable origin x) Thanks for watching.
@fireandcopper 3 жыл бұрын
Depending on your experience with Arduino's, you could write a program to sweep into the sweet spot
@ShadowzGSD 3 жыл бұрын
what if you narrow the beam through a pinhole or something? i am curious about the polarised filters like others mention as well.
@AdricM 3 жыл бұрын
perhaps a flat wafer of graphite between the battery and the contact? for some easy current limiting.
@stevesedio1656 2 жыл бұрын
The effect the battery voltage has on output power, depends on the power supply inside the laser pointer. A constant current supply will compensate for lower voltage, to a point. You can use a variable lab supply to determine what that voltages is. The laser pointers (like the purple one) have adjustments. Unfortunately, the PCB is very difficult to get to without destroying the pointer. The old lithium batteries were measured without a load. The voltage was probably lower when trying to power the laser.
@abhijeetbyte 3 жыл бұрын
One thing I would like to mention, whenever we are dealing with Electromagnetic Spectrum with such an instrument, why they don't have a distance/Proximity Sensor to Offset the Loss or gain (ones Calibrated )Because the EM radiation decrease over the distance from the source?
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
I believe the higher output I measure when closer to the power head is simply because more spillage outside the actual beam is getting picked up by the sensor. Could be interesting to test how much of a difference it makes if the laser is 10 cm or 1 meter away from the sensor. Thanks for watching!
@abhijeetbyte 3 жыл бұрын
@@brainiac75 You should use some sort of distance sensor as feedback for Your EM radiation measuring instrument.
@TheRailroad99 3 жыл бұрын
as you probably know, laser diodes are current-driven devices. the light output does not depend on the voltage, but the current. the characteristic curve (dependency between current and voltage) is roughly that of a Diode, but it can vary greatly depending on temperature. so to correctly drive it (with any power output you want, a constant current source is needed). Be aware that below a certain threshold, the laser will behave like an LED (with a wide spectrum). only above a certain current will the laser system be resonant. when you modulate a laser (for example to transmit information through a fiberoptic cable) you mustn't leave this area of the characteristic curve, because it takes time (a few us to ms) for the laser to get into the laser area of the curve again.
@SianaGearz 2 жыл бұрын
The unlabelled, visually high opacity filter? At a glance it looks like the IR-pass filter that i bought to build a point tracking camera. But given its strong red rejection, i'm not sure. Maybe it's a specialised UV pass filter? Something to keep in mind that the nominal voltage for alkaline and NiMH cells is specified differently. In NiMH cells it actually represents the typical voltage throughout most of the discharge cycle, in alkaline it's the voltage that they start with when full. Additionally, NiMH have lower ESR. I would say the overpowered laser pointer is susceptible to source impedance, so a resistor in series with the cells is likely to tame it down quite a bit.
@ExStaticBass 3 жыл бұрын
Some of what's happening here has to do with the driver board. Some drivers are current controlled circuits and don't change much with different voltages. An example is an ultraviolet laser I bought from Ali Express. It would normally use 1 18650 cell. I hacked it to run from a standard USB source and it draws the exact same current in both voltages. There's no notable difference in output power either which was something of a disappointment as I was hoping for a beam with a bit more photonic strength. It might be interesting to see how laser diodes would react differently when driven by simple resistive dropping circuits as opposed to current controlled.
@SodiumSyndicate Жыл бұрын
The reason why lasers are given a current controlled driver is because the element/crystal has to be excited enough beyond a threshold to pump the photons out . If you use a resistive circuit to regulate the output, the crystal may get heated up because it is not pumping out the energy via photonic discharge & eventually may get destroyed. Imagine a pressure cooker cooking so slowly that the pressure never builds up enough to push the valve & you keep on cooking waiting for the whistle - eventually the food will get burned.
@dhawthorne1634 3 жыл бұрын
Simply add a resister between the power source and the laser. If you don't want to mod the laser itself, using a conductor instead of one of the batteries should lower the voltage enough. Another option would be making an inductive receiver that fits the battery chamber. You can then use an external power supply with finer or use a constant power and change the number of windings in the supply inductor.
@n-steam 3 жыл бұрын
Get a small fish tank. Fill with water. Put laser flat against side of tank. Beam comes out other end. (test distortions?) Add food colouring, to darken the water
@MrAlbedo39 3 жыл бұрын
I really expected the reflected beam to be a lot more powerful given that it's reflecting off the front surface of the filter but clearly something's going on there that I'm not aware of.
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
I thought it would be more too. The ND8 filter may have an anti-reflective (AR) coating - especially considering it is meant to be placed on laser shows with an output up to 2.5 watts. Thanks for watching!
@ThatCat-aclism 3 жыл бұрын
Adjustable magnetic Fields, diffirent density, thin materials for light defractions? Maybe something with energizing a particle from the lazer directly...
@lukasvondaheim 3 жыл бұрын
During a solar eclipse we used multiple layers (two if I remember correct) of rescue blanket to make it safe to look at the sun. Would that also work with a laser beam? How much would it distort it?
@HughCStevenson1 2 жыл бұрын
I definitely do not recomment this for the sun or lasers. You only see the visible light - harmful levels of UV or IR light may pass through and toast your eye. And you only have two...!
@aps8446 3 жыл бұрын
Brainiac, have you considered adding new/exotic wavelengths to your collection?
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Yes. I really want a 589 nm orange/amber laser pointer, but it seems like only Laserglow sells them. And $1000 + import taxes/VAT for a 20 mW version is painful... At this price I might as well take a chance with a Chinese eBay lab laser: $1700 + import taxes/VAT for a 200 mW. Not sure I am ready to take the risk ;)
@jonmarquez128 2 жыл бұрын
Hi Braniac75! Was that a ND or Neutral Density Filter you were using?
@STONEDay 3 жыл бұрын
I'm paranoid by the laser in my IR non-contact thermometer. I have a ST600 and it is powered by a 9v battery. The laser looks super bright on surfaces. Glad it can be turned off. You should buy and test some. I'd like to see that. My bet it's a 5v-6v laser diode straight to the 9v power source!
@GQuack 3 жыл бұрын
Neat video. As for the ideaa, I have no idea if you could do this at all, but what if three colored, transparent/semi transparent paper sheets of the three primary colors, and perhaps more colors and sheets? Again, no idea how you could do this, but hey, suggestions are suggestions.
@originalmianos 3 жыл бұрын
The normal way is to reduce the duty cycle. For example, to focus a laser cutter you just use a very small duty cycle. Most laser drivers have a pin to turn them on and off.
@gregeconomeier1476 3 жыл бұрын
When the beam passes through the filter and loses energy what happens to the lost energy? Absorbed into the filter? Reflected around the room? Other?
@clown134 7 ай бұрын
is there any effect of the reflection from the ND filter going straight back into the laser diode?
@AndrewR2130 2 жыл бұрын
any recommendations for budget equipment to measure infrared wavelengths and power ?
@lyrooo326 3 жыл бұрын
I have an idea but it would require alligator clips or disassemble of the laser and this is the idea I would use a variable voltage and current power supply.
@Dogetuberyt 3 жыл бұрын
Ive done this, and the results are as expected. More voltage, more light. More light, more radiation
@youkofoxy 2 жыл бұрын
change the driver circuit with a linear voltage regulator. that simple, for better result use two in series, first one in voltage mode second one in current mode.
@BnORailFan 3 жыл бұрын
Didn't you lower a laser's output in a previous video by lowering the temperature? As a teenager I stacked 10 various camera filters on an SLR and was able to look at and take photos of the sun. It actually worked so well I could see sun spots.
@AdricM 3 жыл бұрын
how about 2 linear polarizers at various rotations. and see if the darkening is at an even rate?
@benjaminandersen1097 10 ай бұрын
3:06 that lens could be an ir, or uv, pass filter, since its mainly visible light that is blocked?
@slakingfool 2 жыл бұрын
Question. Do filters effectiveness wear over time or use?
@CaptnApathy 3 жыл бұрын
Is there any way to squeeze a potentiometer somewhere between the batteries and the laser diode?
@silentferret1049 3 жыл бұрын
I believe the rechargeable ones are not really lower voltage like advertised. If they are fresh and new they will be higher in voltage closer to the desired 1.5 more than likely 1.4 and it will take a bit of use before normal recharging gets them down to the 1.2 volt range. Normally with DC voltage is more important in application just like any flashlight will give. More volts will be brighter as amps is just capacity of the battery and it will run out quicker. Versus AC where the amps is equally as important as volts since there is a constant supply filling power.
@InssiAjaton Жыл бұрын
There are plenty of variation in both alkaline and NiMh batteries. But my rule of thumb has been that both old NiCd and the newer NiMh rechargeable batteries have way lower internal resistance than the alkaline batteries have. With the likely quite high current of the laser lights you are no better than a wrong guess, if you measure the no-load voltages of the batteries. Maybe you could make some simple "instrumentation" to measure the actual in- use voltages. I mean soldering for example 0,1 or 0,2 mm magnet wire at least to the positive battery end and bring it out for the meter. Right, or wrong, I think the negative end will be connected to the housing, so you would not need t worry about that - except for the probable anodizing that tends to be a good insulator. Of course, a different instrumentation would be to use a bench supply, if all you are actually interested is the dimming, not the batteries idea.
@joannaatkins822 3 жыл бұрын
Hmm. Perhaps making the beam broader would lower the power, or would that just spread it out, but still retain full power? For example through a lense or some glasses? Would your eyes still be the same amount of in trouble if you had a very thick lensed prescription? Or would it lessen the potential damage to your retina's rods and cones because the beam is less concentrated?
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Making the beam wider would lower the power intensity (watts per area) and make the laser beam a bit safer. However, it would still have the same total power and our eyes would focus the beam onto the retina. So not necessarily safer at all. If the beam is changed to have higher divergence, getting much wider with distance, then it could be eye safe at a long enough distance. But never stare into a laser beam in any set up ;) Thanks for watching!
@tomsmits259 3 жыл бұрын
How does the nd25's reflected beam measure up to the nd9's?
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Good question. Will have to test it :) Thanks for watching!
@markjames2164 2 жыл бұрын
You'd need to manually lower the power via the driver board most lasers have one on board or used one from scratch made to be lower output
@DoctorX17 2 жыл бұрын
Use a controlled power source - you can control both current and voltage. But I’m sure a module can only go so low before it stops working
@AdityaMehendale 3 жыл бұрын
Likely not the "voltage x current = power" rationale, rather, the violet laser probably has a feedback-controlled regulator that "normalizes" the raw voltage to a predefined level.
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
But the driver still needs amperes from the battery ;) Thanks for watching and elaborating!
@AdityaMehendale 3 жыл бұрын
@@brainiac75 True, but if you had an unregulated laser (like many red diode laser-pointers, without a photosensor, but with just a current-limiting resistor), the forward voltage _would_ affect the intensity. You got (un)lucky that the violet laser had a fancier power-regulation implemented internally. The idea was worth trying though...
@miragelee9754 3 жыл бұрын
Laser warnings… ok got it. Time to wear some glasses in the dark.
@spacedaway 3 жыл бұрын
Try underclocking the control board.
@glenngriffon8032 3 жыл бұрын
It's funny to me that the words "suspicious"/"suspect" have fallen under "sus" to the point that even Brainiac75 is using it.
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Well, it is all over the internet... and easier for a non-native speaker to pronounce than suspicious ;) Thanks for watching!
@smvwees 4 ай бұрын
♫ "...Take or leave us, only please believe us We ain't never gonna be rechargeable..." ♫
@gusmartin6053 3 жыл бұрын
The lower battery voltage did not have a significant effect on the output because the laser has a step up converter circuit built into it. Test the voltage on the diode and you will see it’s higher than your batteries are supplying. This means that it will just draw more current from a battery to reach its target output voltage. This circuit is used in the blue and green lasers but not in red. Red laser diodes require less voltage, about 2v for low power diodes so there is no need for step up circuitry. That’s probably why your red one was dimmer with low batteries. To dim blue and green just figure out a way to put a resistor in series with the battery supply. This will limit the current that the step up converter can draw and reduce its output. Maybe start with around 50 ohms and see what you get.
@izzieb 3 жыл бұрын
Putting your laser pointers in the freezer seemed a pretty effective way to lower the output. As a serious suggestion, I suppose adding resistors is a possibility. Depends the way the laser is driven.
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Hehe, for a green DPSS laser, it definitely works for the visible part ;) Not sure, what it does for the power output of say a red laser pointer. Good idea for a test! And yes, the driver will probably counteract an external resistor. Could be worth a test too. Thanks for watching, supporting and the input, Izzie!
@izzieb 3 жыл бұрын
@@brainiac75 What about using two polarising filters? This would allow you to adjust the intensity without changing the power.
@TheMCCraftingTable 3 жыл бұрын
I have a small red pointer I found in a drawer in my uni. It was abandoned for so long, the battery had leaked and the leakage had hardened. Took some banging to get the old battery out. Instead of replacing the AAA battery I decided to put 10440 lithium battery that I usually use for my other lasers... and the laser could handle it! I'm pretty surprised. Then I did that to cheap eBay 405nm and it died within minutes lol.
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Nice hack. The red laser must have adriver with decent voltage regulation since it accepts overvoltage. Thanks for watching!
@user-iv4dh7zp7s 2 жыл бұрын
(Please REPLY) So is a laser made more efficent by using rechargeble batteries?
@Deadwindshadow 3 жыл бұрын
Those laser pens have BOOST drivers because 405nm diodes runs at 6v. This means, even if input is 2v or 4v, the driver outputs 6v @ 100mA regardless :)
@originalmianos 3 жыл бұрын
Yes and the constant current source will make it constant until the voltage drops too much at which time the current might lag, but also a good circuit will probably shut it off. Certainly nothing linear about the power supply based on the power source.
@FingerinUrDaughter 2 жыл бұрын
try a lithium ion AA set with a usb charging port on the batteries. these tend to limit their amperage to maintain 1.5 volts, and on half a charge can limit it very drastically.
@WalterBurton 2 жыл бұрын
👍👍👍
@CuriousChan 3 жыл бұрын
Hmm, laser diodes are current controlled semiconductor devices, just like ordinary LEDs. At certain point or range of current values, the laser diode starts lasing. May I suggest that you use a simple constant current circuit(like the famous LM317 laser driver circuit) and experiment on the resistor values🙂 Just wanting to share my idea hehe. Also, I got caught off guard with your dialogue that has the word *sus* 🤣 amogus is everywhere
@CaptainKirk01 3 жыл бұрын
I need your opinion on something. I worked for a company for 9 years and manufactured OTDR's. Our lasers were 650nm at 1mw, (this one was open-air, with no optics and visible ). We used 1310 at 15 to 30mw. 1550 at 55mw, and 1625 at 120mw. They were spliced into optics (mux - negligible loss, 5% loss coupler, 50% loss coupler) How dangerous was this to our eyes? as the light was invisible and there was no way to tell what was shining across the manufacturing floor. As well as techs sitting at benches opposite each other could be looking into the beam from the OTDR across from them. Then we had an optical calibrator that was at full power of the above wavelengths emitted from a fiber optic cable at a bench. I am wondering if there could have been any harm done at this power level to the eyes? I thank you for your reply.
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Hi James. Hard to tell without seeing and measuring on the set ups. I have no experience with fiber optics so I can't tell anything for sure. But I think I have seen sources on laser beams exciting fiber optics with very high divergence. This means the 'beam' will only be an eye hazard if you put your eyes close to the fiber end. But I am not the right to ask. A laser safety officer at the work space should have the answers.
@CaptainKirk01 3 жыл бұрын
@@brainiac75 Thank you for your reply, funny, we never had a laser safty officer, at least not that I was aware of, and I was the group lead of the optical department. Im sure it was ok, but exposure is a possibility. Im sure its just age but 15 years later my eysite has degraded throughout and I wonder. Thank you.
@pifibbi 3 жыл бұрын
Can you build an interferometer? Seems like it would be fun
@brainiac75 3 жыл бұрын
Perhaps. I am putting it on my (very long) video idea list. Thanks for watching!
@xKatjaxPurrsx 3 жыл бұрын
Before watching: Going to guess no because it's a constant current power supply and the current determines the brightness of the laser.
@YPOC 2 жыл бұрын
I think the best way to lower a laser beam's power is with jello. You can even color it in the laser color!
@marcobotha9376 2 жыл бұрын
I scratch my lens on my blue laser and ordered new lenses that are glass lenses G7 and 3 element but wanted to see how well small lenses from a camera would work and the laser slipped from my hand but was able to catch it bit the laser diod beam went in my eye but luckily there was not a lens on the laser but could not see well for n few hours So even if the laser from a class 4 is not focused in can still be dangerous
Brainiac75
Рет қаралды 140 М.
Распаковочка у Андрея
Рет қаралды 353 М.