Anyone have a micro boost driver.

hey guys i was wondering if anyone had a micro boost driver laying around?, One that that they could set up for me at ~200mA

What are you building?

If you only need 210mA, there are alternatives at a fraction of the cost. What's your diode? I'll help you find an alternative.

Well, its sort of a tricky build, its a 8x blu ray diode. The reason i need the micro boost is because of the host, its only capable of fitting 3x 303 button cells.

ahighclown1107 said:

Well, its sort of a tricky build, its a 8x blu ray diode. The reason i need the micro boost is because of the host, its only capable of fitting 3x 303 button cells.

Click to expand...

And 303s (LR44s) can provide 210mA of current???

also at that low current you can probably just use a flexdrive since the voltage will be lower at the lower current..

hmm, wait em i wrong to say the micro boosters dont increase the current. The max current i remember 3x of them supporting was ~ 120mA. Do flex drives work like that?, they store the current until it builds up then release it?

No - you can't boost both voltage AND current. That would violate the first law of thermodynamics

Well, i mean just the current, would a flex drive boost the current?

To boost the current you must buck your supply, meaning you need a buck converter that will output a lower voltage then your power source, but at a higher current. vice versa for a boost converter.
(I never used LR44s, IIRC they are 1.5V each right? so thats 4.5V series for 3 of them.. and 405nm diodes need higher voltage)

So no, using a boost converter (Im assuming thats what a flex is, boost only) will not boost your current, it will do a trade off so to speak, boosting your extra voltage, but having less current output in the process.
to boost the current you require a buck converter, but that will defeat the purpose of trying to drive your 405nm from the stated battery, as the voltage won't be anywhere high enough to lase the thing.

like RHD said, if you were getting higher voltage and current from your dirver then your power supply, then you just created a free energy device, nobel prize for you.

your power source won't be able to provide the 210ma wanted if it were boosting the voltage to the forward voltage required for a 405nm diode. (assuming your 3 battery stack will at total output 4.5V @ 120mA, any higher for button cells I think they are either limited by thier internal chemistry, or just die very fast).

hope that cleared it up.

Hhaha, ok thanks guys!,

If you're still wanting to make this work somehow, here are some options I would investigate:

1) Is there a lithium ion button cell that has the same size dimensions as the cells you're looking to use? If so, try two of them together (~7.2 V) with a capacitor in place of the third to take any voltage spikes, and then direct drive an 8x. I doubt the CURRENT could be high enough to hit the diode's max in the first place, you might not fry your diode. Test first though, and make not of the fact that we (myself included) don't generally recommend direct-driving laser diodes.

2) Lighthound sells 10180 lithium ions for $5 plus shipping. See if one of those fits where three button cells normally would in your host. I think it might. In fact I think you might even be able to fit a 10250 (also sold at Lighthound). You'll only get 3.6V, so you'll still need a boost driver, but my sense is that the cell itself could provide more than 210mA, and perhaps enough more, that even after your driver converts some current into voltage, you'll still get your 210mA output.

3) Take a look at combinations of very tiny Lipo cells - even smaller than the cells you get for RC helicopters. They have some that are like 5x10x10 mm. They're low capacity (probably 30mAh for a small enough size to fit two into your host), but they can often do 4 or 6C, meaning 120 to 180mA output. You could try direct driving with two in series, with a capacitor in parallel for protection. Don't underestimate this route. I've tried direct driving a 445 with a 150mAh Lipo thinking there was no way that a 150mAh cell could provide the 2A output required to kill a normal 445. I was wrong.

4) A general hint, there appears to be an underground community of "E-Cigarette Enthusiasts". I don't really understand this - and think it's a bit gross - but for whatever reason, their electronic cigarette gadgets seem to need really high-drain batteries. I've often found myself researching battery technology and stumbling across their forums and tutorials. It's not a bad place to look, because unhealthiness of their hobby aside, I think the general technical requirements of an electronic cigarette (power source, form factor) often parallel those of high powered portable lasers.

I think creative builds, and creative driver setups are phenomenal - and it's great to see members (especially new members!) taking them on I re-read my earlier reply about the first law of thermodynamics, and realized that it came off a bit snobby, or at least unhelpful. I didn't mean for it to come off that way. I hope some of this helps, and I hope you find a cool solution for what sounds like a really creative build

Thanks rhd! it never occurred to me that lipos and Li ion could work!, although im still stuck lol with the the whole issue of a micro booster

OdicForce has boost drivers for about $5 that will handle boosting to 210mA just fine

Pretty sure Flaminpyro has some for sale.

Here's the odicforce driver I was talking about:
Variable Current Step-up (Boost) 405nm Laser Driver Board - Detailed item view - OdicForce Lasers Online Shop

In my tiny builds that originally use 3 button cells, I use 10180's like rhd said. With a little modification to the tailcap of most, I can fit the 10280's as well. I also use flex's and microboosts, but they are short on supply right now. The odicforce do look promising. Good luck!!