12x BR DIODES

[jayrob]

Wow I can't believe that!

That's a crazy amount of power to come out of that tiny little host...

 

[MISTERWILLING]

That diode is almost on fire, I like it.
It does seem that there is two different diodes in these drives. The lower efficiency diodes looks to be the same a 8x diodes and the higher ones seem to be on a different level. Thanks for keeping track of this stuff Franco.

 

[Traveller]

This is a HOT diode

...

That is a hot diode, man... question is, how long before it loses it's powah at those current levels*... :undecided:

*Speaking of which, did Igor decide on what current level to use for his next 12x tortuure victim...?

 

[Slipstream]

No but I think he wanted to set it and test it by Po and not by current.

 

[Exerd]

That is a hot diode, man... question is, how long before it loses it's powah at those current levels*... :undecided:

That is the problem here. We seem to have developed some sort of maximum output competition going in this thread, but as I demonstrated, I managed to degrade one of the highest efficiency diodes over 5% in just 7 minutes!

So, we need people to KEEP TRACK of degradation, not just noting your max output on zero minute and then looking the other way while the diode degrades.

Single points are good to see on a chart, but why aren't people posting their plots? We look to have one or two diodes potentially much more efficient than my #2 entry, but no plots to back that up with any evidence. :thinking:

RA Pierce, I'd really like to see your plot.

 

[RA_pierce]

That is the problem here. We seem to have developed some sort of maximum output competition going in this thread, but as I demonstrated, I managed to degrade one of the highest efficiency diodes over 5% in just 7 minutes!

So, we need people to KEEP TRACK of degradation, not just noting your max output on zero minute and then looking the other way while the diode degrades.

Single points are good to see on a chart, but why aren't people posting their plots? We look to have one or two diodes potentially much more efficient than my #2 entry, but no plots to back that up with any evidence. :thinking:

RA Pierce, I'd really like to see your plot.

Hi Exerd.

I'd very much like to get a nice plot posted for my diode, but at the moment I don't have a reliable way of testing multiple points.
I am in need of a power supply. I could remove, reset, resolder, and test the flex drive for every current setting... but that's hardly an efficient method.
Also, my hobby funds are finite, so I am not comfortable driving the little guy too hard.

The least I can do is monitor output with usage, which I am doing daily, several times a day. If anything interesting happens (hopefully not!) I will report it. So far I am not seeing any change in output.

 

[Slipstream]

I'll update as i use it.

I have about 15 more minutes on it. 15 ON's and 15 off's.. I will test and repost when I get home.

 

[Exerd]

My newest entry into the 12X list

Plextor B940SA 12x diode
V5 Flexdrive
450mA
758- steady for 60 seconds +/-1mw (most likely due to temperature shifts)
Jayrob keychain CR2 host
Jayrob 405g-1 Lens


This is a HOT diode

I'm not accusing anyone of lying, but claims like these would be great if we could see the multimeter hooked up and reading current in mA as well as the output in the same photo. Credibility never hurts in the name of science. :beer:

I backed my #2 diode down to 435mA in a Jayrob mini CR123 host. So now it's set right on the nose at 600mW output. I'll plot it again after I put about 20 more minutes of runtime on it to see how much more it has degraded,

 

[Slipstream]

I'm not accusing anyone of lying, but claims like these would be great if we could see the multimeter hooked up and reading current in mA as well as the output in the same photo. Credibility never hurts in the name of science. :beer:

I backed my #2 diode down to 435mA in a Jayrob mini CR123 host. So now it's set right on the nose at 600mW output. I'll plot it again after I put about 20 more minutes of runtime on it to see how much more it has degraded,

I didnt take your comment negatively.

Dont forget this is running a flex drive so i dont think the ma reading would be accurate.

But to be honest i dont need the excess credibility. Im not gaining anything or losing anything. Just posting my results.

I dont plot them. I set the current and solder it up and fire.

Sure I will retest and report back, but dont expect a full video of me proving that the meter is reading 758mw(i.e not photoshopped). In this specific case the flexdrive was purchased preset to 450mA from DrLava , im sure he know how to set his own drivers accurately.

 

[daguin]

I didnt take your comment negatively.
Dont forget this is running a flex drive so i dont think the ma reading would be accurate.

Unfortunately, once a boost driver based laser is assembled, the only way to accurately check the current is to disassemble it again.

In a CR2 Keychain host, THAT would be a major pain in the tucus

Peace,
dave

 

[Exerd]

Unfortunately, once a boost driver based laser is assembled, the only way to accurately check the current is to disassemble it again.

In a CR2 Keychain host, THAT would be a major pain in the tucus

Peace,
dave

I totally agree. I just worry that some people may accidentally bump the pot and we may see some numbers that are wrong at times. Plots are way more useful to the community if you have the ability to post one.

 

[FrancoRob]

"All 12x Owners" datasheet updated with the entrance of Slipstream 2 and with the last info relevant Exerd 2 and Slipstream 1!

 

[Exerd]

The Case of the Mysterious Diode​

Today I felt like making another plot of diode #2 once I awoke. My CR123 was not sustaining the 600mW with a charged battery that I had set it at. I was only getting 485mW. Afraid that the diode itself had changed in some way since nothing else had been touched, I wanted to see yet another plot.

The mystery continues.

This plot now looks better than the 7 minute plot posted after I had been running it at 470mA. The odd high Vf numbers are gone and things are normal again it appears. The diode now has about 10 full minutes of constant on use from power supply testing.

And here are todays results:

0.25A-----360mW
0.30A-----437mW
0.35A-----520mW
0.40A-----594mW
0.42A-----620mW
0.44A-----655mW
0.46A-----678mW
0.48A-----713mW
0.50A-----743mW

:thinking::thinking::thinking::thinking::thinking:

So now the diode has degraded once, and apparently has healed itself while sitting idle.

 

[jayrob]

Remember that the FlexDrives may not be giving proper regulation at these higher current settings... (for all we know, the driver jumps around, or even gets by-passed when it is pushed beyond what is recommended by drlava)

So that could be part of the confusion as well...

I would venture a guess, that if you ran the diode direct from a CR2 battery, you would get what Slipstream is getting in his Key Chain CR2 build. (Hmmm... not sure if that would even work because of the voltage of the battery) But it must be drawing well over 1 Amp from the battery to get that output with a FlexDrive!

But obviously, your nice power supply will be showing us very stable measurements to refer to...

 

[RA_pierce]

Perhaps the "degradation" you were seeing was resistance from a bad solder joint or bad wire?

Regarding your request for more plots, not everyone here has access to the tools required to take accurate measurements. I think some do not have an LPM.
As far as bumping the pot goes, I think it is a rare case that that would happen. I did double check my driver just once after completion, but the module of mine is "self contained" and would be a real pain to have to take apart often to plot periodically.
Please do not discredit others' findings because the possibility of "fake" power readings. I think this forum's members are generally trustworthy and would not embellish (and skew) test results for the sake of... well I'm not sure what there is to gain from that. DAoO's mini red modules come to mind. :shhh:

Anyway, you're doing a great job here. Keep the information coming.
op:



One thing I noticed at 4 in the morning (I can't sleep!)...
My laser has slowly dropped in power by 5mW over the past couple days... I was a little saddened by this, and proceeded to check the optics to see if maybe there was some junk on the lens that dropped the power ~1%.
Indeed, the 405-G-1 lens was dirty. I was surprised by this because the aperture surface was clean. It was the side facing the emitter that was dirty and only one little spot where the beam enters the lens. Also, it was not dust or dirt, it was almost "fogggy" as if there was moisture or some finger oil on the lens, which is strange because once I put the lens in I never took it out. Also, this grime did not create any artifact in the beam that I could see with/without goggles -- before and after cleaning there was no difference in beam quality.
Sure enough, once I wiped it clean power went right back up to 481mW.

Can others confirm that these lasers are depositing "gunk" on the lenses?
I remember reading about yobresal's 8X with can removed... some gunk formed on the emitter IIRC.

I wonder if this is contributing to degradation (if the diode window is getting progressively "foggier" with use).





LATE EDIT(not much sleep, sorry):
I forgot to mention that Igor's tests with the 8Xs are showing that testing a fixed POWER is becoming more important for determining diode toughness than testing fixed CURRENT.
What we are trying to determine here is "what is a safe current to run 12X diodes at?" when we should be determining what a safe power level is.
It seems that what power the diode is producing is the determining factor of lifetime... that the rate of degradation of two diodes set at the same power, even if at different currents, will be similar.
For this reason I intend to leave my diode at 481mW and measure degradation. If it lasts, this will show that 450+mW will be a safe power level for 12Xs.
So, for the users that "set it and forget it," the information from those diodes will be more relevant to the test if we want to determine the safe power level. Those diodes will show us which power range will last the longest and therefore which is "safest."

 

[Exerd]

Perhaps the "degradation" you were seeing was resistance from a bad solder joint or bad wire?"

I always check for properly tinned and soldered connections, so I have ruled out bad connections.

After my 12x CR123 host was dropping output power figures, I disassembled the unit, and found that the pot is what's acting up. It will not sustain any current above ~400mA now, and the pot is very finicky. Slight pressure on the pot raises output, then when the screwdriver is removed, output drops. I'm going to replace the driver in that host with a different one.

I put that #2 diode back in the slim 18650 host, and have made it a murder project. Drive current is now set to 495mA and will remain there for the rest of the diode life. Power output sits at a steady 737mW.