Help!! 4 pin diode

[Muddassir tai]

hey! people need some help here, I opened up my old DVD player, so far I got the diode out but apparently it has 4 pins on it, I dont know any of its specs and Im new to this so some help would be appreciated, I know this wont have much power but I thought Ill give it a try as its my first build.so please suggest some ways to check or power this diode.

 

[Fretwrecker94]

DVD Players don't have usable diodes. Well technically they do, but they're IR. You want one with a visible wavelength for safety's sake as well as optical pleasure's sake.

Go with an LPC-815 or 826 as your first build. Or go to a computer repair shop and ask for a broken dvd burner. It needs to be a burner.

 

[Muddassir tai]

I thought only cd players and writers have an IR diode. well thanks anyway!

 

[Fretwrecker94]

Nope, DVD readers use IR. Don't let this crush your laser aspirations, get a diode and a housing. Build a driver, make a laser!

 

[Muddassir tai]

thanks!! oh and can you please clear one thing for me. Is is necessary to use a module, cant one just push a diode in a heatsink directly, I mean wot the heat transfer be better rather than going through a module then to the heatsink?? if so why do most peopleuse modules. and whats the difference in the aixiz module and other modules, this might be a weird question but im really new to this hobby

 

[sinner]

You're at the right place man, just get used to reading through some threads like this
This will give you all the answers you have and might have more in the future!!
And did i say welcome to the forum :wave:

 

[lman]

You need a aixiz module to focus the diode to a laser.

 

[Fretwrecker94]

You need a aixiz module to focus the diode to a laser.

http://laserpointerforums.com/f64/s...ct-press-fit-diode-pocket-no-aixiz-52487.html

Many people offer direct press heatsinks. It is better for heat transfer, but I prefer using an Aixiz Module because of their modularity. If you want to swap out diodes and preserve the old one you don't need to buy a diode removal tool when using an Aixiz Module. And they're good for testing a diode before the build.

 

[Blord]

Nope, DVD readers use IR. Don't let this crush your laser aspirations, get a diode and a housing. Build a driver, make a laser!

That is not correct. DVD uses 650 nm wavelength laser diode light as opposed to 780 nm for CD. This permits a smaller pit to be etched on the media surface compared to CDs (0.74 µm for DVD versus 1.5 µm for CD), allowing in part for DVD's increased storage capacity.

Any diode from a DVD is 650nm red diode. The DVD writer diode has more power than the DVD reader but both are 650nm red.

 

[Fretwrecker94]

That is not correct. DVD uses 650 nm wavelength laser diode light as opposed to 780 nm for CD. This permits a smaller pit to be etched on the media surface compared to CDs (0.74 µm for DVD versus 1.5 µm for CD), allowing in part for DVD's increased storage capacity.

Any diode from a DVD is 650nm red diode. The DVD writer diode has more power than the DVD reader but both are 650nm red.

Hey you learn something new every day! I didn't know they used red to read it. I knew they used 650nm as opposed to 780 for writing due to the (appropriately named) wave's length. I guess that makes sense though. Matching the pit size with the read wavelength.

 

[Muddassir tai]

Hey guys!! just wanted to share this incase someone else needs this in the future.

Pin Description
1 Anode(+)
2 Case Ground
3 Cathode (-)
4 nc
courtesy to Welcome [Photonicsguy.ca]

 

[YKS222]

I opened a dvd rw burner but got 2 rectangular laser diodes with 4 pins. Why is that?

 

[diachi]

I opened a dvd rw burner but got 2 rectangular laser diodes with 4 pins. Why is that?

Because not every DVD drive uses the same diode...? These days, if you're going for that sort of red, you're better just buying the diode directly - they're $10 or so on eBay.

Can you post a picture if what you found?

 

[YKS222]

Here are the photos of them. One of them is even weirder that I cant see where the pins are.(the one that I hold with my hand)

 

[diachi]

Here are the photos of them. One of them is even weirder that I cant see where the pins are.(the one that I hold with my hand)

Thanks for adding the pictures! Unfortunately not much use for what we'd be using them for. No way to effectively mount/heatsink them - at least not in a handheld.

Wouldn't be surprised if the manufacturer deliberately went with those diodes to prevent people from harvesting them for pointers...