daguin said:
Even if there IS something "wrong" with the driver, as long as it is the same thing wrong with the driver for everyone, it should not matter (unless the output is varying because of it). Remember, this is a test of our meters. As long as the output is consistent, even if it is not what we wanted to begin with, the tests of the meters will still be valid.
You are missing something Dave.
If there is something wrong with the driver, so that it does not allow you to set it higher than 75mW for some reason, this does NOT mean it will be necessarily be the "same wrong" for everyone.
It could mean, that the driver is out of regulation for some reason. It could mean many different things, even that the current is gradually dropping. And all of them invalidate the experiment, unless they are eliminated.
That's why i "objected", when Kenom said it does not allow him to set higher than 75mW. Maybe i wasn't "loud" enough...
Replacing the pot should not have resulted in the 75mW limit. The limit is a sure sign of a problem of some kind. All the usual suspects are the kind that cause the current to vary.
It is important to verify:
- If the power is where it was when Kenom first measured it
- If the current is where it was set
- If the driver is REGULATING the current
- If it's not, why not
- If there is a problem, was it that kind of a problem that could lead to variation of the current or was it the "same wrong" every time (this can only be determined by finding the problem by an expert)
Also, if Kenom measures the power and it's 75mW, and Rkcstr measures the current and checks for regulation, that does not invalidate the experiment. Current can even be checked from the outside, simply by hooking the laser to a variable PSU through a DMM, and varying the input voltage, to see if the current stays constant. If the power starts changing, that means the driver was not regulating, and the current was dependant on different circumstances, even the diode temperature - Kenom's temperature was higher = more current.
If it is determined the driver is not regulating, then the experiment HAS to be restarted. If the current is not where it was, it has to be restarted regardless of the power.
If the diode is in a kink, the experiment would also be invalidated, as they go in and out of the kink with temperature sometimes.
Also, a driver can be replaced without invalidating the experiment, if it is done properly, and if the experiment is not already invalidated by the previous driver varying.
If there is a problem, it is better to find it NOW than when the lasers return from Europe.