New to Solar Cells

Thread Starter

s33d

Joined Feb 14, 2012
4
I'm working on a model kit and embedded an LED inside it for cool glowing effects. I usually plug batteries in, but decided it would be cool to use a solar panel instead, so I bought 2 of the really cheap solar LED flashlights.

Got it open a-ok, the circuit is simple. Diode to prevent back current, 3 LEDs in series, and a momentary switch.

The only problem was that I couldn't find a datasheet for the cell (a QFsolar 3722-9L) so I grabbed a multimeter to take readings so I didn't fry anything. I get a max of around 7V, but the current seems odd to me. I can only seem to get .1mA flowing out. I've never done anything with solar cells before, is this typical?
 

BSomer

Joined Dec 28, 2011
434
Could be.

Short circuit current ratings of individual cells usually don't add up to much. Though 100uA is kind of small. Did you check the current in bright day light or under some other source of light?
 

Thread Starter

s33d

Joined Feb 14, 2012
4
Yep, under the same conditions that give me my ~7V. It bounces from 0μA to 100μA depending on what I do with the light.

It could just be that this is a cheap panel and was designed that way, but with no datasheets there's no way for me to know. I wanted to remove the need for a battery completely, but with 100μA, that's not going to be possible.
 
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