Hi all, first post here,
Glad to finally find a forum where i can read a ton of useful info and make sense of it
I have been fascinated by LEDs and sensors for at least a year now and cannot get enough of the fun things i could do with them, along with controllers.
However i have hit a roadblock where i have a 12V 6W strip of LED lights which i have no problem powering with a computer power supply, however i was looking to control the power it receives using a micro-controller (Arduino).
The problem at hand is the choice of which transistor do i use?
Arduino can supply a maximum of 5V and 20 mA, while this strip requires 12V and 2A (P=VI).
I have been told to use "some kind" of FET and that they all have some activation voltage and some peak. These uncertain answers really confused me and discouraged me as i researched online and looked into electronics stores (people in the store told me they carried them, knew nothing about them though), haven't really gotten an answer for what to do next.
I have several basic transistors, but none that can handle more than half an amp...
Any guidance or assistance would be great!
Cheers!
Glad to finally find a forum where i can read a ton of useful info and make sense of it
I have been fascinated by LEDs and sensors for at least a year now and cannot get enough of the fun things i could do with them, along with controllers.
However i have hit a roadblock where i have a 12V 6W strip of LED lights which i have no problem powering with a computer power supply, however i was looking to control the power it receives using a micro-controller (Arduino).
The problem at hand is the choice of which transistor do i use?
Arduino can supply a maximum of 5V and 20 mA, while this strip requires 12V and 2A (P=VI).
I have been told to use "some kind" of FET and that they all have some activation voltage and some peak. These uncertain answers really confused me and discouraged me as i researched online and looked into electronics stores (people in the store told me they carried them, knew nothing about them though), haven't really gotten an answer for what to do next.
I have several basic transistors, but none that can handle more than half an amp...
Any guidance or assistance would be great!
Cheers!