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LDR Sensor

LDR

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SV Technologies
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16 views

LDR Sensor

LDR

Uploaded by

SV Technologies
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Light- Dependent Resistor (LDR)

Introduction:

A light-dependent resistor alternatively called an LDR, photo resistor, photoconductor, or photocell, is a


variable resistor whose value decreases with increasing incident light intensity.
An LDR is made of a high-resistance semiconductor. If light falling on the device is of high enough
frequency, photons absorbed by the semiconductor give bound electrons enough energy to jump into the
conduction band. The resulting free electron (and its hole partner) conducts electricity, thereby lowering
resistance.

A photoelectric device can be either intrinsic or extrinsic. In intrinsic devices, the only available electrons
are in the valence band, and hence the photon must have enough energy to excite the electron across the
entire band gap. Extrinsic devices have impurities added, which have a ground state energy closer to the
conduction band - since the electrons don't have as far to jump, lower energy photons (i.e. longer
wavelengths and lower frequencies) are sufficient to trigger the device.

Two of its earliest applications were as part of smoke and fire detection systems and camera light meters.
Because cadmium sulfide cells are inexpensive and widely available, LDRs are still used in electronic
devices that need light detection capability, such as security alarms, street lamps, and clock radios

Fig: A typical LDR

A Light Dependent Resistor (LDR) or a photo resistor is a device whose resistivity is a function of the
incident electromagnetic radiation. Hence, they are light sensitive devices. They are also called as photo
conductors, photo conductive cells or simply photocells. They are made up of semiconductor materials
having high resistance. There are many different symbols used to indicate a LDR, one of the most
commonly used symbol is shown in the figure below. The arrow indicates light falling on it.
A photo resistor or light -dependent resistor (LDR) or photocell is a resistor whose resistance decreases
with increasing incident light intensity; in other words, it exhibits photoconductivity. A photo resistor is
made of a high resistance semiconductor. If light falling on the device is of high enough frequency,
photons absorbed by the Semiconductor give bound electrons enough energy to jump into the conduction
band.

Fig: symbol of Photo-resistor

Working principle of LDR:

A light dependent resistor works on the principle of photo conductivity. Photo conductivity is an optical
phenomenon in which the materials conductivity (Hence resistivity) reduces when light is absorbed by the
material.

When light falls i.e. when the photons fall on the device, the electrons in the valence band of the
semiconductor material are excited to the conduction band. These photons in the incident light should
have energy greater than the band gap of the semiconductor material to make the electrons jump from the
valence band to the conduction band.

Hence when light having enough energy is incident on the device more & more electrons are excited to
the conduction band which results in large number of charge carriers. The result of this process is more
and more current starts flowing and hence it is said that the resistance of the device has decreased. This is
the most common working principle of LDR
Variation in resistance with changing light intensity:

Fig: Typical LDR resistance vs. Light Intensity graph

Characteristics of LDR:

LDR’s are light dependent devices whose resistance decreases when light falls on them and
increases in the dark. When a light dependent resistor is kept in dark, its resistance is very high. This
resistance is called as dark resistance. It can be as high as 1012 Ω.

If the device is allowed to absorb light, its resistance will decrease drastically. If a constant
voltage is applied to it and intensity of light is increased the current starts increasing. Figure below shows
resistance vs. illumination curve for a particular LDR.

Fig: Characteristics of LDR


Applications of LDR:
There are many applications for Light Dependent Resistors. These include:

Lighting switch: The most obvious application for an LDR is to automatically turn on a light at a certain
light level. An example of this could be a street light or a garden light.

Camera shutter control: LDRs can be used to control the shutter speed on a camera. The LDR would be used
to measure the light intensity which then adjusts the camera shutter speed to the appropriate level.

 LDR’s have low cost and simple structure. They are often used as light sensors.

 They are used when there is a need to detect absences or presences of light like in a camera light
meter.

 Used in street lamps, alarm clock, burglar alarm circuits, light intensity meters, for counting the
packages moving on a conveyor belt, etc.

Advantages:
LDR’s are cheap and are readily available in many sizes and shapes. Practical LDRs are available in a
variety of sizes and package styles, the most popular size having a face diameter of roughly 10 mm. They
need very small power and voltage for its operation.

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