If using this device with a 5V uC, it is possible to drive the MOSFET gate directly from an digital output pin. When driving it this way, the MOSFET is not being driven to be quite fully ON and so the maximum resistance through the device increases from about 8mΩ to about 16mΩ. While still very small, it does mean that the device will drop double the amount of voltage through it and dissipate twice as much heat, so it’s maximum current handling capability will be cut to about half of the stated amount which is usually fine for most applications. N-Channel MOSFET Theory of Operation Most regulator chips are thermally protected and they'll shut-down safely without burning-up. Then, they'll work again after they cool down. (Transistors & MOSFETs will just permanently die.) The other two are hard to predict... Sometimes the datasheets will give you the maximum power dissipation without a heatsink, and sometimes they they'll give you information about the maximum internal die temperature, power dissipation, and thermal resistance. Calculating the thermal resistance and temperature drops can get "messy". If there are two voltages listed, the highest voltage will be the voltage at which the device is fully saturated and show the lowest resistance, often 10V. The lower voltage is often around 4.5V and shows the resistance if you were to drive it directly off of 5V logic. Having this specified implies that the device is at least partially 5V logic compatible even if it isn’t being driven to full saturation. Now that you know what is the best LED strip for your project, you can go to Maker Advisor to find your strip’s best price.

I used an optocoupler rather than a mosfet, which worked! But unfortunately at only around half the mA I need (80 vs the fans 130) so this isn't ideal.

Product Overview

MOSFET spec sheets can look pretty complicated, but for many applications we just need to pay attention to a few key parameters that are explained here.

You get a temperature rise related to power (Watts) so yo might need a heatsink on a hot day even if you don't need on a cold day. Power is calculated as Voltage x Current. It is to my understanding that I need a logic level mosfet with an RDs(on) of 3.3V or less, but I am really struggling to find one readily available in Australia... I have tried this with a IRLB8721 mosfet, but realized it needs a higher voltage than what the GPIO can provide. The most suitable one I could find then was the IRF3205, seeing that it is used more frequently with Raspberry PI/Arduino applications, but unfortunately this is also not working. It seems like my GPIO voltage is still too low. I used a logic level converter to convert my 3.3V signal to 5V, which works perfectly so far. Now I just need to look in to whether PWM is still possible with this setup.Monocolor LED strips only produce one color. These strips are really easy to wire, they just have two terminals: GND and VCC as shown in the strip below. V GS(th) : Gate Threshold Voltage is the voltage at which the MOSFET starts to conduct. Any voltage less than this will drive the MOSFET to the OFF state known as the Cut-Off Region. To possibly be logic compatible, the V GS(th) needs to be well under the logic high voltage level.

The very low ‘ON’ resistance means that there is very little voltage drop through the device and that also helps to keep power dissipation down. Alternatively I have a couple of 2N3904 transistors available but I am not entirely sure how I can use these without frying them.

IRLB8721 Benefits

According to Fig. 12 of the datasheet, the Rdson degrades significantly when Vgs=5V instead of 10V. For Tj=125˚C (worst case), Rdson=16mΩ. So the power dissipated will be 0.016*(20A) This strip requires a 5V data signal, so you should have no problem controlling it through an arduino digital pin. However, if you want to control your strip using Raspberry Pi, or ESP8266 that send signals at 3.3V, you should use a logic level converter module that converts 3.3V data signal into a 5 V data signal. Libraries There are cutting marks along the strip marked with a scissors icon that shows you where you can cut your strip as shown in the figure below. This strip has segments of three LEDs. When it comes to LED strips, the main difference is between analog and digital LED strips. Analog and digital LED strips work differently and produce different results. So, whether you need an analog or a digital LED strip will depend on the project you want to build. The power dissipated by a linear regulator is the voltage drop across the regulator x the current. If you feed 24V into a 12V regulator it will get hotter than if you feed-in 14V. The amperage rating can be misleading. A 1A voltage regulator can overheat at less than 1A depending on how much voltage is dropped across it.

Power MOSFETs are most often used a switches where they are turned fully ON or OFF to control a load such as a motor or high power LEDs. They are ideally suited for this because when the MOSFET is turned fully ON (Saturation Region), it has a very low resistance and can pass a lot of current without much power being dissipated in the device similar to a mechanical switch. When they are turned OFF (Cut-Off Region), they act as an open circuit much like a mechanical switch would when it is off. These strips have four pins you need to connect. One red channel, one green channel, a blue channel and power. Capacitance isn't quite the right thing as gate charge is non-linear, and more thorough calculationsAnalog LED strips have their LEDs wired in parallel. The whole strip works as a giant RGB LED. So, you can light up your whole strip in many different colors, but you can’t control LEDs individually. This means your strip can only be one color at a time. This type of LED strips are cheaper than the digital ones and easier to use. I D : Continuous Drain Current is the maximum current that the device can handle. this will often be specified under several conditions such as at 25C room temperature and at 100C or similar high operating temperature. Achieving the maximum current through the device assumes that you are driving it fully on and that appropriate heat sinking is applied. If you have a device that draws 10A, you need an I D> 10A. Generally the higher the I D rating of the device compared to the amount of current you need to pass though it, the easier it will be to manage thermals. frequencies you need to ensure shorter RC time constant in the gate-drive circuit. This usually means Waterproof or not. The LED strips can be waterproof or not. The waterproof LED strips are coated in a clear silicon as the strip shown below.