Joule Thief

[Pirate88179]

Try looking for toroids in the power supply of an old computer - if you don't have one - a burnt out CFL contains one in the base.

There are many places online to buy these things.  If you find a place that will sell you both, then it's probably a good place.

@Pirate
Are you LED's connected in series or in parallel?  ..in your videos that is?

Jadaro2600:

That would depend on which video you are talking about.  (I have 20 posted on youtube now)  If you are talking about the 400 lead experiment, on the video they were in series.  But, if you look way way back here somewhere, I had done the same experiment with them in parallel and posted photos.  (This was prior to my getting the $49.00 HD videocam)  In the ones using the supercaps only to light the leds, I believe they were in parallel.  I hope this helps.

Bill

[jeanna]

Thanks for the details, AbbaRue.

I am south of seattle. I will see if there is magnetite on the beach hereabouts when the weather turns.I bought some last fall to use with the crystal battery . I remember it was not too expensive, but enough to make a big toroid might be. Anyway it will be a good excuse to go to the beach even if all I get is more jaspar.

thanks,

jeanna

[jadaro2600]

@Pirate88179, Thankyou - I'll have to find a decent HD camera,

@jeanna,

Thankyou, I've made several normal joule thief circuits with regular ferrite toroids. And now...Perhaps I'll make something different yet again.  I'm waiting on parts to come in the mail, but they're not going to help me with this new setup I've got.  I may be able to make something from this new one with regard to your three axis dream ... if I place these inductors just right in the setup below.  I was thinking about a spherical trisection with three inductors.

@All,  A new one - Helmholtz Style, this particular setup is void of any capacitors, I just used a pair of like inductors.  When taking an unloaded voltage reading off an inserted diode rectified capacitor between the collector and ground yielded a 85.4 volt reading!  I used a 1k resistor on that one.  I don't know why this works without a capacitor - probably a natural resonance.  This is using < 20ma, just depends on what LED I'm using.

I can move the inductors around and note their effective positions.  Fun for playing with coil positions.

This setup still functions when the inductors are at 90 degrees to one another - but not when one is move past the other side by side.

I might have to order some new inductors.

*edits, voltage reading was wrong.  additional info was added as well.

[jadaro2600]

Another deviation on the whole Helmholtz inductors idea...  this time lighting up a tester neon.  Which was lit, but is now flashing.  Voltage reading across the capacitor is 111.0v

It's interesting these operate like they do.  The soldering on these was done alike on both of them, so, the red wire on one corresponds to the red wire on the other.  ( i.e.  they're wired opposing in the circuit just like any standard joule thief ).

[xee2]

@ jadaro2600 

Well done. Are the coil forms plastic or ferrite? Did you wind the coils yourself or buy them? At 111 volts you need to be concerned about the transistor collector voltage. I suggest you always keep the neon in the circuit to limit the collector voltage. Your transistor apparently is able to handle 111 volts but may not take much more.

EDIT: to get higher output voltages you will probably need to add another coil with more windings coupled to the collector coil. That way the collector voltage does not have to be as high as the output voltage.