OUR LADY OF PILLAR CONVENT
SCHOOL
Session : 2023-24
Physics-(042)
Submitted in the partial fulfillment of the requirement of
CBSE , Delhi for the award of “ Senior Certificate in
Physics”
Name:
Class:
RollNo:
Teacher’s Signature Principal’s Signature
CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that Niyati Mankad of
Class XII of OUR LADY OF PILLAR
CONVENT SCHOOL has completed his/her project
work as a part of the paper of the Physics under my
supervision and guidance in the department of Science to
the best of my knowledge.
He/she has taken proper care and show utmost sincerity
in completion of this project.
It is worthy of consideration in partial fulfillment of
requirement of CBSE, Delhi for the award of Senior School
Certificate in Commerce/Science.
Signature
Mr. Suraj Joshi (P.G.T.)
Acknowledgement
I would like to express my deep gratitude and sincere thanks
to the Principal, Sr. Pratibha who gave me this golden
opportunity to do this wonderful project which also
helped me in doing lots of research and I came to know
about so many new things.
I extend my heartily thanks to Mr. Suraj Joshi (P.G.T.-
Physics) who guided me for the successful completion of
project. I take this opportunity to express my deep sense of
gratitude for his guidance, encouragement and immense
motivation which has sustained my efforts at all the stages of
this project work.
I can’t forget to offer my sincere thanks to parents and
classmates who helped me to carry out this project work
successfully.
Name:
TOPIC
Automatic Light Detection Switch
(By using LDR Circuit)
AIM OF PROJECT
The aim of the project is to demonstrate the underlying
principles of electrical conduction under the influence of light.
Various applications are possible by employing this simple
principle such as:-
(a) Automatic switching of street lamps
(b) Intruder’s alarm
(c) Morning wake up alarm
(d) Fire alarm
(e) Light intensity meters
(f) Automatic elevator doors
In this project, I have demonstrated the ‘Automatic light
switching circuit in a simple manner which is easy to
understand. The heart of the project is an LDR or Light
Dependent Resistor. This project could have been done using a
photo-voltaic cell in place of LDR but the circuit would have
become complicated in the case of photocell.
INTRODUCTION
A photoresistor or light-dependent resistor (LDR) is a light-
controlled variable resistor. The resistance of a photoresistor
decreases with increasing incident light intensity; in other
words, it exhibits Photoconductivity. A photoresistor can be
applied in light-sensitive detector circuits, and light and dark
activated switching circuits. These resistors use pure
semiconductors like silicon or germanium. When the light falls
on the LDR, then the electrons get excited by the incident
photons and move from the valence band to the conduction
band and therefore the number of charge carriers increases. In
other words, the conductivity goes up.
Distinction needs to be made here between photocells and
LDRs. In a photocell, when it is excited by light (photons),
electricity is generated. Unlike photocells, LDRs , do not
generate electricity but only change their conductivity.
THEORY
A light dependent resistor works on the principle of photo
conductivity. Photo conductivity is an electro-optical
phenomenon in which the material’s conductivity is increased
when light is absorbed by the material. Modern light
dependent resistors are made of materials such as lead
sulphide, lead selenide, indium antimonide and most
commonly cadmium sulphide (CdS) and cadmium selenide.
When light falls i.e. when the photons fall on the material, 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 strikes on the device, more and 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 through the device when the
circuit is closed.and hence it is said that the resistance of the
device has been decreased. This is the most common working
principle of LDR.
This can be clearly seen from the graph. The resistance of the
LDR falls rapidly with the increasing intensity of the incident
light.
The converse is also true when light intensity is reduced or cut
off.
APPARATUS REQUIRED
The project consists of the following apparatus:
1. Light source (white, ultra-violet and laser)
2. LDR
3. Switching circuit
4. Relay
5. Buzzer
6. Batteries
7. Housing for the above
PROCEDURE FOLLOWED
An empty cardboard box was used to mimic a house. An
opening was cut on the box to present a door. Behind the door,
a light source is placed and in the line of vision of the light
source, an LDR is also placed.
A circuit is connected to.the LDR which switches on a relay
when the light beam is intercepted. A schematic diagram of the
set-up is shown below:
As seen in the above diagram, a light source is positioned
behind the door on the right-hand side and an LDR is placed in
the same line of vision at the opposite end of the door. When
the light beam falls on the LDR, it lowers the resistance of the
same and this activates the switching transistor circuit. The
transistor circuit (described later) is connected to a relay which
is in turn connected to an external LED.
The relay is a special type of switch which is driven by its
magnetic coil. The relay has two positions. In de-energized
condition, position-1 will be active and in energized condition,
position-2 will be active.
When the circuit is powered, the relay goes to position-1 to
which the LED is connected. Thus, the LED will start glowing.
But when the light source is switched on, the resistance of LDR
falls and this drives the transistor switching circuit and the
relay gets energized. This puts the relay switch in position-2,
which cuts off the LED. In this condition, whenever the light
beam is intercepted by an opaque object, the LDR stops
receiving the incident light and its resistance becomes high.
This de-energizes the relay and puts it to position-1 and the
LED starts glowing.
Thus, to summarize, we can say that the as long as the light
source is on and the LDR is illuminated, the LED will not light
up. But the moment, the light source is interrupted, the LED
will start glowing.
We can Imagine the interruption of the light beam to be caused
by an intruder and hence this» arrangement can automatically
detect any intruder by turning on the LED.
The LED is just one of the devices we have connected to the
relay. As such we can connect many devices to the relay such
as sirens, flashing lights, buzzer or even.an automatic dialer to
the nearest police station. This intruder alarm can be easily set
up in-houses, banks, schools etc.
OBSERVATION
In the set up described, the following observations were made
by:-
(a) Varying the nature of light source.
(b) Varying the translucency of the interceptor object.
TABLE OF OBSERVATION:-
EXTENSION OF SCOPE IN FUTURE
The device was also tested under invisible light using a TV
remote control as an infrared light source. The same
observations were made as above. This extends the scope of the
project to the invisible light sources such as ultraviolet and
infrared. The advantage is that; we can dupe the intruder by
using invisible light as the light rays will not be visible even in
the night.
Another interesting application that can be thought of is an
automatic ‘people counter’ that can be used to measure the
number of people traversing a certain passage or entrance in an
auditorium or theatre. It can also be used as a ‘traffic counter’
in check posts and toll gates. For this, we have to simply
replace the buzzer or LED with a digital counter. A typical
digital counter is shown in the accompanying picture.
CONCLUSION
Based on the observation above, it can be concluded that the
LDR based electronic switch can be successfully deployed for
the following applications:
1. Intruder detection / burglar’s alarm for
home uses.
2. Anti-theft alarm for Banks and offices.
3. People Counter at Auditoriums
4. Vehicle counters at traffic check posts.
5. Automatic Street Lights
6. Day & Night Sensor
PRECAUTION
The project uses certain devices that can be harmful to humans and
animals if proper caution and care are not observed:-
1. Laser diode: Although we have used a low intensity laser, this
can be harmful if aimed accidently at the eyes or if the reflected
beam is seen through naked eye. It is suggested to wear protective
sun-glasses while assembling / positioning the light source.
2. Ultraviolet LED: UV LED with wavelengths between 315 and
400 nm, which emits: the least energetic.and harmful type of UV
light. However, prolonged exposure should be avoided which can
damage the skin and eyes.
3. Buzzer: This device emits high frequency. audio sounds that can
damage the ears when put close to the ears or heard for prolonged
period.
4. The LDR: Should aneed.arise to destroy the project; care should
be taken to dispose of the LDR properly as it contains harmful
chemicals that can damage the environment.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
To complete this project successfully I have taken help
from the website listed below:-
www.Wikipedia.com
www.Google.com
www.youtube.com
www.knowlegdecycle.in
