LEDs and Ohm's Law
1. What's the Deal with LEDs?
Okay, let's talk about LEDs, or Light Emitting Diodes. You see them everywhere, right? In your phone screen, your TV, maybe even blinking on your toaster (if you have a fancy toaster). They're super energy-efficient and last a long time, which is why everyone is ditching those old incandescent bulbs. But the question remains: do these little marvels of modern lighting play nice with Ohm's Law? The answer, like most things in life, isn't a straight yes or no.
To understand why it's complicated, think of an LED as a very picky eater. It only wants a specific amount of current. Too little, and it won't light up properly. Too much, and poof, instant burnout! They're dramatic like that. This contrasts sharply with a resistor, which happily accepts whatever current is thrown at it, abiding by Ohm's law every step of the way. So, are LEDs behaving like resistors? Not exactly. But we'll delve into that.
Think of Ohms Law like a super simple rule for basic circuits: Voltage (V) equals Current (I) times Resistance (R), or V = IR. This tells us that for a fixed resistance, if you crank up the voltage, the current will increase in direct proportion. Simple, right? It works great for resistors, which are designed to, well, resist the flow of electricity in a predictable way.
The thing with Ohm's Law is that it describes a linear relationship between voltage and current. If you double the voltage across a resistor, you double the current through it. LEDs, on the other hand, have a non-linear relationship. This is why directly applying Ohms law can lead to disappointing (or even catastrophic) results for your poor little LED.
