General Physics 11.

LAB REPORT.

TOPIC: Electrical Circuit

Final Project.
General Physics
LAB REPORT.

Introduction.
Since the invention of light bulbs, the tool has assisted us in exploring and lighting up many dark
places. It has also been a convenience for most people. As part of our electric circuit unit of our General
Physics class, we are making this LED night light as an application of what we learned in class.

When it comes to lighting up your bedroom while you are sleeping, a night light is usually used to
allow us to see in the dark, without interfering with our sleep. However, the task of trying to find the light
switch in the dark is an annoying, tedious task, but what if we can make it light up in the dark automatically?

Objectives.
• To allow us to explore and observe concepts studied in class with a hands-on approach.
• To better understand the concept of resistance in electrical circuits.
Method/Approach.
In terms of relevancy to physics theory, this project involves the use of resistance to control the
brightness of the bulb through a combination of a photoresistor and a potentiometer, which once combined,
becomes a voltage divider, which turns the transistor on or off depending on the voltage divider’s output,
and also the amount of light hitting the photoresistor, and the use of the potentiometer allows the user to
set a custom threshold at which the circuit will be completed, thus turning the LED bulbs on and at the
same time, allows the user to control the bulb’s brightness levels.

Materials.
• 170-pin breadboard
• 1 LED bulb
• Potentiometer
• Photoresistor
• Resistor
• MOSFET Transistor
• 2 AA batteries
• Battery holder
• Wires
• Popsicle sticks
• Double-sided tape
Process.
• Install LED bulb, potentiometer, photoresistor, MOSFET transistor, resistor and wires onto
breadboard by following this layout:

*This layout may vary according to the size of breadboard used in the project, as some have extra
pins for positive/negative charges, as seen here:

*Notice how there are extra rows of

holes to the sides labelled “+” and “- “

• Then, insert 2 AA batteries into battery holder, and put the red wire onto the positively charged side
and the black wire into the negatively charged side.
• Install entire circuit onto popsicle sticks held together with double-sided tape for structural reasons.
Proof of Work and Timeline:
< 2022.05.30: Assembly of the initial circuit onto the
breadboard.

< 2022.06.01. Circuit turns on for the first time, but the
photoresistor does not function for unknown reasons, so we
changed it to a simpler one.

< 2022.06.02. Some parts were reconfigured to allow the

photoresistor to function, and this is a footage of it working for
the first time.

< 2022.06.02.The main structure of the LED night light.

 < 2022.06.02.More structural parts of the night light being
installed.

< 2022.06.02. The finished product, using duct tape for extra
structural integrity.

< 2022.06.02. The night light being placed in a dark place to

test the photoresistor’s function.

Development phase:

Initially, the project was meant to be just a simple wired circuit, but then we came across an article on how
to build an automated night light with photoresistors, so we decided on it as it is far more unique than
anything else that we have found.
Issues & Troubleshooting:

One of the main issues encountered while making this project was the fact that the wires are loose, which
caused difficulty in making the night light functional, in which we solved by leaving the wires intact to
prevent it from disconnecting again.

Another issue that we encountered is the fact that the photoresistor did not work, and we first tried to fix this
by changing it to a more conventional photoresistor, but it still did not work, and after some troubleshooting,
it turns out that it was improperly connected to the breadboard, which prevented it from working.
Results:

The LED bulb used in this project gets brighter

when put in a dark place due to the presence
of a photoresistor, which detects ambient light
and regulates the flow of energy towards the
LED bulb.
Also, the potentiometer installed in this night
light was intended to allow us to regulate the
brightness of the bulb, but in the end, we left it
at the maximum value to maximize the bulb’s
brightness.

Thus, we can conclude that the photoresistor

does actually rely on ambient light to regulate
the flow of electricity into the LED bulb.

Discussion:

From the results of this LED night light project, we can conclude that the photoresistor allows us to make
this LED night light to be fully automated, which solves our main problem with turning on night lights in pitch
black darkness – by using the photoresistor to allow it to detect the ambient light levels around it and
regulate the flow of electricity into the LED bulb, which in turn controls its brightness.

Conclusion:

This project can be deemed a success, due to the fact that our project has solved the problem it was
designed for, and also, this project is a successful demonstration and application of what we have studied
as part of our electrical circuit unit in General Physics 11.
PROJECT MEMBERS:

[1104] Kantawich Suksomcheep (Hubert)

[1104] Kunanont Vareekasem (Tung Tunk)

[1104] Narinthong Thongyai Na Ayutthaya (Neo)