David James Hoff

Physics 1010
April 2015
Nightlight Experiment Reflection
I have always found electronics to be interesting. In fact, the electro-magnetic
unit of this Physics class was my favorite unit by far. So, when directed to choose
projects, this night light experiment looked like gold to me.
What I found most interesting was the transistor itself. While doing my research
for this experiment, I found out that a transistor needs 0.6 volts of power to be activated.
Also, a transistor needs less power going to the base, as opposed to the receiving end
to activate the NOT gate. I never thought that a transistor could act like a switch
depending on how it was hooked up. A NOT gate is used to stop power going through
the LED (output) when theres power going through the input (photo resistor). The LED
only turns on when there is no light getting to the photo resistor.