The Mighty Laser Light Communications System!
Some time ago, I was at a hamfest and came across a laser pointer. The friend I was with said, "Well hams talk on just about every frequency that I know of, so why not talk on this laser pointer?" The joke he was making to me, started the gears turning in my head, WHY NOT! Needless to say I purchased the laser pointer for about $5.00 and a small audio amplifier with a 200 miliwatt output which had a transformered output. The idea was to modulate the beam. The only way I knew to do that was to connect the output of the audio amp inline with the power supply, so that when you talk into the microphone, the beam would be modulated, and "you're on the air!"

Well here is my wiring diagram of the simple way to modulate your laser pointer.

Now transmitting was one thing, but I also had to come up with a way to receive the signal! Well Why not just do the above in reverse! Well it works and I can't get over the look on my friend's face as he heard "Watson would you come here" over the receiver!

So, here is a simple receiver which worked. Experiment with different types of input devices to see which one works best. Also you will what to try this during late evening hours outside or in a dark room, since all light (even from light bulbs) has noise which the receiver will pickup.

Return to Main Page