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I have a project I’m working on for Jr Design. I need to feed 2 fans a voltage of roughly 10-12V each at any given time but the max voltage my microcontroller can give out is 5V. Anyway I can add an op amp to my breadboard to help amplify the required voltage? If so, any guidance on how I’d go about this would be great. |
October 07, 2022 |
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Not really since even a rail-to-rail OpAmp must be fed by the maximum voltage it will have to deliver. And the maximum current output by the OpAmp is quite limited given your intended use. The habitual way to control a large voltage with a MCU is through a transistor, such as a MOSFET, where the gate would be tied to an I/O pin of the MCU. The voltage threshold of the MOSFET should be less than the voltage which can be delivered by the MCU. A voltage booster fed by the MCU is out of the possibilities, given the very limited current that can supply most GPIO pins (many cannot even light a LED). |
October 08, 2022 |
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@vanderghast So would it be a better idea to build a separate circuit for the fans and stepper motors? Is it possible to get my MCU hooked up to that 2nd circuit so it can communicate with my stepper motors and fans? |
October 11, 2022 |
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I’m currently looking into the transistor option you gave me. @vanderghast |
October 11, 2022 |
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Add a flyback diode if the "load" is inductive. And be sure that the DC source is also protected (An USB port of a PC is possibly not). |
October 12, 2022 |
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