Tiny , bright visibly, cheap , Module

I have my crasy RGB flashlight, and thought it would be even crasier if i stuck a laser module in it, beings it has no THROW.
there is very little available space, its a MAG MOD, with a hole in the heatsink, and mabey 22MM x 10mm type of space in there for a laser module.
EVEN a laser pointer <5mw would be OK, but something that stands out wouldnt be bad if it was SMALL still.

are these head modules all small even on say a 10-30mw type of module? would it need a CASE to keep cool? it doesnt need to be 'outstanding'

i thought green would be easily visable, and would get a actual 'pointer' and wedge it in, if i KNEW one of fair power , so it seems that a Module head thing would be better than a pointer, less to tear apart, more sure of output.

would you have any SPECIFIC recomendations for, a specific module?

then, i have 2x li-ion in the light, the power source would be 7-8V, would a simple LUX driver controll the current to it, so i can run it on that power? or will it FLUXuate in power during startups and stuff?

totally new to lasers, but i did look over some specs, and did tear one apart, and did fry one to see how it would handle overrun (it didn't).
so i need sombody to choose for me , so to speak. like say less than 50$.

Hi again Vidpro.....a laser now!!!! eee gads, that'll be an even more impressive unit.
I know Jaycar electronics here in Australia is selling green 10mW laser modules for $AU149...I think shopping around you could probably get it for around $US70-100, though the supply is only 3V....don't know if they'd work on one Li-Ion at 3.6V without getting zapped....unless you make your own laser driver cct and try to source the raw laser semiconductor (or throw away the pre-made driver cct), you're going to have trouble getting the thing to work on 7V or so.

Green lasers are awesome, I got a green 5mW pointer a while back (when they were much more expensive) and the wild claims at being able to point at things kilometers away and shine spots on clouds are true.......they are great. Some gotchas are that in time the brightness may run down or mechanical vibration can knock them out of alignment, they're a bit sensitive to this because of their multi crystal construction I think. Mine only works at max brightness if you bang it or warm it on a radiator or over a candle now!

Apparently there are also guys out there who take a stock laser module, do some wacky re-alignments and squeeze out maybe double the power. They might be able to help with a custom 7.6V power supply driver or even have some ready made. Google for 'green laser modifications'....some are submarining their presense after all the kerfluffle about lasers being pointed at airplanes..

phil

well /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif there is a hole there, so i thought Stick something in it.

i was hoping that one of them down converter things for a led might drive it, As long as , (Cheap) Lasers don't fluxuate in current when they fire up. i thought it was just some kinda diode thing that gets changed up in the crystals and lensing. if that was all it was, controlling total current to its driver might work. then that could be one of them tiny driver boards (and will fit).

some of the small ones (pointers), the actual laser is tiny, its the batteries that take up all the space, but i dont know nuttin about these head modules that would have a bit of power in them (>5mw), if they are tiny too, and will work without heat problems.

i dont really want to have to do the modding, or get crasy laser with it, a Pointer is sufficient, but at 50$ i could still toast one (accidentally) and not cry.

Blue just came out, and is not power (waste of money for this), but if green is going to fail easily or break easily, then red would be OK too, color is not critical. visual output for the price would be. pluss it must be small module.

i also spotted the space around the optics, and . . . well some UV leds would fit in there. that part will be EASy compared to what i dont know about lasers.

yep...I just saw the blue thread.....I hope it proves an interesting read! As for the greens, I'm not sure about the likelyhood you'll get a sensitive one...mine went a bit funny, but a work collegues laser pointer has been working fine.....anyway, just something to watch for.
In terms of the driver, I suspect there's some special things to consider like the startup current you mentioned. No doubt trowling through the laser forum will find some info on driver circuits.

I reckon go for the UVs....it's something I've been keen to do....and if there's any space try for some IR LEDs.....then it'll truly be a wide spectrum device.

phil