Using LEDs in a bridge rectifier for light, not load

ledrectifier

This is a two-part follow-up question (which wouldn't fit within the 600-character limit for comments) to Using LEDs in a bridge rectifier circuit. I appreciated Anindo Ghosh's response to that question with its explanations and recommendations for getting the best result if my main purpose was to build a good rectifier.

Anindo was correct, however, when he inferred that I want to use the light from the LEDs in the bridge rather than its d.c. output. So….I have a couple of follow-up questions:

  1. for the current-limiting resistance needed to protect the LEDs, should I put a single resistor between one leg of the generator output and its bridge connection (with the resistor value calculated from the voltage drop across the sum of the forward voltages divided by the sum of the forward currents of all 4 LEDs), or should I put a resistor between each of the 4 LEDs, all with the same value (calculated from the voltage drop across a single LED divided by the forward current of a single LED)?

  2. would the LEDs in the bridge produce light without a d.c. load (e.g. another LED or a resistor) on the bridge?

Best Answer

A bridge design is odd for this use, however it'll work if you use a single resistor as the load of the bridge. That resistor will determine the current through the LEDs, and thus the brightness.