I have a school project, and it's too explain topics on light as easily as possible. My topic is on cameras, and how light goes into it. Now, I've come across a word called "diode". I've searched the internet getting freakish definitions. Can someone explain what it is in a 5th grade way? ...though im not in 5th grade

"Diode" as I know it is an element of an electrical curcuit consisting of two attached differently dotated semi-conductors. Don´t worry if you didn´t get that sentence, it´s probably not important for you.

 

But what might be important for you is the effects diodes have in electrical cicuits:

- They (loosely speaking) only allow current to pass in one direction.

- Some of them emmit light (of a color depending on the materials used) when a current flows through them. Those are also called Light Emmiting Diodes or in short: LEDs. There´s another thread here about LEDs, but I guess that´s also not what you are looking for.

- Generally, the effect of light being emmited when a cuirrent flows can be reversed in a way that a current starts to flow when the diode is exposed to light. I don´t know if you can use all LEDs for this reverse process or if it has to be a special type of diode (I suspect the latter). I´m also not entirely sure if such elements would be called "diode" at all (but I think so - even think to remember the name "photo-diode" from my old electronic set). My bet would be that this are the diodes you are looking for as I can imagine them being used in digital cameras.

 

To sum it up: In you case a diode is probably an electrical element that creates a current when light falls onto it.

 

To sum it up: In you case a diode is probably an electrical element that creates a current when light falls onto it.

 

no' date=' I think his basic answer would be "a diode is an electrical component that only allows current to pass in one direction" your description there is of a solar cell. Photodiodes are a bit different in that they [i']allow[/i] current to flow when illuminated by light - but do not generate current themselves.

 

just a hint by the way, wikipedia is brilliant for things like this

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page