LED Inrush Current Calculator

Formula

To calculate the LED inrush current:

\[ IC = SSC \cdot 100 \cdot D \]

Where:

\( IC \) is the total inrush current (amps)
\( SSC \) is the steady state current rating of the LED (amps)
\( D \) is the total number of drivers

What is LED Inrush Current?

LED inrush current is the maximum current drawn by a single LED at turn-on. It is caused by the self-heating of the die during turn-on and is usually very short (≤1 ms). The magnitude of the inrush current varies with the technology and size of the device. For example, an SMD package may have a much lower inrush current than an LDMOS device because SMD packages perform better at higher temperatures. The power supply design should always consider the inrush current as it can be large enough to cause damage to the supply itself or even destroy expensive components.

Example Calculation

Let's assume the following values:

Steady State Current \( SSC \) = 0.5 amps
Total Number of Drivers \( D \) = 10

Step 1: Calculate the LED inrush current:

\[ IC = 0.5 \cdot 100 \cdot 10 = 500 \text{ amps} \]

So, the LED inrush current is 500 amps.