# Source: https://learn.adafruit.com/ir-sensor/testing-an-ir-sensor.md

# IR Sensor

## Testing an IR Sensor

Because there is a semiconductor/chip inside the sensor, it must be powered with 3 - 5V to function. Contrast this to photocells and FSRs where they act like resistors and thus can be simply tested with a multimeter.

![](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/000/549/medium800/light_pna4602pinout.gif?1447976100)

Here we will connect the detector as such:

- Pin 1 is the output so we wire this to a visible LED and resistor
- Pin 2 is ground
- Pin 3 is VCC, connect to 3-5V

When the detector sees IR signal, it will pull the output low, turning on the LED - since the LED is red its much easier for us to see than IR!

![](https://cdn-learn.adafruit.com/assets/assets/000/000/550/medium800/light_irremotetest.gif?1447976110)

We will use 4xAA 1.3V batteries (I use NiMH) so that the voltage powering the sensor is about 4V.

2 batteries (3V) may be too little. 3 Batteries should be fine if you have a triple-AA holder

You can also get 5V from a microcontroller like an Arduino if you have one around. Ground goes to the middle pin.

The positive (longer) head of the Red LED connects to the +6V pin and the negative (shorter lead) connects through a 200 to 1000 ohm resistor to the first pin on the IR sensor.

Now grab any remote control like for a TV, DVD, computer, etc. and point it at the detector while pressing some buttons, you should see the LED blink a couple times whenever the remote is pressed.

- [Previous Page](https://learn.adafruit.com/ir-sensor/overview.md)
- [Next Page](https://learn.adafruit.com/ir-sensor/ir-remote-signals.md)

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