LED Flasher Circuit | Electronics Projects

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There are several ways of making an LED Flasher circuit. You can make one using transistors, microcontrollers, or a 555-timer IC. In this tutorial, I will show you how we can make an LED Flasher circuit using a 555 Timer IC. This IC creates pulses of current at a specific time interval, and we will use these pulses to turn the LED on and off, hence it will work as an LED flasher circuit. The time interval of the pulses can be controlled by changing the value of resistors and capacitors used in the circuit.

Hardware Components

The following components are required to make LED Flasher Circuit

S. NO	Component	Value	Qty
1.	Breadboard	–	1
2.	Battery	9v	1
3.	Connecting Wires	–	1
4.	IC	NE555 Timer	1
5.	Capacitor	1uF	1
6.	Resistors	1k, 470 ohms	2, 1
7.	LED	5mm	1

555 IC Pinout

For a detailed description of pinout, dimension features, and specifications download the datasheet of 555 Timer

Circuit Diagram

Connection

Place the 555 timer IC on the breadboard and connect Pin 8 to VCC and Pin 1 to GND.
Use a jumper wire to connect PIN 6 and PIN 2 of IC.
Use a jumper wire to connect PIN 4 and PIN 8 of the IC.
Connect 1uF capacitor between Pin 2 and GND.
Connect 1K resistor between VCC and PIN 7 of IC.
Use a 1K resistor to connect the LED to Pin 3.
Connect a 470-ohm resistor between Pin 7 and Pin 6.

Working Explanation

This 555 timer IC is working in Astable mode in this circuit and it generates a continuous output in the form of a square wave via Pin 3. The duty cycle of the output is about 50%, which means that the time duration for LED to remain on or off will be equal. The duty cycle depends upon the value of resistors R1 and R3 and the electrolytic capacitor C1. If you want to add more LEDs to this circuit, connect each LED in parallel with the first LED using proper resistors or you can connect the output of the IC to the base of the transistor. The transistor will amplify the current, making it sufficient enough to drive all the LEDs.