Lighting Control: Dimmers (Analogue)

A dimmer is an electrical device used to control the light output from a luminaire. It should:

Provide continuously variable control of the light output.

Be easy to remotely control the dimmer with a simple fader.

Dim the light progressively, with an appropriate law, which should not vary with the load, whether it be a 2 kW or 150 W lamp.

Not be wasteful of power.

Not cause interference to other equipment and be silent in operation.

Be compact.

Be easy to maintain.

Thyristor or SCR dimmers

The modern dimmer consists of two thyristors or silicon-controlled rectifiers (SCR) connected back-to-back as shown in figure C. The diodes do not conduct until switched on by a suitable pulse at the gate ...

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