IR Light Pad

Context

Our team needed an affordable way to illuminate samples for microscopy without triggering light-sensitive behaviors in certain organisms.

Contribution

• Reverse-engineered a commercial light pad used in fly experiments.
• Replaced standard LEDs with infrared LEDs for non-disruptive lighting.
• Designed and fabricated a casing to hold acrylic diffusion plates and LED strips.

Approach

We (Jacob Vazquez) disassembled the commercial pad and identified its key components: transparent acrylic, diffusion film, and LEDs.
By swapping in IR LEDs and creating a new casing, I produced a fully functional alternative that was previously unavailable.

Result

The IR light pad provides consistent, non-disruptive illumination during behavioral experiments.
Its modular design makes it easy to replace components or adapt to other experimental setups.

Gallery