> Yes.  Although it is not optomized for this use, it will work
> ather well.  I have used LED's in this way several times.

Physics is definitely on your side.  Reverse biased semiconductor junctions
will definitely "leak" more (sometimes a lot more) when you shine light of
the right wavelength on them.  While this pretty much guarantees that LEDs
will exhibit photodiode effects to some extent, this it neither a specified
nor tested parameter.  There could be large variations from batch to batch
or between "replacement" parts.  I would be nervous about putting this into
production, but go ahead if this is a one off or hobby project.


********************************************************************
Olin Lathrop, embedded systems consultant in Littleton Massachusetts
(978) 742-9014, olin@embedinc.com, http://www.embedinc.com

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