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4.0 × 2.0 mm 4 pins side-emitting

WS2812B-4020

4020 · smd · WS2812B-V5 · WorldSemi

1-wire RGB 3.7–5.3 V active

Also sold as WS2812B 4020, WS2812B side view

At a glance

Colour
RGB8 bits per channel
Data
1-wiretimed pulses on one line
Supply ≠
3.7–5.3 Vno backup data line
Size
4.0 × 2.0 × 1.7 mm4 pins · side
Max current
36 mA12 mA per channel
PWM
2 kHzreset 280 µs
Library support
FastLED WLED Adafruit

Datasheets disagree

The sources we hold state different values for the facts below. Rather than pick one quietly, both sides are listed with where each was read. Check the datasheet for the exact part number and revision you are buying. How this is shown.

Protocol WS2812B-V5

Supply voltage

V5 and V6/V7 state different supply ranges, so the minimum depends on which revision you have.

What each source says about supply voltage
SourceSaysPage
ws2812b-v5-c114586 VDD +3.7 to +5.3 V 2
ws2812b-v6-c52917433 VDD +3.3 to +5.3 V 3
ws2812b-v7-c55109525 VDD +3.3 to +5.3 V 3

What we show. 3.7 V (the V5 sheet) is shown because it is the safer minimum; V6 and V7 variants state 3.3 V on their own sheets.

A side-view WS2812B: the light leaves a long face and the four pads run along the opposite edge, so it lights along a surface rather than away from it (edge-lit acrylic, light bars). Pins 1-4 are DIN, VDD, DOUT, VSS in a row - none of the 5050 numbering applies. Datasheet timing is the V5 window set (280 us reset).

Variants

One row per orderable SKU. Everything not listed is inherited from the part above.

Order codeFaceLensWhite PinsSiliconStatusFirst seenDatasheet
WS2812B-4020 — — — 4 — active 2018-09-13 PDF
Stock 0 when checked.
WS2812B-4020-G1 — — — 4 — active 2018-09-13 PDFPDF ↗
The sheet gives a total output current of 31.5/36/40.5 mA (min/typ/max) and revision V1.4 (2022-11-14) widened the quiescent and output-current ranges.
WS2812B-4020-V6 — — — 4 V6 active 2018-09-13 PDFPDF
V6: 3.3-5.3 V, 1 uA quiescent. The V6 drawing shows 3.88 +/-0.15 x 1.5 with R0.2 corners. V6 and later WorldSemi sheets state that DIN and DOUT may be swapped: the part takes data on either port and forwards it out of the other, so it has no fixed direction.

Pinout

WS2812B-4020WS2812B-4020-G1WS2812B-4020-V6
WS2812B-4020 4020 package, top and side viewPin 1 is ringed. pin 1 DIN (data in), pin 2 VDD (power), pin 3 DOUT (data out), pin 4 VSS (ground).11 DIN22 VDD33 DOUT44 VSS4.0 mm2.0 mmfront view (lens face)1.7 mm deepside view (end-on, light leaves the right face)
  • Data
  • Power
  • Ground
  • Pin 1

Outline and pin positions checked against the manufacturer datasheet (WS2812B-4020 sheet p2). Light leaves the lens face; pads sit in one row on the mounting edge. What this means.

  1. 1 DIN data in
  2. 2 VDD power
  3. 3 DOUT data out
  4. 4 VSS ground

Protocol — WS2812B-V5

Timings shown from datasheet. Other sources disagree; see the protocol page.

WS2812B-V5 bit timingWS2812B-V5 bit timing: a zero bit is 300 nanoseconds high then 790 low; a one bit is 790 high then 790 low; reset 280 microseconds low1 · Bit encoding, to scaleDINhighlowbit 0 period 1090 nsbit 1 period 1580 nsT0H 300 nsT1H 790 nsT0L 790 nsT1L 790 ns"0" bit"1" bit02505007501000125015001750200022502500time, nsDatasheet lists unequal bit periods (1090 vs 1580 ns); each bit is drawn with its own.2 · One frame: 24 bits, most-significant bit firstDIN170110010007100110101700101100bitG · 8 bitsR · 8 bitsB · 8 bitsWire order GRB · frame = 24 × ~1580 ns ≈ 37.9 µs · example data, first bits 1 0 1 …3 · RESET / latchlast bits of frame 1first bits of frame 2LEDs latch the data they receivedRESET: DIN low ≥ 280 µs (not to scale)4 · Cascade: each DOUT feeds the next DINMCULED 1DINDOUTLED 2DINDOUTLED NDINDOUTLED 1 keeps the first 24 bits, re-shapes the signal and sends the rest out on DOUT;LED 2 keeps the next 24, and so on. The last LED's DOUT is left unconnected.
T0H 300 / T0L 790 · T1H 790 / T1L 790 ns · reset 280 µs source: datasheet

Compatibility

  • near clone WS2812B

    Same package, pinout and command set, but the reset/latch period is extended to more than 280 us (V5, V6 and V7 sheets; FastLED also uses 280 us). Code written against the old 50 us figure can glitch. This is the most common cause of "my new reel of the same part flickers". source ↗

  • protocol compatible of this AOP single-wire IC (high speed mode, 280 us reset)

    T0H 220-380 ns, T0L 580-1000 ns, T1H 580-1000 ns and a 280 us reset are the windows the ws2812b-v5 protocol records; the AOP T1L window is wider (0.22-1.0 us against 580 ns-1 us). The sheets never mention WorldSemi.

  • near clone of this WS2812D-V6

    Same 280 us reset, 2 kHz scan frequency and the same T0H window (220-380 ns) as the WS2812B-V5, whose sheet the catalogue now holds. The V6 dome's T1L window is SHORT (220-380 ns) where the V5's is 580 ns to 1 us (and its T1H and T0L windows are 750 ns to 1 us against the V5's 580 ns to 1 us), so it is not the same timing table. The windows overlap, so a V5 driver may work, but that is not a tested claim.

  • protocol compatible of this WS2812E

    Identical datasheet timing windows, pin count (4) and supply range. Independent measurement has not been done; E and B differ in IC drive current (12-12.5 mA) and packages (the E exists in 1313, 2020, 2427, 3535-class MINI and 4020).

Dating evidence

Nobody announces these parts, so this records what we can actually cite rather than a release date. Library support proves only that the part existed by that date.

  • 2018-09-13 datasheet revision WorldSemi WS2812B-4020 datasheet Modify Record: V1.0 "New" ↗ day
  • 2019-02-19 datasheet revision WorldSemi WS2812B Ver. No.: V5 datasheet (LCSC C114586) Modify Record: 'V1.0 N New WS2812B - V5 20190219'; the sheet reaches V5.0 on 2019-03-23 ↗ day
  • 2024-08-31 first library support FastLED — first commit introducing WS2812B-V5 ↗ day

Where to buy

Stub data — a few rows so purchase links can grow later. Prices are not tracked.

Similar parts

Same protocol or package first, then the same data scheme and colour channels.

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