Hi, I want to make a simple beam break sensor. Ive got some IR emiters and photo transisters.

I connected the photo transister to an NPN transister which is connected to an LED. When i aim a remote at it the LED starts flashing (all good so far). When i connect the emitter up and aim it at the PT i can get the LED to light up but only at very close range (about 10CM). I tested again with my remote and managed to get about 30CM out of that.

How can i make a beam break sensor that works over about 2 meters? For a start do i need different emitters and PTs? Eventually i want a PIC chip to check the beam but for now im just doing quick tests with a transistor and an LED. Do i need any special circuit to make it more sensitive? I messed with the grounding resistors and got it so it was as sensitive as possible without being triggered by normal light but i still cant get more than a few CM range