Observations of electrical contact surface in CuAg/Ni couple with make/break

A mechanism of erosion (wear) and material transfer occurring on electrical contact surfaces during make/break is investigated with Cu-Ag/Ni couples. It is found that the state of the contact surface depends largely on the duration of the anodic arc discharge and that the formation of a thin film of Cu₂O on the surface plays an important role in controlling the erosion and material transfer to be generated on the contact surface. On the basis of the experimental results, a model for explaining the configurational and compositional change in electrical contact surface is proposed