@misc{12763,
  abstract     = {{In a previous paper, the correlation between the wear resistance of coatings and the lifetime of electrical connectors under fretting load was discovered. Based on this knowledge, various modifications of silver-based coatings with markedly increased wear resistance have been developed, and a calculation model for predicting connector lifetime has been formulated. Investigations on silver-coated electrical contacts with increased wear resistance show extended lifetimes in fretting wear and fretting corrosion tests, and the calculation model with various modified coating materials can be validated. However, contacts with very high wear-resistant coatings fail earlier than the specific wear coefficient and the calculation model prediction suggest.
The in-depth investigation of the coating material and the wear scar revealed the reasons for this unexpectedly shorter lifetime. The high wear resistance of modified silver coatings is achieved by increased micro-hardness. Both coatings with coating materials of high hardness and high thickness can lead to longer lifetimes under fretting load. However, increased fretting cycles can also cause fatigue and electrical contacts can fail due to delamination of the surface coating caused by fretting fatigue, and this delamination can lead to a sudden exposure of the base material, thus enabling its corrosion.
Therefore, both wear resistance and fatigue resistance should be increased in order to achieve a long lifetime of electrical contacts under fretting load.}},
  author       = {{Song, Jian and Tuelling, Soeren  and Hengstler, Jonas}},
  booktitle    = {{Wear : an international journal on the science and technology of friction, lubrication and wear }},
  issn         = {{0043-1648}},
  keywords     = {{Fretting, Wear, Fatigue, Lifetime, Electrical contacts}},
  publisher    = {{Elsevier}},
  title        = {{{Correlation between wear and fatigue properties and the lifetime of silver coated electrical connectors}}},
  doi          = {{10.1016/j.wear.2025.205971}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}

@misc{11359,
  abstract     = {{The reliability and lifetime of electrical contacts is an important aspect in system reliability and is influenced by numerous factors. Micro motions as well as vibrations lead to fretting wear, which can result in wear through of the protective coating. If this layer is worn through, the non-noble layer underneath is exposed, resulting in the occurrence of fretting corrosion with further relative motion. This leads to an increased electrical contact resistance (ECR) and can cause the contact to fail. Increasing the hardness of the coating material can reduce the wear and in turn increase contacts’ lifetime. The micro hardness, wear and lifetime of contacts with modified hard silver coatings are investigated in fretting wear and corrosion tests and the results compared to a conventional silver coating. Since one of the modifications shows a significant reduction in wear and hence improvement in lifetime, further analysis with SEM and FIB is conducted in order to identify the key mechanisms leading to this improvement. With a further increase in lifetime however, fatigue as well as delamination of the coating are revealed to be of high relevance. Both can be main causes of electrical contact failure under fretting load. In general, at lower number of cycles, increased micro hardness has the greatest effect on lifetime and wear while at the higher number of cycles, fatigue is observed to be the dominant failure mechanism.}},
  author       = {{Probst, Roman and Song, Jian}},
  booktitle    = {{2023 IEEE 68th Holm Conference on Electrical Contacts (HOLM)}},
  isbn         = {{979‐8‐3503‐4244‐4}},
  issn         = {{2158‐9992}},
  keywords     = {{electrical contacts, lifetime, silver coating, fretting corrosion, fatigue, wear through}},
  location     = {{Seattle }},
  pages        = {{88 -- 94}},
  publisher    = {{IEEE}},
  title        = {{{Influence of Hardness and Fatigue on the Lifetime of a Modified Silver Coating in Fretting Wear and Corrosion Tests}}},
  doi          = {{10.1109/holm56075.2023.10352299}},
  year         = {{2023}},
}