Degradation Phenomenon of Electrical Contacts by using a Micro-Sliding Mechanism -Modeling about Fluctuation of Contact Resistance-

2014 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
pp. 6-9
Author(s):  
Shin-ichi Wada ◽  
Koichiro Sawa
Science ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 350 (6256) ◽  
pp. 68-72 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qing Cao ◽  
Shu-Jen Han ◽  
Jerry Tersoff ◽  
Aaron D. Franklin ◽  
Yu Zhu ◽  
...  

Moving beyond the limits of silicon transistors requires both a high-performance channel and high-quality electrical contacts. Carbon nanotubes provide high-performance channels below 10 nanometers, but as with silicon, the increase in contact resistance with decreasing size becomes a major performance roadblock. We report a single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) transistor technology with an end-bonded contact scheme that leads to size-independent contact resistance to overcome the scaling limits of conventional side-bonded or planar contact schemes. A high-performance SWNT transistor was fabricated with a sub–10-nanometer contact length, showing a device resistance below 36 kilohms and on-current above 15 microampere per tube. The p-type end-bonded contact, formed through the reaction of molybdenum with the SWNT to form carbide, also exhibited no Schottky barrier. This strategy promises high-performance SWNT transistors, enabling future ultimately scaled device technologies.


Author(s):  
Dinesh G. Bansal ◽  
Jeffrey L. Streator

An experiment is conducted to investigate the role of surface roughness on the coefficient of friction and contact resistance of sliding electrical contacts. A hemispherical pin is sliding along both smooth and rough 2-meter rail surface. Tests are performed at both low and moderate sliding speed and for a range of electrical current densities, ranging from 0 to about 12 GA/m2. It was found that surface roughness had a significant influence on the coefficient of friction, with the smoother surfaces exhibiting higher coefficients of friction. Contact resistance, on the other hand, did not show as strong an effect of surface roughness, except for a few parameter combinations. At the higher current densities studied (>10 GA/m2), it was found that the contact resistance values tended to be on the order of 1 mΩ, independent of load, speed and roughness. This convergence may be due to presence of liquid metal film at the interface, which established ideal electrical contact.


1990 ◽  
Vol 184 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. A. Gessert ◽  
T. J. Coutts

ABSTRACTThe importance of contacts to photovoltaic solar cells is often underrated mainly because the required values of specific contact resistance and metal resistivity are often thought to be relatively modest compared with those associated with very large scale integration (VLSI) applications. However, due to the adverse environmental conditions experienced by solar cells, and since many of the more efficient cells are economically advantageous only when operated under solar concentration, the requirements for solar cell contacts are sometimes more severe. For example, at one-sun operation, the upper limit in specific contact resistance is usually taken to be 10−2 Ω-cm2. However, at several hundred suns, this value should be reduced to less than 10−4 Ω-cm2. Additionally, since grid line fabrication often relies on economical plating processes, porosity and contamination issues can be expected to cause reliability and stability problems once the device is fabricated. It is shown that, in practice, these metal resistivity issues can be much more important than issues relating to specific contact resistance and that the problem is similar to that of providing stable, low resistance interconnects in VLSI. This paper is concerned with the design and fabrication of collector grids on the front of the solar cells and, although the discussion is fairly general, it will center on the particular material indium phosphide. This III-V material is currently of great importance for space application because of its resistance to the damaging radiation experienced in space.


Author(s):  
Bobby G. Watkins ◽  
Jeffrey Streator

Sliding electrical contacts are subject to surface damage and wear, which can be enhanced by the heating at the interface arising from electrical contact resistance. For example, in electromagnetic launcher (EML) technology, thermally assisted wear processes can result in unacceptable levels of material loss at the armature-rail interface. The control of the interface tribology in sliding electrical contacts requires an understanding of the Joule heating in the vicinity of the interface. In the current study, a multiphysics numerical simulation is conducted of transient heat conduction in both a stationary and a sliding electrical contact. The interface under investigation consists of a flat-ended aluminum cylindrical pin sliding against an aluminum rail. Electrical contact resistance is modeled by introducing a thin layer of high resistivity between the pin and the rail. Results show that shortly after sliding has commenced, (1) the maximum temperature rise occurs in the bulk of the pin rather than at the interface, (2) the bulk of the Joule heat goes into the rail, and (3) that sliding can have a significant effect on the temperature field, even when the speed is quite low.


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