Contact Resistance Prediction from Observed Image and Oxide Volume Analysis

The volume fraction of tin oxide increases as the deterioration caused by fretting progresses (as revealed in previous papers). A key influencer is the wear progress on the plated surface. Wear progress is characterized by specific wear. No significant difference was found between the following specific wears of different types: (1) Pin-disc contact on a few-mm scale and (2) Contact between the rider and flat on a 100-μm scale [5]. In practical use of terminals, oxidation rapidly progress. On the other hand, the progress of oxidation on static tin surface (without damage) is very slow. Therefore, it is essential to predict the relationship between wear and oxidation rate. This paper presents new ideas for estimating the contact resistance profile of tin-plated terminals. Here, the relationship between the contact resistance and the wear progress is described. This corresponds to the relationship between the volume fraction of oxide and wear progression. This study aims to contribute to the simulation of the overall fretting process.