Predicting the contact resistance distribution of electrical contacts by modeling the contact interface

Develops a personal computer model that predicts contact resistance distributions for clean electrical contacts. The authors describe the modeling technique in detail and compare model prediction with laboratory results. The model takes an approach that integrates contact theory with Monte Carlo simulation. The surface asperities are spherically shaped and randomly distributed over the contact surface, and have heights that follow a Gaussian distribution. The model predicts the mean resistance of a gold butt contact reasonably well. The largest error was 0.2 m Omega at a 1.0-N contact force.<>