| The performance and reliability issues associated with microelectromechanical system (MEMS) electrical contact devices have precluded the widespread adoption of MEMS devices employing electrical contacts. Composite electrical contact materials, gold-alumina, gold-titanium nitride, and gold-nickel, were developed to address the issues that plague MEMS electrical contacts by reducing the amount of interfacial adhesion while maintaining acceptable levels of electrical conductivity. The composite materials were experimentally investigated and compared to numerical simulations which predicated how the novel materials would perform. Experimental and numerical simulation results found that composite electrical contact materials could enhance the performance of low-force electrical contacts if the ratio of high-conductivity to low-conductivity phases of the composite remained larger than a critical ratio, referred to as the percolation threshold. |
