Microstructures and Electrical Properties of Cold Sprayed Cu-Based Composite Coatings

  Copper-based composites for electrical components were accomplished via cold spray process using Cu-Cr powder particles with their different mixture ratio onto OFC substrate with N₂ carrier gas. Cu-Cr composite coatings were investigated for their Cr-content ratio, electrical and mechanical properties as well as microstructures. The Cr-content ratio of the coating is 40% of feedstock mixture ratio due to low formability of Cr particles. The coatings show denser cross-sectional structures and higher electrical conductivity and tensile strength compared with Cu-Cr sintered materials, with the attributes of high compaction due to the spray process. TEM characterization reveals that amorphous-structured oxygen–rich layer exists at Cr/ Cu interface, so as to contribute to the deposition of the Cr particles.