Flat, rough surfaces of steel specimens were oxidized and subsequently pressed into contact. From a statistical analysis of the experimental measurements for freshly-assembled contacts, an expression has been established relating the loading pressure, mean roughness of the two surfaces and oxide film thicknesses to the thermal resistance of the contacts in high vacua. The thermal contact resistance increased with (i) the film thickness and (ii) the ratio of the total film thickness to the mean surface roughness, and decreased with the loading pressure and the mean surface roughness. Increasing and decreasing the applied load revealed a slight hysteresis effect.
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