Abstract: Contacts comprising nickel and a glass-forming additive have electrical contact properties which render them suitable as replacements for gold contacts; disclosed contacts have low contact resistance even after prolonged exposure to an oxidizing ambient. The glass-forming additive is one or several of the elements boron, silicon, germanium, phosphorus, arsenic, antimony, or bismuth, and contacts are readily formed, e.g., as layers on substrates. A crystallographically disordered structure is produced in a contact surface layer at least upon exposure to an oxidizing ambient; alternatively, such desired structure can be produced by ion bombardment and even in the absence of glass-forming additives.

Abstract: Nickel material comprising controlled amounts of hydrogen has low electrical contact resistance even after prolonged exposure to an oxidizing ambient. When used as a surface layer on an electrically conducting member, such material is suitable as a contact material and represents an inexpensive alternative to gold. And, when prepared in the form of microscopic flakes, such material is suitable for use in electrically conductive inks and adhesives.