Contact resistance
Updated 2026-10-27
Data records
- Contact resistance is the resistance across a closed pair of contacts, a joint or a bolted connection, measured by passing a direct current through the connection and reading the voltage drop across it; a rising value indicates oxidation, loosening, erosion or contamination of the conducting surfaces.
- In instrument practice, contact resistance testing instruments measure the resistance of joints, connectors and contacts to reveal poor conductivity and heating at a connection, and some low-resistance meters read both steady-state and dynamic values.
Elsewhere in the family
- Contact Resistance related entry on Circuit Breaker Reference
- Contact Resistance related entry on Electrical Testing Reference
- Contact Resistance related entry on Motor Testing Reference
- Contact Resistance related entry on Switchgear Testing Reference
- Circuit Breaker Timing and Travel related entry on Circuit Breaker Reference
Sources
- Electrical Testing Reference editorial taxonomy, Electrical Testing Reference editorial taxonomy of test methods, 2026-10 edition, Electrical Testing Reference. Held as: Own observation.
- Megger product family page, Contact Resistance Testing Solutions, web page edition, Megger. Held as: Public page. Publisher page
Changelog (4 entries)
| Date | Revision | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-27 | created (gloss.contact-resistance.definition) | |
| 2026-10-27 | review_status unreviewed -> software_reviewed (gloss.contact-resistance.definition) | |
| 2026-10-27 | created (gloss.contact-resistance.usage) | |
| 2026-10-27 | review_status unreviewed -> software_reviewed (gloss.contact-resistance.usage) |
Cite this page
Cite the governing standard for the fact itself; cite this page as the finding aid.
"Contact resistance." Test Instrument Reference. 2026-10-27. https://www.testinstrumentreference.com/glossary/contact-resistance/.
Test Instrument Reference, Contact resistance (Oct. 27, 2026), https://www.testinstrumentreference.com/glossary/contact-resistance/.
@misc{etr-glossary-contact-resistance,
title = {Contact resistance},
howpublished = {\url{https://www.testinstrumentreference.com/glossary/contact-resistance/}},
organization = {Test Instrument Reference},
publisher = {Test Instrument Reference},
year = {2026},
note = {last substantive change 2026-10-27}
}{{cite web |title=Contact resistance |website=Test Instrument Reference |publisher=Test Instrument Reference |url=https://www.testinstrumentreference.com/glossary/contact-resistance/ |date=2026-10-27 |access-date=}}