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→Low and Medium Electrical Loads
The main characteristic of this load range is the presence of stable electrical arcs. Caused by the interaction between contact material and electrical arcs, the electrical life of contacts is limited by arc erosion or material transfer and in the case of higher make currents also by weld failures. For contact material selection the type of electrical load, i.e. resistive, inductive, capacitive, motor load, which determine the time function of the electrical current, is most critical.
<xr id="fig:Application ranges switching current and voltage"/><!--Fig. 6.2--> gives shows an overview for commonly used electrical contact materials for different load ranges in switches used in the information technology up to the transition range towards power switching applications. The ranges are illustrated as a function of switching current and voltage.
<figure id="fig:Application ranges switching current and voltage">
[[File:Application ranges switching current and voltage.jpg|right|thumb|Figure 2: Application ranges (switching current and voltage) of contact materials for
information technology and transitioning into the power switching devices]]
</figure>
