Abstract: The influence of aging treatment on the microstructure, mechanical properties and electrical conductivity of Cu-0.5 wt pct Be alloy for connector material applications was investigated. The properties of mechanical strength and electrical conductivity increase with increasing aging temperature and time. Microstructure of the aged Cu-Be alloy revealed that grain size and fraction of low angle and high angle grain boundary were not greatly changed; however, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis exhibited that beryllides precipitation (CoBe and NiBe) with a size of 50 nm were distributed in grains. It was, therefore concluded that these beryllide precipitates improved the mechanical strength and also it was favor in improvement of electrical conductivity.

Key words: Cu-Be alloy, Connector materials, Beryllide precipitates