A series of CuFeW alloys added with different Fe contents were prepared by the infiltration method.The effects of Fe addition on the microstructure

hardness

electrical conductivity and electrical breakdown characteristics of Cu-W alloy were investigated.The results show that the hardness of CuFeW alloys increases with increasing Fe contents

while the electrical conductivity decreases with increasing Fe percentage from 0% to 1.5% in the Cu-Fe alloys.The electrical conductivity of CuFeW alloys increases significantly after solid solution and aging treatments.The breakdown voltage of Cu-W alloys increases and the chopping current of the alloys decreases with Fe addition.The surface morphologies of CuFeW and Cu-W alloys after electrical breakdown show that vacuum arcs are scattered slightly on the surface of CuFeW alloys

the first electrical breakdown occurs discontinuously and selectively in copper matrix phase rather than occurs continuously and concentratively in the interphases of Cu/W owing to the addition of Fe element into Cu-W alloy

the formed cathode spots are small and disperse

and the splash of liquid copper is slight.