Long reed relay life and dynamic contact resistance (DCR) go hand-in-hand. Understanding dynamic contact resistance is an important step in making the selection of the appropriate reed relay for the application. The contacts shown on this slide are in the (normally) open state. When voltage is applied to the coil the reed contacts close, with a certain amount of momentum. That momentum of the contacts coming together makes the reeds vibrate in a simple, critically damped harmonic motion. Critically damped harmonic motion is an important concept in dynamic contact resistance (DCR) testing. The frequency of the harmonic motion is determined from spring constants and mass of the reed switch.