An exemplary circuit breaker includes at least one arcing chamber that is filled with isolating gas, extends along a longitudinal axis, is designed to be essentially radially symmetrical, contains an arc area and has at least two power contact pieces. At least one of the power contact pieces is in the form of a moving or stationery tubular hollow contact, which is provided for dissipating hot gases from the arc area into a concentrically arranged exhaust body. A deflection device, which interacts with at least one opening in the hollow contact, is arranged on the side of the hollow contact facing away from the arc area, and radially deflects hot gases into the exhaust volume, which is connected through at least one second opening to an arcing chamber volume. An increased disconnection rating is achieved by providing at least one intermediate body between the hollow contact and the exhaust body.
RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 10,660,532 filed in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on 12 Sep. 2003 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,872,907, which claims priority from European Patent Application EP 02405825.7 filed 24 Sep. 2002. U.S. application Ser. No. 10,660,532 is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
