The electromechanical properties of radio frequency sputtered nichrome (Ni-Cr 80/20 wt.%) films have been evaluated for strain gauge applications. The composition of the films varied slightly from the target composition. Films of various thicknesses ranging from 10 to 400 nm were studied. The 10 nm thick film showed low resistivity, low gauge factor and a high temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR). The resistivity increased with increasing film thickness. The gauge factor increased for the 15 nm thick film and remained almost constant thereafter. The TCR decreased with thickness for film thickness up to 25 nm after which it tended to remain constant. Annealing caused an increase in the gauge factor and TCR and a decrease in the resistivity. The results are compared with previous results and the differences are discussed. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.