The slidewire potentiometer is a device intended to produce a signal voltage uniquely related to the mechanical displacements involved, and its materials of construction must provide therefore a reasonably accurate embodiment of the desired mathematical relationships. Noble metal alloys are usually selected for such applications because of theirstability and freedom from corrosion. In this paper, based on a lecture given recently to the Control and Automation Division of the Institution of Electrical Engineers, some general correlations between electrical performance and metallurgical characteristics are discussed and it is shown how the application of these principles has led to the development ofnew and improved potentiometer slidewire materials.