Micro
Contents
Key Stage 3
Meaning
Micro is a Unit Prefix that means a number is 1000,000 times smaller than the normal unit.
About Micro
- Micro can be shortened to the greek letter µ (pronounced 'mew').
Examples
- A micrometre (µm) is 1/1000,000th of a metre (m).
- A microvolt (µV) is 1/1000,000th of a volt (V).
- A microgram (µg) is 1/1000,000th of a gram (g).
Converting from Micro
To convert from micro to the base unit you must divide by 1000,000. \[63000\mu m = \frac{63000}{1000,000}m = 0.063m\]
\[8400\mu m = \frac{8400}{1000,000}m = 0.0084m\]
\[260\mu m = \frac{260}{1000,000}m = 0.00026m\]
\[98\mu m = \frac{98}{1000,000}m = 0.000098m\]
\[3\mu m = \frac{3}{1000,000}m = 0.000003m\]
Converting to Micro
To convert to micro from a base unit you must times by 1000,000. \[8m = 8\times1000,000 \mu m = 8,000,000\mu m\]
\[54m = 54\times1000,000 \mu m = 24,000,000\mu m\]
\[6.2m = 6.2\times1000,000 \mu m = 6,200,000\mu m\]
\[0.33m = 0.33\times1000,000 \mu m = 330,000\mu m\]
\[0.052m = 0.052\times1000,000 \mu m = 52,000\mu m\]
Key Stage 4
Meaning
Micro is a Unit Prefix that means a number is 10-6 the normal unit.
About Micro
- Micro can be shortened to the greek letter µ (pronounced 'mew').
Examples
- A micrometre (µm) is 10-6 metres (m).
- A microvolt (µV) is 10-6 volts (V).
- A microgram (µg) is 10-6 grams (g).
Converting from Micro
To convert from micro to the base unit you must times by 10-6. \[63000\mu m = 63000\times10^{-6}m = 0.063m\]
\[8400\mu m = 8400\times10^{-6}m = 0.0084m\]
\[260\mu m = 260\times10^{-6}m = 0.00026m\]
\[98\mu m = 98\times10^{-6}m = 0.000098m\]
\[3\mu m = 3\times10^{-6}m = 0.000003m\]
Converting to Micro
To convert to micro from a base unit you must times by 106 because there are 1,000,000 of them in the base unit. \[8m = 8\times10^{6} \mu m = 8,000,000\mu m\]
\[54m = 54\times10^{6} \mu m = 24,000,000\mu m\]
\[6.2m = 6.2\times10^{6} \mu m = 6,200,000\mu m\]
\[0.33m = 0.33\times10^{6} \mu m = 330,000\mu m\]
\[0.052m = 0.052\times10^{6} \mu m = 52,000\mu m\]