1 E-5 m
Encyclopedia
To help compare different orders of magnitude, this page lists length
Length
In geometric measurements, length most commonly refers to the longest dimension of an object.In certain contexts, the term "length" is reserved for a certain dimension of an object along which the length is measured. For example it is possible to cut a length of a wire which is shorter than wire...

s between 10−5 m
Metre
The metre , symbol m, is the base unit of length in the International System of Units . Originally intended to be one ten-millionth of the distance from the Earth's equator to the North Pole , its definition has been periodically refined to reflect growing knowledge of metrology...

 and 10−4 m (10 µm
Micrometre
A micrometer , is by definition 1×10-6 of a meter .In plain English, it means one-millionth of a meter . Its unit symbol in the International System of Units is μm...

 and 100 µm).

Distances shorter than 10 µm
  • 10 µm — width of cotton
    Cotton
    Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....

     fibre
  • 10 µm — transistor
    Transistor
    A transistor is a semiconductor device used to amplify and switch electronic signals and power. It is composed of a semiconductor material with at least three terminals for connection to an external circuit. A voltage or current applied to one pair of the transistor's terminals changes the current...

     width of the Intel 4004
    Intel 4004
    The Intel 4004 was a 4-bit central processing unit released by Intel Corporation in 1971. It was the first complete CPU on one chip, and also the first commercially available microprocessor...

    , the world's first commercial microprocessor
    Microprocessor
    A microprocessor incorporates the functions of a computer's central processing unit on a single integrated circuit, or at most a few integrated circuits. It is a multipurpose, programmable device that accepts digital data as input, processes it according to instructions stored in its memory, and...

  • 10 µm — mean longest dimension of a human red blood cell
    Red blood cell
    Red blood cells are the most common type of blood cell and the vertebrate organism's principal means of delivering oxygen to the body tissues via the blood flow through the circulatory system...

  • 5–20 µm — dust mite excreta
  • 10.6 µm — wavelength of light emitted by a carbon dioxide
    Carbon dioxide
    Carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom...

     laser
    Laser
    A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of photons. The term "laser" originated as an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation...

  • 13 µm - width of nylon
    Nylon
    Nylon is a generic designation for a family of synthetic polymers known generically as polyamides, first produced on February 28, 1935, by Wallace Carothers at DuPont's research facility at the DuPont Experimental Station...

     fibre
  • 14 µm - width of polyester
    Polyester
    Polyester is a category of polymers which contain the ester functional group in their main chain. Although there are many polyesters, the term "polyester" as a specific material most commonly refers to polyethylene terephthalate...

     fibre
  • 15 µm — width of silk
    Silk
    Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...

     fibre
  • 16 µm — diameter of a micromirror in a typical Digital micromirror device
    Digital micromirror device
    A digital micromirror device, or DMD, is an optical semiconductor that is the core of DLP projection technology, and was invented by Dr. Larry Hornbeck and Dr. William E. "Ed" Nelson of Texas Instruments in 1987....

  • 17 µm — length of a tobacco mosaic virus
    Tobacco mosaic virus
    Tobacco mosaic virus is a positive-sense single stranded RNA virus that infects plants, especially tobacco and other members of the family Solanaceae. The infection causes characteristic patterns on the leaves . TMV was the first virus to be discovered...

  • 17.6 µm — one twip
    Twip
    A twip is a typographical measurement, defined as 1/20 of a typographical point...

    , a unit of length in typography
  • 10 to 55 µm — width of wool
    Wool
    Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and certain other animals, including cashmere from goats, mohair from goats, qiviut from muskoxen, vicuña, alpaca, camel from animals in the camel family, and angora from rabbits....

     fibre
  • 25.4 µm — 1/1000 inch, commonly referred to as 1 mil
    Thou (unit of length)
    A thou also known as a mil or point, is the verbalized abbreviation for "thousandth of an inch." It is a unit of length equal to 0.001 inch....

     in the U.S. and 1 thou
    Thou (unit of length)
    A thou also known as a mil or point, is the verbalized abbreviation for "thousandth of an inch." It is a unit of length equal to 0.001 inch....

     in the UK
  • 30–50 µm — diameter of a minicolumn
    Cortical minicolumn
    A cortical minicolumn is a vertical column through the cortical layers of the brain, comprising perhaps 80–120 neurons, except in the primate primary visual cortex , where there are typically more than twice the number. There are about 2×108 minicolumns in humans...

     in the human cortex
  • 50 µm — typical length of Euglena gracilis
    Euglena
    Euglena is a genus of unicellular flagellate protists. It is the best known and most widely studied member of the phylum Euglenozoa , a diverse group containing some 44 genera and at least 800 species. Species of Euglena are found in fresh and salt waters...

    , a flagellate protist
  • 50 µm — typical length of a human liver
    Liver
    The liver is a vital organ present in vertebrates and some other animals. It has a wide range of functions, including detoxification, protein synthesis, and production of biochemicals necessary for digestion...

     cell, an average-sized body cell
  • 90 µm — paper
    Paper
    Paper is a thin material mainly used for writing upon, printing upon, drawing or for packaging. It is produced by pressing together moist fibers, typically cellulose pulp derived from wood, rags or grasses, and drying them into flexible sheets....

     thickness in average
  • 99 µm — average width of human hair (ranges from 18 to 180 µm)

Distances longer than 100 µm
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