nano-

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This article describes the SI prefix. For other meanings, see Nano.
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nano- is a prefix (symbol n) in the SI system of units denoting a factor of 10−9. It is often used in prefixing time and length units encountered in electronics and computer systems, like 30 nanoseconds (symbol ns) and 100 nanometres (nm). It was confirmed in 1960 and comes from the Greek νᾶνος, meaning dwarf. In the United States, the use of the nano- prefix for the Farad unit of electrical capacitance is uncommon; capacitors of that size are more often expressed in terms of a small fraction of a microfarad or a large number of picofarads.

SI prefixes
1000n 10n Prefix Symbol Short scale Long scale Decimal equivalent in SI writing style
10008 1024 yotta- Y Septillion Quadrillion 1 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000
10007 1021 zetta- Z Sextillion Trilliard (thousand trillion) 1 000 000 000 000 000 000 000
10006 1018 exa- E Quintillion Trillion 1 000 000 000 000 000 000
10005 1015 peta- P Quadrillion Billiard (thousand billion) 1 000 000 000 000 000
10004 1012 tera- T Trillion Billion 1 000 000 000 000
10003 109 giga- G Billion Milliard (thousand million) 1 000 000 000
10002 106 mega- M Million 1 000 000
10001 103 kilo- k Thousand 1 000
10002/3 102 hecto- h Hundred 100
10001/3 101 deca- da Ten 10
10000 100 (none) (none) One 1
1000−1/3 10−1 deci- d Tenth 0.1
1000−2/3 10−2 centi- c Hundredth 0.01
1000−1 10−3 milli- m Thousandth 0.001
1000−2 10−6 micro- µ Millionth 0.000 001
1000−3 10−9 nano- n Billionth Milliardth 0.000 000 001
1000−4 10−12 pico- p Trillionth Billionth 0.000 000 000 001
1000−5 10−15 femto- f Quadrillionth Billiardth 0.000 000 000 000 001
1000−6 10−18 atto- a Quintillionth Trillionth 0.000 000 000 000 000 001
1000−7 10−21 zepto- z Sextillionth Trilliardth 0.000 000 000 000 000 000 001
1000−8 10−24 yocto- y Septillionth Quadrillionth 0.000 000 000 000 000 000 000 001

When used as a prefix for something other than a unit of measure, as in "nanoscience", nano- means relating to nanotechnology, or on a scale of nanometers.