micron
(ˈmaɪkrɒn)
Also † mikron.
[ad. Gr. µῑκρόν, neut. of µῑκρός small.]
The one-millionth part of a metre; denoted by the symbol µ.
In the International System of Units the word has been replaced by micrometre.
| [1880 Procès-Verbaux des Séances du Comité Internat. des Poids et Mesures 1879 41 Le Comité international des Poids et Mesures adopte, pour ses publications et son usage officiel, le système suivant des signes abréviatifs pour les poids et mesures métriques... (table) Mesures de longueur... Micron... µ.] 1885 Jrnl. R. Microsc. Soc. V. 140 Proposal..(2) to use micron in place of micromillimetre. 1892 Barker Physics 15 Divided into..thousandths of a millimeter; i.e. into microns. 1898 Ld. Kelvin in Rep. Brit. Assoc. 783 Measured wave-lengths as great as 15 mikrons in radiant heat. 1905 Brit. Med. Jrnl. 25 Feb. 404 The lymphocytes showed all variations in size, from the smallest to some which were 15 microns in diameter. 1966 Electronics 14 Nov. 25 The detector..is believed to be the first photovoltaic detector of infrared radiation in the 8- to 14-micron range. 1968 [see micrometre]. |