Q UANTITIES AND U NITS

1 S C I ENT IFI C AN D E N G I NEER I NG N OTAT IO N

In the electrical and electronics fields, you will encounter both very small and very
large quantities. For example, electrical current can range from hundreds of amperes in
power applications to a few thousandths or millionths of an ampere in many electronic
circuits. This range of values is typical of many other electrical quantities also. Engi-
neering notation is a specialized form of scientific notation. It is used widely in techni-
cal fields to express large and small quantities. In electronics, engineering notation is
used to express values of voltage, current, power, resistance, and other quantities.
After completing this section, you should be able to
◆ Use scientific notation to represent quantities
◆ Express any number using a power of ten
◆ Perform calculations with powers of ten

Scientific notation* provides a convenient method for expressing large and small
numbers and for performing calculations involving such numbers. In scientific notation, a
quantity is expressed as a product of a number between 1 and 10 (one digit to the left of the
decimal point) and a power of ten. For example, the quantity 150,000 is expressed in sci-
entific notation as 1.5 * 105, and the quantity 0.00022 is expressed as 2.2 * 10-4.

Powers of Ten
Table 1 lists some powers of ten, both positive and negative, and the corresponding decimal
numbers. The power of ten is expressed as an exponent of the base 10 in each case.
Base x X Exponent
10x
An exponent is a number to which a base number is raised. The exponent indicates the
number of places that the decimal point is moved to the right or left to produce the decimal
number. For a positive power of ten, move the decimal point to the right to get the equiva-
lent decimal number. As an example, for an exponent of 4,
104 = 1 * 104 = 1.0000. = 10,000.

TAB LE 1
Some positive and negative powers of ten.

106 = 1,000,000 10-6 = 0.000001

5
10 = 100,000 10-5 = 0.00001
104 = 10,000 10-4 = 0.0001
3
10 = 1,000 10-3 = 0.001
102 = 100 10-2 = 0.01
1
10 = 10 10-1 = 0.1
100 = 1

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Website provided with this text.
*The bold terms in color are key terms and are defined at the end of the chapter.

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For a negative power of ten, move the decimal point to the left to get the equivalent deci-
mal number. As an example, for an exponent of -4,
10-4 = 1 * 10-4 = .0001. = 0.0001
The negative exponent does not indicate that a number is negative; it simply moves the deci-
mal point to the left.

EXAMPLE 1 Express each number in scientific notation:

(a) 240 (b) 5100 (c) 85,000 (d) 3,350,000

Solution In each case, move the decimal point an appropriate number of places to the left to
determine the positive power of ten.
(a) 240 = 2.4 : 102 (b) 5100 = 5.1 : 103
(c) 85,000 = 8.5 : 104 (d) 3,350,000 = 3.35 : 106

Related Problem* Express 750,000,000 in scientific notation.

*Answers are at the end of the chapter.

EXAMPLE 2 Express each number in scientific notation:

(a) 0.24 (b) 0.005 (c) 0.00063 (d) 0.000015

Solution In each case, move the decimal point an appropriate number of places to the right to
determine the negative power of ten.
1 3
(a) 0.24 = 2.4 : 10 (b) 0.005 = 5 : 10
4 5
(c) 0.00063 = 6.3 : 10 (d) 0.000015 = 1.5 : 10

Related Problem Express 0.00000093 in scientific notation.

EXAMPLE 3 Express each of the following numbers as a normal decimal number:

(a) 1 * 105 (b) 2.9 * 103 (c) 3.2 * 10-2 (d) 2.5 * 10-6

Solution Move the decimal point to the right or left a number of places indicated by the positive
or the negative power of ten respectively.
(a) 1 * 105 = 100,000 (b) 2.9 * 103 = 2900
(c) 3.2 * 10-2 = 0.032 (d) 2.5 * 10 -6 = 0.0000025

Related Problem Express 8.2 * 108 as a normal decimal number.

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Calculations With Powers of Ten

The advantage of scientific notation is in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division
of very small or very large numbers.
Addition The steps for adding numbers in powers of ten are as follows:
1. Express the numbers to be added in the same power of ten.
2. Add the numbers without their powers of ten to get the sum.
3. Bring down the common power of ten, which becomes the power of ten of the sum.

EXAMPLE 4 Add 2 * 106 and 5 * 107 and express the result in scientific notation.

Solution 1. Express both numbers in the same power of ten: (2 * 106) + (50 * 106).
2. Add 2 50 52.
3. Bring down the common power of ten (106); the sum is 52 * 106 = 5.2 : 107.

Related Problem Add 4.1 * 103 and 7.9 * 102.

Subtraction The steps for subtracting numbers in powers of ten are as follows:
1. Express the numbers to be subtracted in the same power of ten.
2. Subtract the numbers without their powers of ten to get the difference.
3. Bring down the common power of ten, which becomes the power of ten of the
difference.

EXAMPLE 5 Subtract 2.5 * 10-12 from 7.5 * 10-11 and express the result in scientific notation.

Solution 1. Express each number in the same power of ten: (7.5 * 10-11) - (0.25 * 10 -11).
2. Subtract 7.5 - 0.25 = 7.25.
3. Bring down the common power of ten (10 -11); the difference is 7.25 : 10 11
.

Related Problem Subtract 3.5 * 10-6 from 2.2 * 10-5.

Multiplication The steps for multiplying numbers in powers of ten are as follows:
1. Multiply the numbers directly without their powers of ten.
2. Add the powers of ten algebraically (the exponents do not have to be the same).

EXAMPLE 6 Multiply 5 * 1012 by 3 * 10-6 and express the result in scientific notation.

Solution Multiply the numbers, and algebraically add the powers.

(5 * 1012)(3 * 10-6) = 15 * 1012 + (-6) = 15 * 106 = 1.5 : 107

Related Problem Multiply 1.2 * 103 by 4 * 102.

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Division The steps for dividing numbers in powers of ten are as follows:
1. Divide the numbers directly without their powers of ten.
2. Subtract the power of ten in the denominator from the power of ten in the numera-
tor (the exponents do not have to be the same).

EXAMPLE 7 Divide 5.0 * 108 by 2.5 * 103 and express the result in scientific notation.

Solution Write the division problem with a numerator and denominator.

5.0 * 108
2.5 * 103
Divide the numbers and subtract the powers of ten (3 from 8).
5.0 * 108
= 2 * 108 - 3 = 2 : 105
2.5 * 103

Related Problem Divide 8 * 10-6 by 2 * 10 -10.

Scientific Notation on a Calculator Entering a number in scientific notation is accom-

plished on most calculators using the EE key as follows: Enter the number with one digit
to the left of the decimal point, press EE, and enter the power of ten. This method requires
that the power of ten be determined before entering the number. Some calculators can be
placed in a mode that will automatically convert any decimal number entered into scientific
notation.

EXAMPLE 8 Enter 23,560 in scientific notation using the EE key.

Solution Move the decimal point four places to the left so that it comes after the digit 2. This
results in the number expressed in scientific notation as
2.3560 * 104
Enter this number on your calculator as follows:

2 • 3 5 6 0 EE 4 2.3560E4

Related Problem Enter the number 573,946 using the EE key.

Engineering Notation
Engineering notation is similar to scientific notation. However, in engineering notation
a number can have from one to three digits to the left of the decimal point and the power-
of-ten exponent must be a multiple of three. For example, the number 33,000 expressed in
engineering notation is 33 * 103. In scientific notation, it is expressed as 3.3 * 104. As
another example, the number 0.045 is expressed in engineering notation as 45 * 10-3. In
scientific notation, it is expressed as 4.5 * 10-2. Engineering notation is useful in electri-
cal and electronic calculations that use metric prefixes (discussed in Section 2).

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EXAMPLE 9 Express the following numbers in engineering notation:

(a) 82,000 (b) 243,000 (c) 1,956,000

Solution In engineering notation,

(a) 82,000 is expressed as 82 : 103.
(b) 243,000 is expressed as 243 : 103.
(c) 1,956,000 is expressed as 1.956 : 106.

Related Problem Express 36,000,000,000 in engineering notation.

EXAMPLE 10 Convert each of the following numbers to engineering notation:

(a) 0.0022 (b) 0.000000047 (c) 0.00033

Solution In engineering notation,

3
(a) 0.0022 is expressed as 2.2 : 10 .
9
(b) 0.000000047 is expressed as 47 : 10 .
6
(c) 0.00033 is expressed as 330 : 10 .

Related Problem Express 0.0000000000056 in engineering notation.

Engineering Notation on a Calculator Use the EE key to enter the number with one,
two, or three digits to the left of the decimal point, press EE, and enter the power of ten that
is a multiple of three. This method requires that the appropriate power of ten be determined
before entering the number.

EXAMPLE 11 Enter 51,200,000 in engineering notation using the EE key.

Solution Move the decimal point six places to the left so that it comes after the digit 1. This
results in the number expressed in engineering notation as
51.2 * 106
Enter this number on your calculator as follows:

5 1 • 2 EE 6 51.2E6

Related Problem Enter the number 273,900 in engineering notation using the EE key.

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SECTION 1 1. Scientific notation uses powers of ten. (True or False)

CHECKUP 2. Express 100 as a power of ten.
Answers are at the end of the
chapter.
3. Express the following numbers in scientific notation:
(a) 4350 (b) 12,010 (c) 29,000,000
4. Express the following numbers in scientific notation:
(a) 0.760 (b) 0.00025 (c) 0.000000597
5. Do the following operations:
(a) (1 * 105) + (2 * 105) (b) (3 * 106)(2 * 104)
3 2
(c) (8 * 10 ) , (4 * 10 ) (d) (2.5 * 10-6) - (1.3 * 10-7)
6. Enter the numbers expressed in scientific notation in Problem 3 into your calculator.
7. Express the following numbers in engineering notation:
(a) 0.0056 (b) 0.0000000283
(c) 950,000 (d) 375,000,000,000
8. Enter the numbers in Problem 7 into your calculator using engineering notation.

2 UNITS AND M E T RI C P R E FI X ES
In electronics, you must deal with measurable quantities. For example, you must be
able to express how many volts are measured at a certain test point in a circuit, how
much current there is through a conductor, or how much power a certain amplifier
delivers. In this section, you are introduced to the units and symbols for most of the
electrical quantities that are used throughout the text. Metric prefixes are used in
conjunction with engineering notation as a “shorthand” for the certain powers of ten
that commonly are used.
After completing this section, you should be able to
◆ Work with electrical units and metric prefixes
◆ Name the units for twelve electrical quantities
◆ Specify the symbols for the electrical units
◆ List the metric prefixes
◆ Change a power of ten in engineering notation to a metric prefix
◆ Use metric prefixes to express electrical quantities

Electrical Units
Letter symbols are used in electronics to represent both quantities and their units. One sym-
bol is used to represent the name of the quantity, and another is used to represent the unit of
measurement of that quantity. Table 2 lists the most important electrical quantities, along
with their SI units and symbols. For example, italic P stands for power and nonitalic (roman)
W stands for watt, which is the unit of power. In general, italic letters represent quantities
and nonitalic letters represent units. Notice that energy is abbreviated with an italic W that
represents work; and both energy and work have the same unit (the joule). The term SI is the
French abbreviation for International System (Système International in French).

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 Q UANTITIES AND U NITS

TAB LE 2
QUANTITY SYMBOL SI UNIT SYMBOL
Electrical quantities and their
capacitance C farad F
corresponding units with SI
symbols. charge Q coulomb C
conductance G siemens S
current I ampere A
energy or work W joule J
frequency f hertz Hz
impedance Z ohm Æ
inductance L henry H
power P watt W
reactance X ohm Æ
resistance R ohm Æ
voltage V volt V

In addition to the common electrical units shown in Table 2, the SI system has many other
units that are defined in terms of certain fundamental units. In 1954, by international
agreement, meter, kilogram, second, ampere, degree kelvin, and candela were adopted as
the basic SI units (degree kelvin was later changed to just kelvin). These units form the basis
of the mks (for meter-kilogram-second) units that are used for derived quantities and have
become the preferred units for nearly all scientific and engineering work. An older metric
system, called the cgs system, was based on the centimeter, gram, and second as fundamen-
tal units. There are still a number of units in common use based on the cgs system; for
example, the gauss is a magnetic flux unit in the cgs system and is still in common usage. In
keeping with preferred practice, this text uses mks units, except when otherwise noted.

Metric Prefixes
In engineering notation metric prefixes represent each of the most commonly used pow-
ers of ten. These metric prefixes are listed in Table 3 with their symbols and corresponding
powers of ten.

TAB LE 3
METRIC PREFIX SYMBOL POWER OF TEN VALUE
Metric prefixes with their symbols
femto f 10-15 one-quadrillionth
and corresponding powers of ten and
values. pico p 10-12 one-trillionth
-9
nano n 10 one-billionth
micro m 10-6 one-millionth
milli m 10-3 one-thousandth
kilo k 103 one thousand
6
mega M 10 one million
giga G 109 one billion
12
tera T 10 one trillion

Metric prefixes are used only with numbers that have a unit of measure, such as volts,
amperes, and ohms, and precede the unit symbol. For example, 0.025 amperes can be ex-
pressed in engineering notation as 25 * 10-3 A. This quantity expressed using a metric pre-
fix is 25 mA, which is read 25 milliamps. The metric prefix milli has replaced 10-3. As another
example, 10,000,000 ohms can be expressed as 10 * 106 Æ. This quantity expressed using a
metric prefix is 10 MÆ, which is read 10 megohms. The metric prefix mega has replaced 106.

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EXAMPLE 12 Express each quantity using a metric prefix:

(a) 50,000 V (b) 25,000,000 Æ (c) 0.000036 A

Solution (a) 50,000 V = 50 * 103 V = 50 kV (b) 25,000,000 Æ = 25 * 106 Æ = 25 Mæ

(c) 0.000036 A = 36 * 10-6 A = 36 MA

Related Problem Express each quantity using metric prefixes:

(a) 56,000,000 Æ (b) 0.000470 A

SECTION 2 1. List the metric prefix for each of the following powers of ten: 106, 103, 10-3, 10-6,
CHECKUP 10-9, and 10 -12.
2. Use a metric prefix to express 0.000001 A.
3. Use a metric prefix to express 250,000 W.

3 M E T RI C U N IT C O NV ERS IO N S
It is sometimes necessary or convenient to convert a quantity from one unit with a
metric prefix to another, such as from milliamperes (mA) to microamperes (mA).
Moving the decimal point in the number an appropriate number of places to the left or
to the right, depending on the particular conversion, results in a metric unit conversion.
After completing this section, you should be able to
◆ Convert from one unit with a metric prefix to another
◆ Convert between milli, micro, nano, and pico
◆ Convert between kilo and mega

The following basic rules apply to metric unit conversions:

1. When converting from a larger unit to a smaller unit, move the decimal point to the
right.
2. When converting from a smaller unit to a larger unit, move the decimal point to the left.
3. Determine the number of places to move the decimal point by finding the differ-
ence in the powers of ten of the units being converted.
For example, when converting from milliamperes (mA) to microamperes (mA), move the dec-
imal point three places to the right because there is a three-place difference between the two
units (mA is 10-3 A and mA is 10-6 A). The following examples illustrate a few conversions.

EXAMPLE 13 Convert 0.15 milliampere (0.15 mA) to microamperes (mA).

Solution Move the decimal point three places to the right.

0.15 mA = 0.15 * 10-3 A = 150 * 10-6 A = 150 MA

Related Problem Convert 1 mA to microamperes.

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EXAMPLE 14 Convert 4500 microvolts (4500 mV) to millivolts (mV).

Solution Move the decimal point three places to the left.

4500 mV = 4500 * 10-6 V = 4.5 * 10 -3 V = 4.5 mV

Related Problem Convert 1000 mV to millivolts.

EXAMPLE 15 Convert 5000 nanoamperes (5000 nA) to microamperes (mA).

Solution Move the decimal point three places to the left.

5000 nA = 5000 * 10-9 A = 5 * 10-6 A = 5 MA

Related Problem Convert 893 nA to microamperes.

EXAMPLE 16 Convert 47,000 picofarads (47,000 pF) to microfarads (mF).

Solution Move the decimal point six places to the left.

47,000 pF = 47,000 * 10-12 F = 0.047 * 10-6 F = 0.047 MF

Related Problem Convert 10,000 pF to microfarads.

EXAMPLE 17 Convert 0.00022 microfarad (0.00022 mF) to picofarads (pF).

Solution Move the decimal point six places to the right.

0.00022 mF = 0.00022 * 10-6 F = 220 * 10-12 F = 220 pF

Related Problem Convert 0.0022 mF to picofarads.

EXAMPLE 18 Convert 1800 kilohms (1800 kÆ) to megohms (MÆ).

Solution Move the decimal point three places to the left.

1800 kÆ = 1800 * 103 Æ = 1.8 * 106 Æ = 1.8 Mæ

Related Problem Convert 2.2 kÆ to megohms.

When adding (or subtracting) quantities with different metric prefixes, first convert one
of the quantities to the same prefix as the other quantity.

EXAMPLE 19 Add 15 mA and 8000 mA and express the result in milliamperes.

Solution Convert 8000 mA to 8 mA and add.

15 mA + 8000 mA = 15 mA + 8 mA = 23 mA

Related Problem Add 2873 mA and 10,000 mA.

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