IEEE Power Engineering Society

Publication Guide
January 2001

Appendix A: Symbols and Prefixes

This appendix of the Publication Guide provides recommendations on prefixes, unit symbols and
abbreviations, acronyms, and factors for conversion into units of the International System.

Prefixes
Recommended prefixes indicating decimal multiples or submultiples of units and their symbols
are as follows:

Multiple Prefix Abbreviation

1024 yotta Y
1021 zetta Z
1018 exa E
1015 peta P
1012 tera T
109 giga G
106 mega M
103 kilo k
102 hecto h
10 deka da
10-1 deci d
10-2 centi c
10-3 milli m
10-6 micro µ
10-9 nano n
10-12 pico p
10-13 femto f
10-18 atto a
10-21 zepto z
10-24 yocto y

Avoid using compound prefixes, such as micromicro for pico and kilomega for giga. The
abbreviation of a prefix is considered to be combined with the abbreviation/symbol to which it is
directly attached, forming with it a new unit symbol, which can be raised to a positive or negative
power and which can be combined with other unit abbreviations/symbols to form
abbreviations/symbols for compound units. For example:

1 cm 3 = (10 -2 m) 3 = 10 -6 m 3
1 µs -1 = (10 -6 s) -1 = 10 6 s-1
1 mm 2/s = (10 -3 m) 2/s = 10 -6 m 2/s
Abbreviations and Symbols
Whenever possible, avoid using abbreviations and symbols in paragraph text; however, when it is
deemed necessary to use such, define all but the most common at first use. The following is a
recommended list of abbreviations/symbols for some important units, and it also includes other
common abbreviations and acronyms that may be used in tables and figures, and, if deemed
necessary, in paragraph text. The form of unit abbreviations/symbols is the same for both
singular and plural usage, and they are not followed by a period. The distinction between
uppercase and lowercase letters should be carefully observed. When a compound unit is formed
by the multiplication of two or more units, its abbreviation/symbol consists of the symbols for the
separate units joined by a raised dot, for example, N m for newton-meter. When a compound unit
is formed by division of one unit by another, its abbreviation/symbol consists of the symbols for
the separate symbols either separated by solidus (slant) or multiplied using negative powers, for
example, m/s or m s-1 for meters per second.

alternating current ac cubic meter per second m3/s

American wire gauge AWG cubic yard yd3
ampere A curie Ci
ampere-hour Ah current transformer Ct
ampere-turn At decibel dB
amplitude modulation AM decibel referred to one milliwatt dBm
antilogarithm antilog degree (temperature) Celsius °C
atomic mass unit (unified) U degree (temperature) Fahrenheit °F
audio frequency AF diameter dia
automatic frequency control AFC direct current dc
automatic gain control AGC double sideband DSB
automatic volume control AVC electrocardiograph ECG
average avg electroencephalograph EEG
backward-wave oscillator BWO electromagnetic compatibility EMC
bar bar electromagnetic unit EMU
barn b electromotive force EMF
beat-frequency oscillator BFO electronic data processing EDP
bel B electronvolt eV
billion electronvolts GeV electrostatic unit ESU
binary coded decimal BCD extra high voltage EHV
British thermal unit Btu extremely high frequency EHF
calorie cal extremely low frequency ELF
calorie (International Table calorie) cal IT farad F
calorie (thermochemical calorie) cal th field-effect transistor FET
candela cd foot ft
candela per square foot cd/ft 2 footcandle fc
candela per square meter cd/m 2 footlambert fL
cathode-ray oscilloscope CRO foot per minute ft/min
cathode-ray tube CRT foot per second ft/s
centimeter cm foot per second squared ft/s 2
centimeter-gram-second CGS foot poundal ft pdl
circular mil cmil foot pound-force ft lbf
continuous wave CW frequency modulation FM
coulomb C frequency-shift keying FSK
coupling capacitor voltage transformer ccvt gal Gal
cubic centimeter cm 3 gigaelectronvolt GeV
cubic foot ft3 gigahertz GHz
cubic foot per minute ft3/min gram g
cubic foot per second ft3/s henry H
cubic inch in3 hertz Hz
cubic meter m3 high frequency HF
high voltage HV microsiemens µS
horsepower hp microwatt µW
hour h mil mil
inch in mile per hour mi/h
inch per second in/s mile (statute) mi
inductance-capacitance LC milliampere mA
infrared IR millibar mbar
inside diameter ID millibarn mb
intermediate frequency IF milligram mg
joule J millihenry mH
joule per kelvin J/K milliliter mL
kelvin K millimeter mm
kiloelectronvolt keV millimeter of mercury, conventional mmHg
kilogram kg millisecond ms
kilohertz kHz millisiemens mS
kilohm kþ millivolt mV
kilojoule kJ milliwatt mW
kilometer km minute (time) min
kilometer per hour km/h nanoampere nA
kilovar kvar nanofarad nF
kilovolt kV nanometer nm
kilovoltampere kVA nanosecond ns
kilowatt kW nanowatt nW
kilowatthour kWh nautical mile nmi
knot knot neper Np
liter L newton N
liter per second L/s newton meter Nm
logarithm log newton per square meter N/m 2
logarithm, natural ln ohm þ
low frequency LF ounce (avoirdupois) oz
lumen lm outside diameter OD
lumen per square foot lm/ft 2 pascal Pa
lumen per square meter lm/m 2 phase modulation PM
lumen per watt lm/W picoampere pA
lumen second lm s picocoloumb pC
lux lx picofarad pF
magnetohydrodynamics MHD picosecond ps
magnetomotive force MMF picowatt pW
medium frequency MF pint pt
megaelectronvolt MeV pound lb
megahertz MHz poundal pdl
megavolt MV pound-force lbf
megavar Mvar pound-force foot lbf ft
megawatt MW pound-force per square inch lbf/in 2
megohm Mþ pound (force) per square inch lbf/in 2
metal-oxide semiconductor MOS power factor PF
meter m private branch exchange PBX
meter-kilogram-second MKS pulse-amplitude modulation PAM
mho mho pulse-code modulation PCM
microampere µA pulse-count modulation PCM
microbar µbar pulse-duration modulation PDM
microfarad µF pulse-position modulation PPM
microgram µg pulse-repetition frequency PRF
microhenry µH pulse-repetition rate PRR
micrometer µm pulse-time modulation PTM
micrombo µmho pulse-width modulation PWM
micron µm quart qt
microsecond µs rad rd
radian rad ton, short ton
radio frequency RF ton, metric ton
radio-frequency interference RFI transverse electric TE
rem rem transverse electromagnetic TEM
resistance-capacitance RC transverse magnetic TM
resistance-inductance-capacitance RLC traveling-wave tube TWT
revolution per minute r/min ultrahigh frequency UHF
revolution per second r/s ultraviolet UV
roentgen R (unified) atomic mass unit u
root-mean-square rms vacuum-tube voltmeter VTVM
second (time) s var var
short wave SW variable-frequency oscillator VFO
siemens S very high frequency VHF
signal-to-noise ratio SNR very low frequency VLF
semiconductor controlled rectifier SCR vestigial sideband VSB
silicon controlled rectifier SCR volt V
single sideband SSB voltagecontrolled oscillator VCO
square foot ft2 voltage standing-wave ratio VSWR
square inch in2 voltage transformer vt
square meter m2 voltampere VA
square yard yd2 volume unit vu
standing-wave ratio SWR watt W
steradian sr watthour Wh
superhigh frequency SHF watt per steradian W/sr
television TV watt per steradian square meter W/(sr m 2)
television interference TVI weber Wb
tesla T yard yd
thin-film transistor TFT

Conversion Factors
The following are some factors for conversion into units of the International System.

Length
1 inch = 2.54 centimeters (exactly)
1 foot = 0.3048 meter (exactly)
1 mile = 1609.3 meters
1 nautical mile = 1852 meters (exactly)
1 micron = 1 micrometer (exactly)
1 angstom = 0.1 nanometer (exactly)

Area
1 square inch = 6.4516 square centimeters (exactly)
1 square foot = 0.092 903 square meter
1 circular mil = 5.0671 x 10 -4 square millimeter
1 acre = 4046.9 square meters
1 barn = 10 -28 square meter (exactly)
1 hectare = 10 000 square meters (exactly)

Volume
1 cubic inch = 16.387 cubic centimeters
1 cubic foot = 0.028 317 cubic meter
1 fluid ounce (UK) = 28.413 cubic centimeters
1 fluid ounce (US) = 29.574 cubic centimeters
1 gallon (UK) = 4546.1 cubic centimeters
1 gallon (US) = 3785.4 cubic centimeters
1 barrel (US) (for petroleum; etc) = 0.158 99 cubic meter
1 acre foot = 1233.5 cubic meters
1 liter = 1000 cubic centimeters (exactly)

Speed
1 foot per minute = 5.08 millimeters per second (exactly)
1 mile per hour = 0.44704 meter per second (exactly)
1 knot = 0.514 44 meter per second
1 kilometer per hour = 0.277 78 meter per second

Mass
1 ounce (avoirdupois) = 28.350 grams
1 pound = 0.453 59 kilogram
1 slug = 14.594 kilograms
1 short ton = 907.18 kilograms
1 long ton = 1016.0 kilograms
1 tonne = 1000 kilograms (exactly)

Density
1 pound per cubic foot = 16.018 kilograms per cubic meter
1 pound per cubic inch = 27 680 kilograms per cubic meter

Force
1 poundal = 0.138 25 newton
1 ounce-force = 0.278 01 newton
1 pound-force = 4.4482 newtons
1 kilogram-force = 9.806 65 newtons (exactly)
1 dyne = 10 -5 newton (exactly)

Pressure
1 poundal per square foot = 1.4882 pascals (newtons per square meter)
1 pound-force per square foot = 47.880 pascals
1 pound-force per square inch = 6894.8 pascals
1 conventional foot of water = 2989.1 pascals
1 conventional millimeter of mercury = 133.32 pascals
1 torr = 133.32 pascals
1 standard atmosphere (760 torr) = 101 325 pascals (exactly)
1 technical atmosphere (1 kgf/cm 2) = 98 066.5 pascals (exactly)
1 bar = 100 000 pascals (exactly)

Energy, Work
1 foot poundal = 0.042 140 joule
1 foot pound-force = 1.3558 joules
1 British thermal unit (thermochemical) = 1054 joules
1 British thermal unit (International Table) = 1055 joules
1 calorie (thermochemical) = 4.184 joules (exactly)
1 calorie (International Table) = 4.1868 joules (exactly)
1 electronvolt = 1.602 x l0 -19 joule
1 erg = 10 -7 joule (exactly)

Power
1 foot pound-force per second = 1.3558 watts
1 horsepower (metric) = 735.50 watts
1 horsepower (British) = 745.70 watts
1 horsepower (electrical) = 746 watts (exactly)
1 British thermal unit (International Table) per hour = 0.2931 watt
1 erg per second = 10 -7 watt (exactly)
Quantities of Light
1 footcandle = 10.764 lux (lumens per square meter)
1 footlambert = 3.4263 candelas per square meter

Quantities of Electricity and Magnetism

1 ESU of current 3.3356 x 10 -10 ampere
1 EMU of current = 10 amperes (exactly)
1 ESU of electric potential 299.79 volts
1 EMU of electric potential = 10 -8 volt (exactly)
1 ESU of capacitance 1.1126 x 10 -12 farad
1 EMU of capacitance = 10 9 farads (exactly)
1 ESU of inductance 8.9876 x 10 11 henrys
1 EMU of inductance = 10 -9 henry (exactly)
1 ESU of resistance 8.9876 x 10 11 ohms
1 EMU of resistance = 10 -9 ohm (exactly)
1 gilbert 0.795 77 ampere
1 oersted 79.577 amperes per meter
1 maxwell = 10 -8 weber (exactly)
1 gauss = 10 -4 tesla (exactly)

Note that ESU means electrostatic CGS unit; EMU means electromagnetic CGS unit. In this list, the
sign is to be read “corresponds to.” Since the change from either CGS system to the International
System of Units involves a change in quantities, conversion of units by multiplication by a pure
number is not, strictly speaking, possible. However, a physical situation which can be described as a
“current” of 1 abampere can also be described as a current of 10 amperes.