About the Scientific Notation
Scientific notation writes a number as a coefficient between 1 and 10 multiplied by a power of ten, which keeps very large and very small values readable. Enter a number to see it in scientific notation, in the e-notation that calculators and programming languages use, and in engineering notation where the exponent is a multiple of three. Enter e-notation to expand it to ordinary digits.
How to use the Scientific Notation
- Type a number such as 123456, 0.00045, or e-notation such as 6.02e23.
- Optionally set how many decimals the coefficient should keep.
- Read the scientific, e-notation and engineering forms; e-notation input also shows the expanded standard form.
- Copy the form your calculator, spreadsheet or class expects.
The formula behind it
N = a × 10ⁿ where 1 ≤ |a| < 10 and n is an integer. Engineering notation restricts n to multiples of 3, so a may range from 1 to 999.
Frequently asked questions
How do I write 123,456 in scientific notation?
Move the decimal point five places left: 1.23456 × 10⁵.
How do I write 0.00045?
Move the decimal four places right, giving a negative exponent: 4.5 × 10⁻⁴.
What does the “e” mean in 3.2e-5?
“e” stands for “times ten to the power of”. 3.2e-5 means 3.2 × 10⁻⁵, which is 0.000032.
What is engineering notation for?
Keeping exponents at multiples of three lines the number up with SI prefixes (kilo, mega, milli, micro), so 12.5e+3 reads directly as 12.5 kilo-units.
How precise is the conversion?
Numbers are handled as standard double-precision values, about 15–17 significant digits. Expanding e-notation to standard form is done on the digits themselves, so it is exact.