What is a micrometer?
A micrometer (µm; micrometre outside the US) is 0.000001 meters. The µ is the Greek letter mu, the SI symbol for the prefix micro.
A micrometer is a millionth of a meter, the scale of things you need a microscope for. A red blood cell is about 7 micrometers across and a human hair about 70.
The unit shares its name with the micrometer screw gauge, the hand tool for measuring small parts. That usually reads to 0.01mm, which is 10 micrometers, so the micrometer mostly doesn't measure in micrometers.
What is a micron?
A micron is one millionth of a meter, or 0.000001 meters. Its symbol is µm, the Greek letter mu followed by m.
'Micron' is the older name for the micrometer, and the SI dropped it in 1967. It survives on filter ratings anyway – a 5 micron filter catches particles down to about 5 micrometers.