How to Convert Nanometers to Meters

This example problem demonstrates how to convert nanometers to meters, or nm to m units. Nanometers are a unit most commonly used to measure wavelengths of light. There are one billion nanometers (10⁹) in one meter.

Nanometers to Meters Conversion Problem

The most common wavelength of the red light from a helium-neon laser is 632.8 nanometers. What is the wavelength in meters?

Solution:
1 meter = 10⁹ nanometers
Set up the conversion so the desired unit will be canceled out. In this case, we want m to be the remaining unit.
distance in m = (distance in nm) x (1 m/10⁹ nm)
Note: 1/10⁹ = 10^-9
distance in m = (632.8 x 10^-9) m
distance in m = 6.328 x 10^-7 m
Answer:
632.8 nanometers is equal to 6.328 x 10^-7 meters.

Meters to Nanometers Example

It's a simple matter to convert meters to nanometers using the same unit conversion.

For example, the longest wavelength of red light (almost infrared) that most people can see is 7 x 10^-7 meters. What is this in nanometers?

length in nm = (length in m) x (10⁹ nm/m)

Note the meters unit cancels out, leaving nm.

length in nm = (7 x 10^-7) x (10⁹) nm

or, you could write this as:

length in nm = (7 x 10^-7) x (1 x 10⁹) nm

When you multiply powers of 10, all you need to do is add together the exponents. In this case, you add -7 to 9, which gives you 2:

length of red light in nm = 7 x 10² nm

This may be rewritten as 700 nm.

Quick Tips for Nanometers to Meters Conversion

• Remember, if you're working with exponents, you simply add "9" to the meters value to get the answer in nanometers.
• If you write the number out, move the decimal point nine places to the left to convert nanometers to meters or to the right to convert meters to nanometers.