Mu Symbol
About Mu Symbol
μ is the Mu Symbol, the lowercase form of the 12th letter of the Greek alphabet (Μ / μ). The Mu Symbol μ is among the most common Greek letters in scientific and technical literature, frequently used for It denotes the mean, the coefficient of friction, and serves as the SI prefix for micro (10⁻⁶).
【Pronunciation】 In English, μ is most often pronounced MYOO or MOO (IPA: /mjuː, muː/). This is simply the anglicized name of the Greek letter.
The lowercase Mu Symbol μ is written as a distinct Greek glyph and is assigned codepoint U+03BC in the Greek and Coptic Unicode block. In plain or sans-serif fonts it can be mistaken for the Latin letter u or µ, so verify the typeface or context.
【Historical Origin】 Mu is the 12th Greek letter; it was adopted as the micro prefix by the SI system in 1960—do not confuse it with the MICRO SIGN at U+00B5.
【Common Uses】 μ is highly active across disciplines: It denotes the mean, the coefficient of friction, and serves as the SI prefix for micro (10⁻⁶). It often appears alongside the uppercase Sigma Σ and lowercase Sigma σ in formulas, papers, and engineering drawings.
How to Type Mu Symbol
Windows Input
Method 1: Hold Alt and type 956 on the numeric keypad, then release Alt to get μ.
Mac Input
Method 2: Press Control + Command + Space to open the Character Viewer, search for 'greek' or 'Mu Symbol', then select μ.
HTML/CSS Input
Method 3: HTML: μ or μ or μ; CSS: content: "\03BC";
LaTeX Input
Method 4: Use the \mu command in LaTeX math mode to produce μ.
Mu Symbol FAQ
How is μ pronounced?
The English pronunciation of μ is MYOO or MOO (IPA: /mjuː, muː/). It is the anglicized name of the Greek letter, used directly rather than described as 'lowercase μ'.
What is the difference between μ and the Latin letter u or µ?
μ (U+03BC) is a Greek lowercase letter, whereas u or µ is a Latin letter; their codepoints and glyphs differ. In a proper typeface μ and u or µ are clearly distinct, but in plain text or sans-serif fonts they can be confused, so rely on context.
How do I type μ in Word, web pages, and LaTeX?
On Windows use Alt+956 on the numeric keypad; on Mac open the Character Viewer and search 'greek' or 'Mu Symbol'; on the web use the HTML entity μ; in LaTeX use \mu. For bulk use, copy μ directly from this page.