mu [MYOO]; Μ, μ +

(Greek: the twelfth letter of the Greek alphabet; Μ, μ)

micron, mikron
1. Also called micrometer, it is the millionth part of a meter. Symbol: μ, mu.
2. In chemistry, it is a colloidal particle whose diameter is between 0.2 and 10 microns.
3. In physics, it is a very small unit of pressure, equal to that exerted by a column of mercury 1μ high.

The links on a microchain drive created by Sandia National laboratories in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA, and announced in January, 2002, are only 50 micrometers apart.

The microchain is constructed of silicon and is designed to transmit power in micro-electromechanical devices.

A microchain that closely resembles a bicycle chain—except that each link could rest comfortably on a human hair—has been fabricated at the Department of Energy’s Sandia National Laboratories. The distance between chain link centers is 50 microns. The diameter of a human hair is approximately 70 microns.

The term was officially sanctioned as part of the metric system from 1879-1967 and is still used in some fields of activity.

mu factor
Ratio of the change in one electrode voltage to the change in another electrode voltage under the conditions that a splecified current remains unchanged and that all other electrode voltages are maintained constant.

A measure of the relative effect of the voltages on two electrodes upon the current in the circuit of any specified electrode.

mu opioid receptors
Stimulation of mu receptors exerts effects that depress nerve impulse transmission.

Morphine acts on the central nervous system to produce both depression and euphoric stimulation, effects that are mediated through its stimulation of mu opioid receptors.

Mu receptors' activation in some instances inhibits the transmission of inhibitory impulses, thereby causing stimulation.

Morphine has a marked analgesic effect because of its stimulation of mu receptors in both the brain and spinal cord, and its principal therapeutic value is for the relief of moderate to severe pain.

mu particle
A bacterial endosymbiont of strains of Paramecium aurelia that confers the killer trait to the paramecium.
mu phage
A temperate DNA-containing tailed phage that appears able to integrate at any site on the bacterial hosts and replicates at a rapid rate.

A phage is a virus that is parasitic (reproduces itself) in bacteria; "phage uses the bacterium's machinery and energy to produce more phage until the bacterium is destroyed and phage is released to invade surrounding bacteria".

mu; Μ, μ
1. The twelfth letter in the Greek alphabet (Μ, μ); equivalent to the English letter "m".
2. As a numeral, it denotes 40.
3. The micron symbol is μ.

You can see all of the letters of the Greek Alphabet on this page.