100 nanometres

Semiconductor manufacturing processes
10 µm — 1971 3 µm — 1975 1.5 µm — 1982 1 µm — 1985 800 nm (.80 µm) — 1989 600 nm (.60 µm) — 1994 350 nm (.35 µm) — 1995 250 nm (.25 µm) — 1998 180 nm (.18 µm) — 1999 130 nm (.13 µm) — 2000 90 nm — 2002 65 nm — 2006 45 nm — 2008 32 nm — 2010 22 nm — 2011 16 nm — approx. 2013 11 nm — approx. 2015
Half-nodes

Comparison of sizes of semiconductor manufacturing process nodes with some microscopic objects and visible light wavelengths. At this scale, the width of a human hair is about 10 times that of the image.

To help compare different orders of magnitude this page lists lengths between 10⁻⁷ and 10⁻⁶ m (100 nm and 1 µm).

Distances shorter than 100 nm

• 100 nm — greatest particle size that can fit through a surgical mask

• 100 nm — 90% of particles in wood smoke are smaller than this.^{[citation needed]}
• 120 nm — greatest particle size that can fit through a ULPA filter^{[citation needed]}
• 120 nm — diameter of a human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)
• 125 nm — standard depth of pits on compact discs (width: 500 nm, length: 850 nm to 3.5 µm)
• 180 nm — typical length of the rabies virus
• 200 nm — typical size of a Mycoplasma bacterium, among the smallest bacteria
• 280 nm — near ultraviolet wavelength
• 300 nm — greatest particle size that can fit through a HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Air) filter (N100 removes up to 99.97% at 0.3 micrometres, N95 removes up to 95% at 0.3 micrometres)^{[citation needed]}
• 380–420 nm — wavelength of violet light (see color and optical spectrum)
• 420–440 nm — wavelength of indigo light
• 440–500 nm — wavelength of blue light
• 500–520 nm — wavelength of cyan light
• 520–565 nm — wavelength of green light
• 565–590 nm — wavelength of yellow light
• 590–625 nm — wavelength of orange light
• 625–740 nm — wavelength of red light
• 700–1400 nm — Wavelength of near-infrared radiation

Distances longer than 1 µm