The picometre is a unit of length and is a multiple of the SI unit metre. It uses the symbol pm.
It represents one trillionth of a metre, or one hundredth of an Ångström.
Because the picometre is so small, its use is restricted almost entirely to chemistry, quantum physics and particle physics. Atoms are typically 62 pm and 520 pm.
LISA (Laser Interferometer Space Antenna) is a probe planned for launch in 2034 to detect gravitational waves in space. Its measures these displacements with an accuracy of up to 20 pm over a distance of 2,500,000,000 m.
The inch is a unit of length in the imperial unit system with the symbol in.
There are 12 inches in a foot and 3 feet in a yard. Therefore there are 36 inches in a yard. There are exactly 2.54 centimetres in an inch.
Borrowed from the Latin 'uncia' - the English word 'inch', the origination of the word came from the Old English word for 'ounce' which was related to the Roman phrase for "one twelfth".
The inch is still a commonly used unit in the UK, USA and Canada - and is also still used in the production of electronic equipment, still very evident in the measuring of monitor and screen sizing.