What Do You Mean By Significant Figures Physics Q&A

Define significant figures:

Those digits in a number that are meaningful in terms of precision and accuracy are known as significant figures.

The larger the number of significant figures obtained in a measurement, the greater is the accuracy of the measurement and vice-versa.

Rules for Significant Figures

  • All non-zero digits are significant.
    198745 contains six significant digits.
  • All zeros that occur between any two non-zero digits are significant. For example,
    108.0097 contains seven significant digits.
  • All zeros that are on the right of a decimal point and also to the left of a non-zero digit are never significant. For example,
    0.00798 contained three significant digits.
  • All zeros that are on the right of a decimal point are significant, only if, a non-zero digit does not follow them. For example,
    20.00 contains four significant digits.
  • All the zeros that are on the right of the last non-zero digit, after the decimal point, are significant. For example,
    0.0079800 contains five significant digits.
  • All the zeros that are on the right of the last non-zero digit are significant if they come from a measurement. For example,
    1090 contains four significant digits.

Er. Neeraj K.Anand is a freelance mentor and writer who specializes in Engineering & Science subjects. Neeraj Anand received a B.Tech degree in Electronics and Communication Engineering from N.I.T Warangal & M.Tech Post Graduation from IETE, New Delhi. He has over 30 years of teaching experience and serves as the Head of Department of ANAND CLASSES. He concentrated all his energy and experiences in academics and subsequently grew up as one of the best mentors in the country for students aspiring for success in competitive examinations. In parallel, he started a Technical Publication "ANAND TECHNICAL PUBLISHERS" in 2002 and Educational Newspaper "NATIONAL EDUCATION NEWS" in 2014 at Jalandhar. Now he is a Director of leading publication "ANAND TECHNICAL PUBLISHERS", "ANAND CLASSES" and "NATIONAL EDUCATION NEWS". He has published more than hundred books in the field of Physics, Mathematics, Computers and Information Technology. Besides this he has written many books to help students prepare for IIT-JEE and AIPMT entrance exams. He is an executive member of the IEEE (Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers. USA) and honorary member of many Indian scientific societies such as Institution of Electronics & Telecommunication Engineers, Aeronautical Society of India, Bioinformatics Institute of India, Institution of Engineers. He has got award from American Biographical Institute Board of International Research in the year 2005.