The Prime Factorization of a number

Prime factorization simply means to express a number as a product of prime numbers. (A prime number is any number whose factors are only 1 and itself .)

To factor a number into primes

Simply break down the number into a product of prime numbers (its prime factors)

Examples:

the prime factorization of 3 = 3
the prime factorization of 22 = 11 × 2
the prime factorization of 11,101 = 17 × 653

Examples of incorrect prime factorization

44 = 11 × 4 is not correct. Prime factorization requires that all of the factors are prime numbers, and 4 is not prime. Therefore, this is not an example of prime factorization of number.
44 = 22 × 2 is not correct. Prime factorization requires that all of the factors are prime numbers, and 22 is not prime. Therefore, this is not an example of prime factorization of number.