ISLAMABAD-Stepping ‘beyond binary’ to store data in more than just 0s and 1s. Electronic data is being produced at a breath-taking rate. The total amount of data stored in data centres around the globe is of the order of ten zettabytes (a zettabyte is a trillion gigabytes), and we estimate that amount doubles every couple of years. With 8% of global electricity already being consumed in information and communication technology (ICT), low-energy data-storage is a key priority. To date there is no clear winner in the race for next-generation memory that is non-volatile, has great endurance, highly energy efficient, low cost, high density, and allows fast access operation.