Extension to the range of prefixes for binary multiples
Richard J. C. Brown · Metrologia · 2025
Abstract This letter summarises the history of prefixes for binary multiples and introduces the new binary prefixes that are now officially available for use following an update to the IEC 80000-13 documentary standard on Information Science and Technology, the successor to the document where the binary prefixes were originally introduced in 1999. These new binary prefixes mirror the new SI prefix multiples that were approved at the 27th CGPM in 2022. The difference between the numerical size of equivalent binary and decimal prefixes is highlighted, emphasizing the need to use the appropriate prefix type to ensure unambiguous communication, especially for data science and information technology applications where both sets of prefixes are regularly used together with the non-SI units bit and byte.