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A CPU cache [71] is a hardware cache used by the central processing unit (CPU) of a computer to reduce the average cost (time or energy) to access data from the main memory. A cache is a smaller, faster memory, closer to a processor core, which stores copies of the data from frequently used main memory locations.
Caching works by prefetching data before the CPU needs it, reducing latency. [55] [56] If the data the CPU needs is not in the cache, it can be accessed from main memory. [55] Cache memory is typically SRAM, while the main memory is typically DRAM. [27] RAM is volatile, meaning its contents will disappear if the computer powers down. [57]
Processors based on different circuit technology have been developed. One example is quantum processors, which use quantum physics to enable algorithms that are impossible on classical computers (those using traditional circuitry). Another example is photonic processors, which use light to make computations instead of semiconducting electronics ...
Very long instruction word (VLIW) refers to instruction set architectures that are designed to exploit instruction-level parallelism (ILP). A VLIW processor allows programs to explicitly specify instructions to execute in parallel, whereas conventional central processing units (CPUs) mostly allow programs to specify instructions to execute in sequence only.
The control unit (CU) is a component of a computer's central processing unit (CPU) that directs the operation of the processor. A CU typically uses a binary decoder to convert coded instructions into timing and control signals that direct the operation of the other units (memory, arithmetic logic unit and input and output devices, etc.).
The first documented computer architecture was in the correspondence between Charles Babbage and Ada Lovelace, describing the analytical engine.While building the computer Z1 in 1936, Konrad Zuse described in two patent applications for his future projects that machine instructions could be stored in the same storage used for data, i.e., the stored-program concept.
The Model 16 has two microprocessors: an 8-bit Zilog Z80 CPU running at 4 MHz, and a 16-bit Motorola 68000 CPU running at 6 MHz. When the system is booted, the Z-80 is the master and the Xenix boot process initializes the slave 68000, and then transfers control to the 68000, whereupon the CPUs change roles and the Z-80 becomes a slave processor ...
The instruction cycle (also known as the fetch–decode–execute cycle, or simply the fetch–execute cycle) is the cycle that the central processing unit (CPU) follows from boot-up until the computer has shut down in order to process instructions. It is composed of three main stages: the fetch stage, the decode stage, and the execute stage.