Enhance Your Learning with CPU Design Flash Cards for quick learning
The process of designing the central processing unit (CPU) of a computer, involving microarchitecture, instruction set architecture, and other key components.
The design and organization of the internal components of a CPU, including data paths, control units, and registers.
The set of commands, or instructions, that a CPU can execute, including the format of instructions and addressing modes.
A CPU design technique that allows multiple instructions to be processed simultaneously by dividing the execution of instructions into a series of stages.
The organization of computer memory in a hierarchy of levels, from fast and small (e.g., registers and cache) to slower and larger (e.g., main memory and storage).
The components and processes involved in the communication between a computer and external devices, including input devices, output devices, and storage devices.
The use of multiple processors or processing units within a single computer system, allowing for parallel execution of tasks and improved performance.
The assessment and measurement of the performance of a CPU, including metrics such as speed, throughput, and response time.
The amount of electrical power consumed by a CPU during operation, an important consideration for energy efficiency and battery life in mobile devices.
Current and future developments in CPU design, including topics such as quantum computing, neuromorphic computing, and hardware accelerators.
CPUs designed for specific applications or tasks, such as graphics processing units (GPUs), digital signal processors (DSPs), and network processors.
A computer architecture based on the concept of a stored-program computer, with a central processing unit, memory, input/output, and a single shared bus.
A computer architecture with separate memory spaces for instructions and data, allowing for simultaneous access to both program instructions and data.
CPUs capable of executing multiple instructions in parallel, often by using multiple execution units and advanced scheduling techniques.
A CPU design technique that allows instructions to be executed in an order different from their original sequence, improving performance by exploiting instruction-level parallelism.
The process of predicting the outcome of conditional branches in a program, allowing a CPU to speculatively execute instructions and avoid pipeline stalls.
The consistency of data stored in multiple caches in a multiprocessor system, ensuring that all processors have a consistent view of memory.
A memory management technique that allows a computer to compensate for physical memory shortages by temporarily transferring data from random access memory (RAM) to disk storage.
The ability of a CPU to execute multiple threads or processes simultaneously, often through the use of multiple processor cores or hardware multithreading.
CPUs designed to efficiently process arrays of data, often used in scientific and engineering applications for tasks such as simulations and data analysis.
A CPU design philosophy that emphasizes a small, highly optimized set of instructions, often resulting in improved performance and energy efficiency.
A CPU design philosophy that includes a large set of complex instructions, often providing more functionality in a single instruction but potentially leading to lower performance and higher power consumption.
The simultaneous execution of multiple tasks or instructions by a CPU, often achieved through the use of multiple processor cores or specialized hardware.
The speed at which a CPU can execute instructions, typically measured in gigahertz (GHz) and directly impacting the overall performance of the processor.
The maximum amount of heat that a CPU is expected to generate under normal operation, an important consideration for system cooling and thermal management.
A cache-like structure in a CPU that stores the target addresses of recently executed branch instructions, improving the efficiency of branch prediction.
A CPU optimization technique that allows the execution of instructions before it is certain that they will be needed, improving performance by reducing idle time.
The relationship between instructions in a program that determines the order in which they can be executed, often impacting the potential for parallelism.
The ability of a CPU to execute multiple instructions simultaneously, often achieved through techniques such as pipelining and out-of-order execution.
The simultaneous execution of multiple instructions by a CPU, often by using multiple execution units and advanced scheduling algorithms.
The rate at which data can be read from or written to computer memory, often measured in gigabytes per second (GB/s) and impacting overall system performance.
An event in which a CPU attempts to access data in the cache but finds that the data is not present, requiring a slower access to main memory.
A set of rules and mechanisms used to maintain the consistency of data stored in multiple caches in a multiprocessor system.
The time delay between the initiation of a memory access and the time when the data is actually available for use by the CPU, impacting overall system performance.
The coordination of multiple threads or processes in a computer program, often necessary to ensure correct and predictable behavior.
A cache in a CPU that stores copies of frequently used instructions, allowing for faster access and execution of program code.
A cache in a CPU that stores copies of frequently used data, allowing for faster access and manipulation of program data.
A hardware component in a CPU that translates virtual addresses to physical addresses, enabling the use of virtual memory and memory protection.
The process by which a CPU responds to and manages external events or signals that require immediate attention, such as input/output operations or hardware errors.
The rules and strategies used by a CPU to manage the writing of data to the cache, including write-through, write-back, and write-allocate policies.
The mechanisms and techniques used to prevent unauthorized access to or modification of computer memory, ensuring the security and integrity of data.
A cache-like structure in a CPU that stores recently used virtual-to-physical address translations, improving the efficiency of memory access.
The algorithms and strategies used by a CPU to determine which data to evict from the cache when space is needed for new data, including least recently used (LRU) and random replacement policies.
The process of assigning physical addresses to virtual addresses, allowing a CPU to access and manage computer memory in a structured and efficient manner.
A technique used to improve memory access performance by distributing data across multiple memory modules or banks, allowing for parallel access.
A CPU optimization technique that anticipates future memory accesses and retrieves data into the cache before it is actually needed, reducing memory latency.
A technique used to reduce the amount of memory required to store data by encoding and compressing it in a more efficient manner.
A hardware component in a CPU that enforces memory access permissions and restrictions, preventing unauthorized access to specific memory regions.