Flashcards: Central processing unit

A page, memory page, or virtual page is a fixed-length contiguous block of virtual memory, described by a single entry in the page table.

A soft microprocessor (also called softcore microprocessor or a soft processor) is a microprocessor core that can be wholly implemented using logic synthesis.

A one instruction set computer (OISC), sometimes called an ultimate reduced instruction set computer (URISC), is an abstract machine that uses only one instruction – obviating the need for a machine language opcode.

In a computer's central processing unit (CPU), an accumulator is a register in which intermediate arithmetic and logic results are stored.

Complex instruction set computing (CISC /ˈsɪsk/) is a processor design where single instructions can execute several low-level operations (such as a load from memory, an arithmetic operation, and a memory store) or are capable of multi-step operations or addressing modes within single instructions.

A coprocessor is a computer processor used to supplement the functions of the primary processor (the CPU).

In computing, FLOPS or flops (an acronym for FLoating-point Operations Per Second) is a measure of computer performance, useful in fields of scientific calculations that make heavy use of floating-point calculations.

A microcontroller (or MCU, short for microcontroller unit) is a small computer (SoC) on a single integrated circuit containing a processor core, memory, and programmable input/output peripherals.

("RISC" redirects here. For other uses, see RISC (disambiguation).) Reduced instruction set computing, or RISC (pronounced 'risk', /ɹɪsk/), is a CPU design strategy based on the insight that a simplified instruction set provides higher performance when combined with a microprocessor architecture capable of executing those instructions using fewer microprocessor cycles per instruction.

In computing, a vector processor or array processor is a central processing unit (CPU) that implements an instruction set containing instructions that operate on one-dimensional arrays of data called vectors, compared to scalar processors, whose instructions operate on single data items.

A Translation lookaside buffer (TLB) is a memory cache that is used to reduce the time taken to access a user memory location.

In computing, a programmable interrupt controller (PIC) is a device that is used to combine several sources of interrupt onto one or more CPU lines, while allowing priority levels to be assigned to its interrupt outputs.

Simultaneous multithreading (SMT) is a technique for improving the overall efficiency of superscalar CPUs with hardware multithreading.

A multi-core processor is a single computing component with two or more independent actual processing units (called "cores"), which are units that read and execute program instructions.

In computing, x86 virtualization refers to hardware virtualization for the x86 architecture.

In computer architecture, a branch predictor is a digital circuit that tries to guess which way a branch (e.g. an if-then-else structure) will go before this is known for sure.

Bit slicing is a technique for constructing a processor from modules of smaller bit width.

Central processing unit power dissipation or CPU power dissipation is the process in which central processing units (CPUs) consume electrical energy, and dissipate this energy both by the action of the switching devices contained in the CPU (such as transistors or vacuum tubes) and by the energy lost in the form of heat due to the impedance of the electronic circuits.