Registers, ALU, control unit and buses execute instructions.
A CPU has registers, ALU, control unit and buses. The fetch-decode-execute cycle reads instructions from memory, decodes and executes them. Components: program counter, instruction register, stack pointer, flags. Performance depends on clock, IPC and memory.
One instruction cycle: PC→address bus→fetch→decode→ALU→write back.
Understanding the CPU's internal parts explains how code runs and why performance behaves as it does.
Registers, ALU, control unit and buses execute instructions.
Understanding the CPU's internal parts explains how code runs and why performance behaves as it does.
It fetches instructions, decodes them and sends control signals to the ALU, registers and memory to execute each step.
A set of wires shared between components for addresses, data and control, and the bus width sets how much data can move at once.
Typical applications include explaining why a loop slows down when data does not fit in registers, reading an assembly listing from a compiler and understanding the stack and call instructions during debugging.
Study "Microprocessor vs microcontroller" first (topic 55 of 104 in Electronics & Embedded). It covers the groundwork this topic builds on.
Datapath. Microcode vs hardwired control. Endianness.
One instruction cycle: PC→address bus→fetch→decode→ALU→write back.
The next topic is "Instruction set architectures", which builds directly on this one.
It is classed as Intermediate in Electronics & Embedded (topic 56 of 104). It is an intermediate topic. Work through the beginner topics in Electronics & Embedded first.
Want to practise? Open the interactive course for quick checks, quizzes, simulations and progress tracking.