Facts About the Microprocessor

A modern microprocessor handles basic logic and storage tasks.

The microprocessor, also known as a CPU (central processing unit), is a small semiconductor chip on a piece of silicon that handles basic logic and storage tasks for a computer. The microprocessor is the heart of any computer system, and is responsible for personal computing as we know and understand it today.

History of Microprocessor

The microprocessor originated in 1969 when Busicom, a Japanese company, hired Intel to produce a chipset for its new calculator product. Ted Hoff, the head engineer of the project, believed that the proposed 7 chip set could be simplified to 4, with one handling all the processing of data.

Together, Busicom and Intel developed a series of new technologies and techniques to produce the world's first central processing unit--a multi-function chip to handle all data processing. This was called the Intel 4004.

How Does Microprocessor Work?

A microprocessor is composed of a number of very simple sections that each handle a task. The address bus states an address in memory, the data bus reads or writes to the memory, the read and/or write line tell the memory to get the location. There is an internal clock based off some number of hertz to calculate time and use counters to track timing on different programs. There is also a reset line to reset programs.

RAM

Computers also have random access memory (RAM). This is where microprocessors can put instructions as long as they need to be used, so that they don't get overwritten with new instructions before whatever job they have to do finishes. When a computer runs out of RAM, it slows down, because there is no more place to store instructions at that moment and the CPU does not overwrite previous instructions without permission from programs.

Writeback

The last major function of the microprocessor is to handle writeback. Whenever the microprocessor makes an instruction, it makes a copy of that instruction in the computer's main hard drive. This allows not only the system to have a backup of all instructions made, but it also allows the user to have a place to check when something deep in the system internals has gone wrong and want to figure out what it is.

Moore's Law

Moore's Law is a popular theory originally developed by the co-founder of Intel, Gordon Moore. Moore looked at the rate with which microprocessors were advancing and noted that the speed seemed to double every 18 months. He expanded this into a theory, stating that the general speed of computers would double every 18 months until such time as it became a physical impossibility.

For nearly the last 40 years, this statement has held true, often making past statements--such as Bill Gates proposition no one would ever need more than 20 megabytes of hard drive space--seem silly in the present day.

References

• Plymouth State University: History of the Microprocessor
• George State University: Hyperphysics: The Microprocessor