CPU: Here’s what to know about the heart and mind of computer-based devices – Interesting Engineering
The CPU regulates information flow within computer systems, much like the heart that beats in human bodies. The computer, phone, tablet, or other gadget depends on that flow for its operation.
Let’s dive into the computer’s heart: the CPU.
What is a CPU?
Clean room technician with wafer
The Central Processing Unit is the principal part of any digital computer system. There are three main parts to a CPU; there is the main memory, or register, the control unit, and the arithmetic unit. These component parts are made up of processing units called cores, and when taken together, these cores form an Integrated Circuit Chip called the Microprocessor.
When being manufactured, the cores are made of silicon, plastic, and copper and are referred to as wafers. This happens in the sterile environment known as a “clean” room at the facilities where they are made. Workers must don specialized clothing that covers their entire body and resembles space suits or hazmat suits.
In its most basic form, those cores are a series of tiny simple switches that are either on or off. This is designated as 1 = on and 0 = off. They are arranged in a series of 8 switches per byte, and each switch is considered a bit.
For example, the sequence 01000001 represents the letter A, and so on. This is commonly referred to as Machine Language, because that is the only way a computer can make computations, through electro-mechanical 1 and 0’s.
The CPU uses a particular type of memory, called cache (pronounced cash). This is an extra bit of memory that can be retrieved at high speed, for performing tasks such as graphic transfer and data that needs to be accessed for specific purposes such as processor routines not otherwise used by the computer. This can include high-level mathematics and calculations. The cache is usually very small, generally between 64k and 256k.
There are also bus connections, such as a wire or optical fiber, etc., used to connect different computer components and transfer data between them. In the CPU, the bus is usually located on the motherboard (the board all the internal components are placed) and holds the pins on the bottom of the CPU to the motherboard, connecting the CPU to the rest of the computer components.