Book Image

Modern Computer Architecture and Organization

By : Jim Ledin
Book Image

Modern Computer Architecture and Organization

By: Jim Ledin

Overview of this book

Are you a software developer, systems designer, or computer architecture student looking for a methodical introduction to digital device architectures but overwhelmed by their complexity? This book will help you to learn how modern computer systems work, from the lowest level of transistor switching to the macro view of collaborating multiprocessor servers. You'll gain unique insights into the internal behavior of processors that execute the code developed in high-level languages and enable you to design more efficient and scalable software systems. The book will teach you the fundamentals of computer systems including transistors, logic gates, sequential logic, and instruction operations. You will learn details of modern processor architectures and instruction sets including x86, x64, ARM, and RISC-V. You will see how to implement a RISC-V processor in a low-cost FPGA board and how to write a quantum computing program and run it on an actual quantum computer. By the end of this book, you will have a thorough understanding of modern processor and computer architectures and the future directions these architectures are likely to take.
Table of Contents (20 chapters)
1
Section 1: Fundamentals of Computer Architecture
8
Section 2: Processor Architectures and Instruction Sets
14
Section 3: Applications of Computer Architecture

Smartphone architecture

At the architectural level, there are three key features a smartphone must provide to gain wide acceptance: small size (except for the display), long battery life, and very high processing performance upon demand. Obviously, the requirements for long battery life and high processing power are in conflict and must be balanced to achieve an optimal design.

The requirement for small size is generally approached by starting with a screen size (in terms of height and width) large enough to render high-quality video and function as a user-input device (especially as a keyboard), yet small enough to easily be carried in a pocket or purse. To keep the overall device size small in terms of total volume, we need to make it as thin as possible.

In the quest for thinness, the mechanical design must provide sufficient structural strength to support the screen and resist damage from routine handling, drops on the floor, and other physical assaults, while simultaneously...