Introduction to Microprocessor
Prepared By,
Saima Siddique Tashfia
Lecturer
Dept. of CSE, UITS
Microprocessor
A Microprocessor is an important part of a computer architecture without which
you will not be able to perform anything on your computer. It is a programmable
device that takes in input performs some arithmetic and logical operations over it
and produces the desired output. In simple words, a Microprocessor is a digital
device on a chip that can fetch instructions from memory, decode and execute
them, and give results.
History of Microprocessor
• The world’s first microprocessor, the Intel 4004, was a 4-bit microprocessor–a
programmable controller on a chip.
• The 4004 instruction set contained only 45 instructions.
• It was fabricated with the then-current state-of-the-art P-channel MOSFET
technology that only allowed it to execute instructions at the slow rate of 50 KIPs
(kilo-instructions per second).
• This was slow when compared to the 100,000 instructions executed per second
by the 30-ton ENIAC computer in 1946. The main difference was that the 4004
weighed much less than an ounce.
• The main problems with this early microprocessor were its speed, word width,
and memory size.
The Modern Microprocessor
• In 1978, Intel released the 8086 microprocessor; a year or so later, it released the 8088. Both
devices are 16-bit microprocessors, which execute instructions in as little as 400 ns (2.5 MIPs, or
2.5 million instructions per second).
• In addition, the 8086 and 8088 addressed 1M byte of memory, which was 16 times more
memory than the 8085. (A 1M-byte memory contains 1024K byte-sized memory locations or
1,048,576 bytes.) This higher execution speed and larger memory size allowed the 8086 and
8088 to replace smaller minicomputers in many applications.
• One other feature found in the 8086/8088 was a small 4- or 6-byte instruction cache or queue
that prefetched a few instructions before they were executed.
• The increased memory size and additional instructions in the 8086 and 8088 have led to many
sophisticated applications for microprocessors.
Microprocessor Components
Some key components of the
microprocessor are as follows −
• CPU
• Bus
• Memory
Basic Microprocessor Terms
• Instructions Per Cycle – A way to measure the CPU’s instruction speed in a single
clock.
• Instruction Set – These are the commands that a processor understands to work
between hardware and software.
• Bus – Set of conductors for data transmission, information control, and tasks
addressed in a microprocessor. They are of three types – data bus, address bus,
and control bus.
• Word Length – Refers to the number of bits processed at a time.
• Clock Speed / Clock Rate – The ability of microprocessors to perform tasks in a
second.
• Bandwidth – Refers to the total bits in a single instruction.
• Data Types – Data type microprocessor supports like binary, ASCII, etc.
• SIMD – Single Instruction Multiple Data
• PGA – Pin Grid Array
• FPU – Floating Point Unit
• ALU – Arithmetic and Logic Unit
• MMX – MultiMedia extensions
• MMU – Memory Management Unit
What is Microcontroller?
• A microcontroller (MCU) is a small computer on a single integrated circuit that is
designed to control specific tasks within electronic systems. It combines the
functions of a central processing unit (CPU), memory, and input/output
interfaces, all on a single chip. Microcontrollers are widely used in embedded
systems, such as home appliances, automotive systems, medical devices, and
industrial control systems. They are also used in consumer electronics products,
such as gaming systems, digital cameras, and audio players.
Difference between Microprocessor
and Microcontroller
Microcontroller Microprocessor
A microcontroller is a specialized form of a The microprocessor is designed to be general-
microprocessor purpose.
It is cost-effective. It is a silicon chip
It is self-sufficient. It is a dependent unit
The microcontroller is used to perform a The Microprocessor is
particular tasks. used to perform a certain task.
Its power consumption is low. Its power consumption is high.
It contains CPU, RAM, ROM, It requires a combination of timers, controllers
Registers, Timer and input/output ports. memory chips.
Its size is smaller. Its size is larger.
It is a general purpose device which is called a
It is a chip which is called single chip computer.
CPU.
It have advantages of versatility such that
Microcontroller have no advantage of designing designer can decide the amount of RAM, ROM,
RAM, ROM, I/O port. I/O port as needed.
Its microcontroller processing power is lower
Its processing power is higher.
than the microprocessor.
It uses Harvard Architecture. It uses Von Neumann Architecture.
It’s system cost is low. It’s system cost is high.
Each instruction needs an internal operation. Each instruction needs an external operation.
For Example- Television. For Example- Personal Computers.
Buses
• A bus is a common group of wires that interconnect components in a
computer system. The buses that interconnect the sections of a computer
system transfer address, data, and control information between the
microprocessor and its memory and I/O systems.
• In the microprocessor-based computer system, three buses exist for this
transfer of information: address, data, and control.
• The address bus requests a memory location from the memory or an I/O
location from the I/O devices.
• If I/O is addressed, the address bus contains a 16-bit I/O address from 0000H
through FFFFH. The 16-bit I/O address, or port number, selects one of 64K
different I/O devices.
• If memory is addressed, the address bus contains a memory address, which
varies in width with the different versions of the microprocessor.
• The data bus transfers information between the microprocessor and its memory
and I/O address space. Data transfers vary in size, from 8 bits wide to 64 bits wide
in various members of
• the Intel microprocessor family. For example, the 8088 has an 8-bit data bus that
transfers 8 bits of data at a time.
• The 8086, 80286, 80386SL, 80386SX, and 80386EX transfer 16 bits of data
through their data buses; the 80386DX, 80486SX, and 80486DX transfer 32 bits of
data; and the
• Pentium through Core2 microprocessors transfer 64 bits of data.
Task
• Note on evaluation of Microprocessor
• Features of Microprocessor
Recommended Readings:
The Intel Microprocessors by Barry B. Brey (8th edition)
Thank You
