Microprocessors and Interfacing

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION TO MICROPROCESSORS & COMPUTERS

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Outline of the chapter

❑ Why do you have to learn about processors?

❑ Introduction to Computers

❑ History of Microprocessors

❑ Evolution of the Intel processors

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Introduction to microprocessors

Pocket calculators

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Introduction to microprocessors

Pocket calculators

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Introduction to microprocessors

Cell phones

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Introduction to microprocessors
1. Battery compartment
2. Flash capacitor
3. Flash lamp
4. LED
5. Lens
6. Focusing mechanism
7. CCD
8. USB connector
9. SD (secure digital) card slot
10. Processor chip
11. Wrist connector
12. Top case

Digital camera 6
Introduction to microprocessors

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Introduction to microprocessors

• The microprocessor is one of the most important components of

• It acts as the brain of the computer.

• As technology has progressed, microprocessor have become

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Introduction to Computers
• Some important terminology
• One of the most important features of a computer is how much memory it has.
• The amount of memory a computer has is important because it determines how much data the
computer can store and process at one time.
• Terms used to describe amounts of memory are
• Bit
• Nibble (4bit)
• Byte (8bit) • Two types of memory used in
• Word (2bytes)
• Kilobyte (210 bytes = 1,024 bytes) microcomputers are RAM and
• Megabyte (220 bytes = 1,048,576) ROM.
• Gigabyte (230 bytes, just over one billion bytes)
• Terabyte (240 bytes, just over one trillion bytes)
• Petabyte (250 bytes, just over one quadrillion bytes)
• Exabyte (260 bytes, just over one quintillion bytes)
• Zettabyte (270 bytes, just over one Sextillion bytes)
• Yottabyte (280 bytes, just over one Septillion bytes)
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 Introduction to Computers
Internal organization of computers
• The internal working of every computer
can be broken down into three parts: ✓ In every computer there are three
types of buses: address bus, data
❑ CPU (central processing unit)
bus, and control bus.
❑ Memory, and
❑ I/O (input/output) devices.
✓ The address bus and data
bus determine the capability
of a given CPU.

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 Introduction to Computers
The Data Bus
• Data buses are bidirectional, since the CPU must use them either to
receive or to send data.
• The processing power of a computer is related to the size of its buses
• An 8-bit bus can send out 1 byte a time, but a 16-bit bus can send out 2
bytes at a time, which is twice as fast.

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Introduction to Computers
Address bus
• The number of address lines in a CPU determines the total number of memory
locations it can access.

• The number of addressable locations is always equal to 2x, where x is the

• In a byte-addressable system, each memory location stores exactly 1 byte of

• The address bus is a unidirectional bus, which means that the CPU uses the
address bus only to send out addresses
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 Introduction to Computers
CPU and its relation to RAM and ROM
• For the CPU to process data, it must be stored in either RAM or ROM
• ROM (Read-Only Memory) contains fixed and permanent data, typically
used for system firmware and essential instructions.
• RAM (Random Access Memory) stores temporary and changeable data,
allowing fast access to information needed for active processes.
• The CPU first retrieves data from RAM (or ROM). If the required data is not
found there, it is fetched from a mass storage device (e.g., hard disk or
SSD) and then loaded into RAM.
• RAM and ROM are often referred to as primary memory, while storage
devices like hard disks and SSDs are classified as secondary memory.
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 Introduction to Computers
Inside CPUs
• A program stored in memory provides instructions to the CPU to perform an action.
• The CPU is responsible for fetching these instructions from memory, decoding,
and executing them.
• To perform these actions all CPUs are equipped with resources such as the
following:
✓ Registers - Temporarily store data and instructions for quick access
✓ ALU - Performs arithmetic operations (ADD, SUB, DIV, etc.) and logic functions (AND,
OR, etc.).
✓ Program counter - used to point to the address of the next instruction to be executed
✓ Instruction decoder - used to interpret the instruction fetched into the CPU
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 Introduction to Computers
CPU Operations and Instruction Execution (example)
Task: Simulate the execution of a simple instruction sequence in an imaginary CPU
with registers A, B, C, and D, an 8-bit data bus, and a 16-bit address bus, where
values are moved into register A and added sequentially using predefined opcodes.
▪ The CPU's task is to:
✓ Store the hexadecimal value 21H in register A.
✓Add the values 42H and 12H to register A.
▪ In this imaginary instruction set:
✓The opcode for moving a value to register A is 1011 0000 (B0H).
✓The opcode for adding a value to register A is 0000 0100 (04H).
▪ The following steps outline the required operations and their corresponding machine
code.

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 Introduction to Computers
CPU Operations and Instruction Execution
▪ If the program to perform the actions listed above is stored in memory locations
starting at 1400H, the following would represent the contents for each memory
address location:

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Introduction to Computers
❑ How a CPU can execute and fetch instructions in parallel:
✓ The CPU fetches the first instruction from memory.
✓ The CPU decodes the instruction.
✓ The CPU executes the instruction.
✓ The CPU fetches the second instruction from memory.
✓ The CPU decodes the second instruction.
✓ The CPU executes the second instruction.
❑ This process continues until all of the instructions in the program
have been executed.
 History of Microprocessors
• In the 1940s, CPUs were designed using vacuum tubes. For example, the
first large-scale digital computer, ENIAC, consumed 130,000 watts of power
and occupied 1500 square feet.
• The invention of transistors changed all of that.
• In the 1950s, transistors replaced vacuum tubes in the design of computers.
• Then in 1959, the first IC (integrated circuit) was invented.
• It was not until the 1970s that the entire CPU was put on a single IC chip.
• The first working CPU on a chip was invented by Intel in 1971. This CPU was
called a microprocessor.
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 History of Microprocessors
• The first microprocessor, the Intel 4004, had a 4-bit data bus and was made of
2300 transistors. It was designed primarily for the hand-held calculator but soon
came to be used in applications such as traffic-light controllers.
• The advances in IC fabrication made during the 1970s made it possible to
design microprocessors with an 8-bit data bus and a 16-bit address bus.
• By the late 1970s, the Intel 8080/85 was one of the most widely used
microprocessors, appearing in everything from microwave ovens to homemade
computers.
• Many other companies joined in the race for faster and better microprocessors.
Notable among them was Motorola with its 6800 and 68000 microprocessors.
• Apple's Macintosh computers used the 68000 series microprocessors.
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History of Microprocessors
CISC Vs RISC
• Until the early 1980s, all CPUs, whether single-chip or whole-
board, followed the CISC (complex instruction set computer)
design philosophy.
• CISC refers to CPUs with hundreds of instructions designed for
every possible situation.
• Drawbacks of CISC- consumes millions of transistors, makes
the design very complicated, time-consuming, and expensive.
• In the early 1980s, a new CPU design philosophy called RISC
(reduced instruction set computer) was developed.
• The proponents of RISC argued that no one was using all the
instructions etched into the brain of CISC-type CPUs. 20
 Evolution of the Intel processors
The Start of the microprocessor (Intel 4004)
• The 1st microprocessor.
• 4-bit microprocessor
• The instruction set contained only 45 instructions
• The instruction execution rate was 50 KIPs
• 4-bit microprocessor still survives in low-end applications such as
microwave ovens and small control systems.
• Most calculators are still based on 4-bit microprocessors that process
4-bit BCD (binary-coded decimal) codes.

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Evolution of the Intel processors
Intel 8008, 8080 Microprocessors
• Intel 8008:
• 8-bit microprocessor,
• 14-bit address bus , 16KB memory,
• 48 instructions.
• Intel 8080:
• 8-bit microprocessor,
• 16-bit address bus, 64 KB memory
• Interfacing was much easier

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 Evolution of the Intel processors
Intel 8085 Microprocessor
• In 1977, Intel Corporation introduced the last 8-bit microprocessor.
• Execution rate 769,230 per second.
• 246 instructions
• The main advantages of the 8085 were its internal clock generator,
internal system controller, and higher clock frequency.
• This higher level of component integration reduced the 8085's cost
and increased its usefulness.

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 Evolution of the Intel processors
Evolution from 8080/8085 to 8086
• In 1978, Intel Corporation introduced a 16-bit microprocessor called the 8086.
• This processor was a major improvement over the previous generation
8080/8085 series Intel microprocessors in several ways.
✓ First, the 8086's capacity of 1MB of memory exceeded the 8080/8085’s
capability of handling a maximum of 64K bytes of memory.
✓ Second, the 8086 is a 16-bit microprocessor.
✓ Third, the 8086 was a pipelined processor, as opposed to the no
pipelined 8080/8085.
• In a system with pipelining, the data and address buses are busy transferring
data while the CPU is processing information, thereby increasing the
effective processing power of the microprocessor.
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 Evolution of the Intel processors
Evolution from 8086 to 8088
• The introduction of the 8086 microprocessor was a significant advancement
over its predecessors.
• However, adoption faced resistance because most peripherals at the time
were designed for 8-bit microprocessors, while the 8086 featured a 16-bit
external data bus.
• In addition, a printed circuit board with a 16-bit data bus was much more
expensive.
• Therefore, Intel came out with the 8088 version. It is identical to the 8086 as
far as programming is concerned, but externally it has an 8-bit data bus
instead of a 16-bit bus.
• It has the same memory capacity, 1 megabyte
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Evolution of the Intel processors
• Other microprocessors: the 80286, 80386, and 80486
• 80286:
• 4 MIPs, 16MB memory
• Almost identical to 8086.
• 80386:
• First 32-bit microprocessor.
• 32-bit data and 32-bit memory address.
• 4 GB memory
• It included hardware circuitry for memory management.
• 80486:
• 8K byte cache memory
• Half cycle instruction execution.
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End of chapter
one!
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