BLM5207

Computer Organization
Prof. Dr. Nizamettin AYDIN
[email protected]
http://www3.yildiz.edu.tr/~naydin

Digital Logic

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 Introduction
• In the latter part of the nineteenth century, George
Boole incensed philosophers and mathematicians
alike when he suggested that logical thought could
be represented through mathematical equations.
– How dare anyone suggest that human thought could be
encapsulated and manipulated like an algebraic
formula?
• Computers, as we know them today, are
implementations of Boole’s Laws of Thought.
– John Atanasoff and Claude Shannon were among the
first to see this connection
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 Introduction
• In the middle of the twentieth century, computers
were commonly known as thinking machines and
electronic brains.
– Many people were fearful of them.
• Nowadays, we rarely ponder the relationship
between electronic digital computers and human
logic.
• Computers are accepted as part of our lives.
– Many people, however, are still fearful of them.
• In this lecture, you will learn the simplicity that
constitutes the essence of the machine. 3
 Boolean Algebra
• Boolean algebra is a mathematical system for the
manipulation of variables that can have one of
two values.
– In formal logic, these values are true and false.
– In digital systems, these values are on and off, 1 and
0, or high and low.
• Boolean expressions are created by performing
operations on Boolean variables.
– Common Boolean operators include AND, OR, and
NOT.

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 Boolean Algebra
• A Boolean operator can be
completely described using a truth
table.
– The truth table for the Boolean
operators AND, OR, and NOT are
shown at the right.
• The AND operator is also known as a
Boolean product.
• The OR operator is the Boolean sum.
• The NOT operation is most often
designated by an overbar.
– It is sometimes indicated by a prime mark ( ′′ )
or an “elbow” ().
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 Boolean Algebra
• A Boolean function has:
– At least one Boolean variable,
– At least one Boolean operator, and
– At least one input from the set {0,1}.
• It produces an output that is also a member of the
set {0,1}.

• Now you know why the binary numbering system is so

handy in digital systems.

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 Boolean Algebra
• The truth table for the Boolean function:

– To make evaluation of
the Boolean function
easier, the truth table
contains extra (shaded)
columns to hold
evaluations of subparts
of the function.

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 Boolean Algebra
• As with common arithmetic, Boolean
operations have rules of precedence.

– The NOT operator has

highest priority,
followed by AND and
then OR.
– This is how we chose
the (shaded) function
subparts in our table.

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 Boolean Algebra
• Digital computers contain circuits that implement
Boolean functions.
• The simpler that we can make a Boolean
function, the smaller the circuit that will result.
– Simpler circuits are cheaper to build, consume less
power, and run faster than complex circuits.
• With this in mind, we always want to reduce our
Boolean functions to their simplest form.
• There are a number of Boolean identities that
help us to do this.
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 Boolean Algebra
• Most Boolean identities have an AND (product)
form as well as an OR (sum) form.
• First group is rather intuitive:

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 Boolean Algebra
• Second group of Boolean identities:

• Thirdgroup of Boolean identities:

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 Boolean Algebra
• We can use Boolean identities to simplify the
function as
follows:

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 Boolean Algebra
• Sometimes it is more economical to build a
circuit using the complement of a function (and
complementing its result) than it is to implement
the function directly.
• DeMorgan’s law provides an easy way of finding
the complement of a Boolean function.
• Recall DeMorgan’s law states:

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 Boolean Algebra
• DeMorgan’s law can be extended to any number
of variables.
• Replace each variable by its complement and
change all ANDs to ORs and all ORs to ANDs.
• Thus, we find the complement of:

as:

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 Boolean Algebra
• Through our exercises in simplifying Boolean
expressions, we see that there are numerous ways
of stating the same Boolean expression.
– These synonymous forms are logically equivalent.
– Logically equivalent expressions have identical truth
tables.

• In order to eliminate as much confusion as

possible, designers express Boolean functions in
standardized or canonical form.
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 Boolean Algebra
• There are two canonical forms for Boolean
expressions:
– sum-of-products
– product-of-sums
• Recall the Boolean product is the AND operation and the
Boolean sum is the OR operation.
• In the sum-of-products form, ANDed variables are
ORed together.
– For example:
• In the product-of-sums form, ORed variables are
ANDed together:
– For example: 16
 Boolean Algebra
• It is easy to convert a function to sum-of-
products form using its truth table.
– We are interested in the
values of the variables that
make the function true (=1).
– Using the truth table, we list
the values of the variables
that result in a true function
value.
– Each group of variables is
then ORed together.

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 Boolean Algebra
• The sum-of-products form for our function is:

– We note that this function is

not in simplest terms.
– Our aim is only to rewrite
our function in canonical
sum-of-products form.

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 Logic Gates
• We have looked at Boolean functions in abstract
terms.
• In this section, we see that Boolean functions are
implemented in digital computer circuits called
gates.
• A gate is an electronic device that produces a
result based on two or more input values.
– In reality, gates consist of one to six transistors, but
digital designers think of them as a single unit.
– Integrated circuits contain collections of gates suited
to a particular purpose.
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 Logic Gates
• The three simplest gates are the AND, OR, and
NOT gates.

• They correspond directly to their respective Boolean

operations, as you can see by their truth tables.
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 Logic Gates
• Another very useful gate is the exclusive OR
(XOR) gate.
– The output of the XOR operation is true only when
the values of the inputs differ.

– Note the special symbol  for the XOR operation.

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 Logic Gates
• NAND and NOR are two very important gates.

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 Logic Gates
• NAND and NOR
are known as
universal gates
because they are
inexpensive to
manufacture, and
any Boolean
function can be
constructed using
only NAND or only
NOR gates.
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 Logic Gates
• Gates can have multiple inputs and more than
one output.
• A second output can be provided for the
complement of the operation.

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 Digital Components
• The main thing to remember is that combinations
of gates implement Boolean functions.
• The circuit below implements the Boolean
function:

– We simplify our Boolean expressions so that we can

create simpler circuits.
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 Combinational Circuits
• We have designed a circuit that implements the
Boolean function:

• This circuit is an example of a combinational

logic circuit.

• Combinational logic circuits produce a specified

output (almost) at the instant when input values
are applied.
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 Combinational Circuits
• Combinational logic circuits give us many useful
devices.
• One of the simplest
is the half adder,
which finds the sum
of two bits.

• We can gain some insight as to the construction

of a half adder by looking at its truth table
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 Combinational Circuits
• As we see, the sum can be found using the XOR
operation and the carry using the AND operation.

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 Combinational Circuits
• We can change our half adder into to a full adder
by including gates for processing the carry bit.
• The truth table for a full adder and its
implementation:

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 Combinational Circuits
• Just as we combined half adders to make a full
adder, full adders can be connected in series.
• The carry bit ripples from one adder to the next;
hence, this configuration is called a ripple-carry
adder.

– Today’s systems employ more efficient adders.

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 Combinational Circuits
• Decoders are another important type of
combinational circuit.
– Among other things, they are useful in selecting a
memory location according a binary value placed on
the address lines of a memory bus.

• Address decoders with n inputs can select any of

2n locations. 31
 Combinational Circuits
• This is what a 2-to-4 decoder looks like on the
inside.

– If x = 0 and y = 1, which output line is enabled?

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 Combinational Circuits
• A multiplexer does just the opposite of a decoder.
• It selects a single output from several inputs.
– The particular input
chosen for output is
determined by the value
of the multiplexer’s
control lines.
– To be able to select
among n inputs, log2n
control lines are
needed.
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 Combinational Circuits
• This is what a 4-to-1 multiplexer looks like on
the inside.

– If S0 = 1 and S1 = 0, which input is transferred to the

output?
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 Sequential Circuits
• Combinational logic circuits are perfect for
situations when we require the immediate
application of a Boolean function to a set of
inputs.
• There are other times, however, when we need a
circuit to change its value with consideration to
its current state as well as its inputs.
– These circuits have to remember their current state.
• Sequential logic circuits provide this
functionality for us.
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 Sequential Circuits
• As the name implies, sequential logic circuits
require a means by which events can be
sequenced.
• State changes are controlled by clocks.
– A clock is a special circuit that sends electrical pulses
through a circuit.
• Clocks produce electrical waveforms such as the
one shown below.

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 Sequential Circuits
• State changes occur in sequential circuits only
when the clock ticks.
• Circuits can change state on the rising edge,
falling edge, or when the clock pulse reaches its
highest voltage.

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 Sequential Circuits
• Circuits that change state on the rising edge, or
falling edge of the clock pulse are called edge-
triggered.
• Level-triggered circuits change state when the
clock voltage reaches its highest or lowest level.

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 Sequential Circuits
• To retain their state values, sequential circuits
rely on feedback.
• Feedback in digital circuits occurs when an
output is looped back to the input.
• A simple example of this concept is shown
below.

– If Q is 0 it will always be 0, if it is 1, it will always be

1. Why?
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 Sequential Circuits
• You can see how feedback works by examining
the most basic sequential logic components, the
SR flip-flop.
– The SR stands for set/reset.
• The internals of an SR flip-flop are shown below,
along with its block diagram.

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 Sequential Circuits
• The behavior of an SR flip-flop is described by a
characteristic table.

– Q(t) means the value of the output at time t.

– Q(t+1) is the value of Q after the next clock pulse.

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 Sequential Circuits
• The SR flip-flop actually has three inputs:
– S, R, and its current output, Q.
• Thus, we can
construct a truth
table for this circuit,
as shown at the left.
• Notice the two
undefined values.
– When both S and R
are 1, the SR flip-flop
is unstable.
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 Sequential Circuits
• If we can be sure that the inputs to an SR flip-
flop will never both be 1, we will never have an
unstable circuit. This may not always be the case.
• The SR flip-flop can be modified to provide a
stable state when both inputs are 1.
– This modified flip-flop is
called a JK flip-flop, shown
at the left.
• The JK is in honor of Jack
Kilby.

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 Sequential Circuits
• At the left, we see how an SR flip-flop can be
modified to create a JK flip-flop.
• The characteristic table indicates that the flip-
flop is stable for all inputs.

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 Sequential Circuits
• Another modification of the SR flip-flop is the D
flip-flop, shown below with its characteristic
table.
– You will notice that the output of the flip-flop
remains the same during subsequent clock pulses.
– The output changes only when the value of D
changes.

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 Sequential Circuits
• The D flip-flop is the fundamental circuit of
computer memory.
– D flip-flops are usually illustrated using the block
diagram shown below.
• The next slide shows how these circuits are
combined to create a register.

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 Sequential Circuits
• This illustration shows
a 4-bit register
consisting of D flip-
flops.
• You will usually see its
block diagram (below)
instead.

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 Sequential Circuits
• A binary counter is
another example of a
sequential circuit.
• The low-order bit is
complemented at each
clock pulse.
– Whenever it changes
from 0 to 1, the next bit
is complemented, and
so on through the other
flip-flops.
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 Designing Circuits
• We have seen digital circuits from two points of
view:
– Digital analysis
• explores the relationship between a circuits inputs and its
outputs.
– Digital synthesis
• creates logic diagrams using the values specified in a truth table.
• Digital systems designers must also be mindful of the
physical behaviors of circuits to include minute
propagation delays that occur between the time when
a circuit’s inputs are energized and when the output is
accurate and stable.
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 Designing Circuits
• Digital designers rely on specialized software to
create efficient circuits.
– Thus, software is an enabler for the construction of
better hardware.
• Of course, software is in reality a collection of
algorithms that could just as well be
implemented in hardware.
– Recall the Principle of Equivalence of Hardware and
Software.

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 Designing Circuits
• When we need to implement a simple,
specialized algorithm and its execution speed
must be as fast as possible, a hardware solution is
often preferred.
• This is the idea behind embedded systems, which
are small special-purpose computers that we find
in many everyday things.
• Embedded systems require special programming
that demands an understanding of the operation
of digital circuits, the basics of which you have
learned in this chapter.
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 Conclusion
• Computers are implementations of Boolean
logic.
• Boolean functions are completely described by
truth tables.
• Logic gates are small circuits that implement
Boolean operators.
• The basic gates are AND, OR, and NOT.
• The XOR gate is very useful in parity checkers
and adders.
• The “universal gates” are NOR, and NAND.
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 Conclusion
• Computer circuits consist of combinational logic
circuits and sequential logic circuits.
• Combinational circuits produce outputs (almost)
immediately when their inputs change.
• Sequential circuits require clocks to control their
changes of state.
• The basic sequential circuit unit is the flip-flop:
– The behaviors of the SR, JK, and D flip-flops are the
most important to know.

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