Boolean Algebra and

Logic Gates

CSC 1074
Digital Logic Design
 Presentation Outline
 Boolean Algebra

 Boolean Functions and Truth Tables

 DeMorgan's Theorem

 Algebraic manipulation and expression simplification

 Logic gates and logic diagrams

 Minterms and Maxterms

 Sum-Of-Products and Product-Of-Sums

 Boolean Algebra
 Introduced by George Boole in 1854
 Two-valued Boolean algebra is also called switching algebra
 A set of two values: B = {0, 1}
 Three basic operations: AND, OR, and NOT
 The AND operator is denoted by a dot (·)
 or is read: AND

 The OR operator is denoted by a plus (+)

 is read: OR

 The NOT operator is denoted by (') or an overbar (¯).

 or is the complement of
 Postulates of Boolean Algebra
1. Closure: the result of any Boolean operation is in B = {0, 1}

2. Identity element with respect to + is 0:

Identity element with respect to · is 1:

3. Commutative with respect to +:

Commutative with respect to ·:

4. · is distributive over +:

+ is distributive over ·:

5. For every in B, there exists in B (called complement of ) such

that: and
 AND, OR, and NOT Operators
 The following tables define , , and
 is the AND operator
 is the OR operator
 is the NOT operator

x y x·y x y x+y x x'

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
0 1 0 0 1 1 1 0
1 0 0 1 0 1
1 1 1 1 1 1
 Boolean Functions
 Boolean functions are described by expressions that consist of:
 Boolean variables, such as: , , etc.
 Boolean constants: 0 and 1
 Boolean operators: AND (·), OR (+), NOT (')
 Parentheses, which can be nested
 Example:
 The dot operator is implicit and need not be written
 Operator precedence: to avoid ambiguity in expressions
 Expressions within parentheses should be evaluated first
 The NOT (') operator should be evaluated second
 The AND (·) operator should be evaluated third
 The OR (+) operator should be evaluated last
 Truth Table
 A truth table can represent a Boolean function
 List all possible combinations of 0's and 1's assigned to variables
 If n variables then 2n rows
 Example: Truth table for
f = xy'+
x y z y' xy' x' x'z
x'z
0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0
0 0 1 1 0 1 1 1
0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0
0 1 1 0 0 1 1 1
1 0 0 1 1 0 0 1
1 0 1 1 1 0 0 1
1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
 DeMorgan's Theorem
Can be verified
Using a Truth Table

x y x' y' x+y (x+y)' x'y' x y (x x'+ y'

y)'
0 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 1
0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 1
1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 1
1 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0
Identical Identical

 Generalized DeMorgan's Theorem:

 Complementing Boolean Functions
 What is the complement of ?

 Use DeMorgan's Theorem:

 Complement each variable and constant

 Interchange AND and OR operators

 So, what is the complement of ?

Answer: )

 Example 2: Complement

 Answer:
Algebraic Manipulation of Expressions
 The objective is to acquire skills in manipulating Boolean
expressions, to transform them into simpler form.

 Example 1: prove (absorption theorem)

 Proof:
Distributive · over +

 Example 2: prove (simplification theorem)

 Proof: Distributive + over ·

 Consensus Theorem
 Prove that: (consensus theorem)
 Proof:

Distributive · over +
Associative commutative +

Distributive · over +
 Summary of Boolean Algebra
Property Dual Property
Identity
Complement
Null
Idempotence
Involution (
Commutative
Associative (
Distributive
Absorption
Simplification
De Morgan (
 Duality Principle
 The dual of a Boolean expression can be obtained by:
 Interchanging AND (·) and OR (+) operators
 Interchanging 0's and 1's

 Example: the dual of is

 The complement operator does not change

 The properties of Boolean algebra appear in dual pairs

 If a property is proven to be true then its dual is also true

Property Dual Property

Identity
Complement
Distributive
 Expression Simplification
 Using Boolean algebra to simplify expressions
 Expression should contain the smallest number of literals
 A literal is a variable that may or may not be complemented
 Example: simplify
 Solution: (15 literals)
(15 literals)
(13 literals)
(7 literals)
(7 literals)
(6 literals)
(5 literals only)
 Importance of Boolean Algebra
 Our objective is to learn how to design digital circuits

 These circuits use signals with two possible values

 Logic 0 is a low voltage signal (around 0 volts)

 Logic 1 is a high voltage signal (e.g. 5 or 3.3 volts)

 The physical value of a signal is the actual voltage it carries,

while its logic value is either 0 (low) or 1 (high)

 Having only two logic values (0 and 1) simplifies the

implementation of the digital circuit
 Next . . .
 Boolean Algebra

 Boolean Functions and Truth Tables

 DeMorgan's Theorem

 Algebraic manipulation and expression simplification

 Logic gates and logic diagrams

 Minterms and Maxterms

 Sum-Of-Products and Product-Of-Sums

 Logic Gates and Symbols
𝑥 𝑥· 𝑦 𝑥 𝑥+ 𝑦 𝑥 𝑥′
𝑦 𝑦
AND gate OR gate NOT gate (inverter)
𝑥
𝑥 𝑦 𝑥′
𝑦
AND: Switches in series OR: Switches in parallel NOT: Switch is normally
logic 0 is open switch logic 0 is open switch closed when x is 0

 In the earliest computers, relays were used as mechanical

switches controlled by electricity (coils)
 Today, tiny transistors are used as electronic switches that
implement the logic gates (CMOS technology)
 Truth Table and Logic Diagram
 Given the following logic function:
 Draw the corresponding truth table and logic diagram

Truth Table Logic Diagram

x y z y'+ z f = x(y'+ 𝑥 ′
𝑓 =𝑥 ( 𝑦 + 𝑧 )
z)
0 0 0 1 0 𝑦
0 0 1 1 0 𝑧
0 1 0 0 0 Truth Table and Logic Diagram
0 1 1 1 0 describe the same function .
1 0 0 1 1 Truth table is unique, but logic
1 0 1 1 1 expression and logic diagram
are not. This gives flexibility in
1 1 0 0 0
implementing logic functions.
1 1 1 1 1
 Combinational Circuit
 A combinational circuit is a block of logic gates having:

inputs:

outputs:
 Each output is a function of the input variables

 Each output is determined from present combination of inputs

 Combination circuit performs operation specified by logic gates

inputs
Combinational outputs



Circuit
 Example of a Simple Combinational
Circuit
𝑥
𝑦 𝑓
𝑧
𝑔

 The above circuit has:

 Three inputs: , , and
 Two outputs: and

 What are the logic expressions of and ?

 Answer:
From Truth Tables to Gate Implementation
 Given the truth table of a Boolean function , how do we
implement the truth table using logic gates?

Truth Table
x y f
z
0 0 0 What is the logic expression of ?
0
0 0 0
What is the gate implementation of ?
1
0 1 1
0 To answer these questions, we need
0 1 1
1 to define Minterms and Maxterms
1 0 0
 Minterms and Maxterms
 Minterms are AND terms with every variable present in either
true or complement form
 Maxterms are OR terms with every variable present in either
true or complement form
Minterms and Maxterms for 2 variables and
x y index Minterm Maxterm
0 0 0
0 1 1
1 0 2
1 1 3

 For n variables, there are 2n Minterms and Maxterms

Minterms and Maxterms for 3 Variables
x y z index Minterm Maxterm
0 0 0 0
0 0 1 1
0 1 0 2
0 1 1 3
1 0 0 4
1 0 1 5
1 1 0 6
1 1 1 7

Maxterm is the complement of Minterm

and
 Purpose of the Index
 Minterms and Maxterms are designated with an index

 The index for the Minterm or Maxterm, expressed as a

binary number, is used to determine whether the variable
is shown in the true or complemented form
 For Minterms:
 ‘1’ means the variable is Not Complemented

 ‘0’ means the variable is Complemented

 For Maxterms:
 ‘0’ means the variable is Not Complemented

 ‘1’ means the variable is Complemented

Sum-Of-Minterms (SOM) Canonical Form
Truth Table
x y z f Minterm
0 0 0 0
Sum of Minterm entries
0 0 1 0 that evaluate to ‘1’
0 1 0 1
Focus on the ‘1’ entries
0 1 1 1
1 0 0 0
𝑓 =𝑚2 +𝑚3 +𝑚 5+𝑚7
1 0 1 1

𝑓 =∑ ( 2 , 3 , 5 ,7 )
1 1 0 0
1 1 1 1

′ ′ ′ ′
𝑓 =𝑥 𝑦 𝑧 +𝑥 𝑦𝑧+𝑥 𝑦 𝑧 +𝑥𝑦𝑧
Examples of Sum-Of-Minterms
Product-Of-Maxterms (POM) Canonical
Form
Truth Table
x y z f Maxterm
0 0 0 0
Product of Maxterm entries
0 0 1 0 that evaluate to ‘0’
0 1 0 1
Focus on the ‘0’ entries
0 1 1 1
1 0 0 0
𝑓 =𝑀 0 · 𝑀 1 · 𝑀 4 · 𝑀 6
1 0 1 1

𝑓 =∏ ( 0 ,1 , 4 , 6 )
1 1 0 0
1 1 1 1

′ ′ ′ ′
𝑓 =(𝑥+𝑦+𝑧 )(𝑥+ 𝑦+𝑧 )(𝑥 + 𝑦+𝑧)(𝑥 + 𝑦 +𝑧)
Examples of Product-Of-Maxterms
Conversions between Canonical Forms
 The same Boolean function can be expressed in two ways:
 Sum-of-Minterms
 Product-of-Maxterms

Truth Table
x y f Minterms Maxterms
z
0 0 1
0 To convert from one canonical
0 0 0 form to another, interchange
1
the symbols  and  and list
0 1 1
0 those numbers missing from
0 1 1 the original form.
1
1 0 0
0
 Function Complement
Truth Table Given a Boolean function
x y z f f'
0 0 0 1 0 Then, the complement of function
0 0 1 0 1
0 1 0 1 0
0 1 1 1 0
1 0 0 0 1
The complement of a function expressed by a
1 0 1 1 0
Sum of Minterms is the Product of Maxterms
1 1 0 0 1
with the same indices. Interchange the symbols
1 1 1 1 0
 and , but keep the same list of indices.
 Summary of Minterms and Maxterms
 There are 2n Minterms and Maxterms for Boolean functions with
n variables, indexed from 0 to 2n – 1
 Minterms correspond to the 1-entries of the function
 Maxterms correspond to the 0-entries of the function
 Any Boolean function can be expressed as a Sum-of-Minterms
and as a Product-of-Maxterms
 For a Boolean function, given the list of Minterm indices one can
determine the list of Maxterms indices (and vice versa)
 The complement of a Sum-of-Minterms is a Product-of-Maxterms
with the same indices (and vice versa)
Sum-of-Products and Products-of-Sums
 Canonical forms contain a larger number of literals
 Because the Minterms (and Maxterms) must contain, by definition, all
the variables either complemented or not
 Another way to express Boolean functions is in standard form
 Two standard forms: Sum-of-Products and Product-of -Sums
 Sum of Products (SOP)
 Boolean expression is the ORing (sum) of AND terms (products)
 Examples:

 Products of Sums (POS)

 Boolean expression is the ANDing (product) of OR terms (sums)
 Examples:
 Two-Level Gate Implementation
𝑓 1=𝑥𝑦 ′+𝑥𝑧 𝑓 2= 𝑦+𝑥 𝑦′ 𝑧
𝑥 𝑦
𝑦′ 𝑓2
𝑓1 𝑥
𝑥 𝑦′
𝑧 AND-OR 𝑧 3-input AND gate
implementations

′ ′ ′ ′
𝑓 3=( 𝑥 + 𝑧 )( 𝑥 + 𝑦 ) 𝑓 4=𝑥 ( 𝑥 + 𝑦 + 𝑧 )
𝑥 𝑥
𝑧 𝑓4
𝑓3 𝑥′
𝑥′ 𝑦′
𝑦′ OR-AND 𝑧 3-input OR gate
implementations
Two-Level vs. Three-Level Implementation
 (6 literals) is a sum-of-products
 may also be written as: (5 literals)
 However, is a non-standard form
 is not a sum-of-products nor a product-of-sums

2-level implementation 3-level implementation

𝑎
𝑏 𝑎
𝑏
𝑐
𝑑 h 𝑐 h
𝑑
𝑐 𝑒
𝑒 3-input OR gate