EC311

Advanced Microprocessors

Pre-Requisite: EC208
Contact Hours and Credits: ( 3 -0- 0 ) 3

Objective: 

To make the students to learn the advanced techniques in designing the advanced Microprocessors and   give exposure to the cache organization, memory management, multitasking and bus interfacing.  

Topics Covered:

Computer system architecture. Personal computer. Performance   measures. CPU operation. User and supervisor modes. Pipeline operation.

Memory hierarchy in computers. Cache memory structure and operation. I/O interface circuit. DMA and interrupts.

Software model for Pentium. Real and Protected mode of operation. Instruction set and addressing modes supported by Pentium instruction set. Hardware details of Pentium. Pentium bus operation. Super scalar architecture. Pipeline. Branch prediction.

Instruction and data cache. Cache organization. Cache coherency in multi-processor system. Floating point unit. Protected  mode of operation. 

Segmentation. Paging. Protection. Multitasking. Exceptions. Input and output. Virtual 8086 mode of operation. Protected mode applications. HDD. CD drive. Video display system. Bus standards, ISA, PCI bus, USB bus.

Course Outcomes:

Students are able to

  • CO1: Apply the basic knowledge of Microprocessor to Computer System Architecture.
  • CO2: Analyze and design the cache memory and pipelining structures.
  • CO3: Identify and apply various protected mode concepts like paging, multitasking etc. in high speed processors.
  • CO4: Distinguish and analyze the properties of RISC and CISC processors.
  • CO5: Recognize the need for recent Bus standards like PCI Express, USB etc.

Text Books:

  • John P Hayes, Computer Architecture and organization,  McGraw-Hill 1998.
  • James L. Antonakos, The Pentium Microprocessor, (2/e), Pearson, 2002.

Reference Books:

  • John L. Hennessy & David A. Patterson Computer Architecture (3/e), Elsevier, 2003.
  • Barry B. Brey,  The Intel Microprocessors, (7/e),  Eastern Economy Edition , 2006.
  • A.K. Ray & K.M. Bhurchandi, Advanced Microprocessors and Peripherals, (2/e), Tata McGraw Hill, 2007.