Introduction to the

Microprocessor

Prepared by Mehdi Hasan Chowdhury, EEE, CUET

Reference

 The Intel Microprocessors

By Barry B. Brey

 Microprocessors and Interfacing

by Douglas V Hall

 Microprocessor and Microcomputer based system design

by MD. Rafiquzzaman

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This presentation slide only contains the overview of the related
topics. Students are advised to take decent class-notes and read
thoroughly from the prescribed text books.

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 Programming Language
 A computer program is a collection of instructions that
performs a specific task when executed by a computer.
 A programming language is a formal constructed language
designed to communicate instructions to a machine,
particularly a computer.
 Simply, writing a program is called programming and the
language used are called programming language.

Language

Low level High level

language language

Machine Assembly
language language
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 Programming Language…
• Low-level language
a medium of communication that is machine dependent or
specific to a given computer.
Machine & Assembly languages of a computer considered
low-level languages.
Program does not transferable.
• High level language
a medium of communication that is machine independent.
programs written in English like word.
executed on a machine using a translator.
e.g. BASIC, PASCAL, C,C+, FORTRAN
easy to learn
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 Programming Language…
• Machine language
 a type of MP programming language that uses
binary or hexadecimal numbers.
 It was constructed of ones and zeros using binary
codes.
 e.g. 0000 0010 1100 1010
All programs are converted into machine language
before they can be executed.
• Assembly language
 Uses symbolic operation code to represent the
machine operation code.
 Specific to a given computer.
 removes the complexity of machine language. 6
Prepared by Mehdi Hasan Chowdhury, EEE, CUET
 Programming Language…
• Assembler
A computer program that translates assembly language
program from mnemonics to binary machine code.
• Compiler
A program that translates English like words of a high
level language into machine language.
Reads a given program (source code) in its entirely,
translates program Into machine language(object code).
• Interpreter
A program that translates English like statements of a
high level language into machine language.
translates one statement at a time from source code to
an object code.
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 Programming Language…

Source Compiler Object

Code Code

High level language Interpreter Machine language

•Source code
a program written either in mnemonics of an
assembly language or in English-like statements of
high level language.

•Object code
the binary (M/C) code into which a source program is
translated by a compiler, assembler or interpreter.

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 Programming Language…
• Firmware
permanently stored, unalterable program instructions
contained in ROM section of computer memory.
• Hardware
the physical electronic circuit & electromechanical
devices that makes up computer system.
• Software
Group of instructions or Program In a computer.

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 The Microprocessor
• Microprocessor, the heart of the microprocessor-based
computer system is an IC.
• Microprocessor is the controlling element in a computer
system.
• It controls memory and I/O devices through buses and
transfer instructions and data between microprocessor
and memory or I/O device.

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Evolution of the Microprocessor

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 Evolution of the Microprocessor
• 1st Microprocessor
 1971, INTEL corp., 4004
 4-bit microprocessor
 4-bit memory, contain only 45 instructions
 Fabricated with P-channel MOSFET
 Execute instructions at the slow rate of 50 KIPs (Kilo-
instructions per second)
• 2nd Microprocessor
 Later in 1971, INTEL corp., 8008
 8-bit microprocessor
 16kB memory, contain only 48 instructions,
 Execution time 20 micro-seconds
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 Evolution of the Microprocessor …
• 3rd Microprocessor (1st modern microprocessor)
 1973, INTEL 8080
 8-bit microprocessor
 64kB memory
 TTL technology
 Execution time 2 micro-seconds
• The 8085 Microprocessor
 1977, Intel 8085
 8-bit microprocessor (Data bus 8 bits, address bus 8 bits)
 64kB memory
 Execution time 1.3 micro-seconds
Advantage: 1. internal clock generator
2. Internal system controller
3. Higher clock frequency (3MHz)
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 Evolution of the Microprocessor …
• The 8086 Microprocessor
 1978, Intel 8086
 16-bit microprocessor (Data bus 16 bits, address bus 20 bits)
 1MB memory
 Execution time 400 nano-seconds
 Clock frequency 5MHz
 Cache or queue memory 6 byte
• The 8088 Microprocessor
 1979, Intel 8088
 Same as 8086 but speedy than 8086

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 Evolution of the Microprocessor …
• The 80286 Microprocessor
 1983, INTEL 80286
 16-bit microprocessor
 16MB memory
 Execution time 250 nano-seconds
 Clock frequency 8MHz
• The 80386 Microprocessor (1st practical 32-bit MP)
 1986, Intel 80386
 32-bit microprocessor (Data bus 32 bits, address bus 32
bits)
 4GB memory
 Cache or queue memory 8kB
 Have few modified version (80386SX, 80386SL/ 80386SLC,
80386EX 15
Prepared by Mehdi Hasan Chowdhury, EEE, CUET
 Evolution of the Microprocessor …
• The 80486 Microprocessor
 1989, INTEL 80486
 Same as 80386
 Execution time 25 nano-seconds
 Clock frequency 50MHz

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 Evolution of the Microprocessor …
• The Intel Pentium Microprocessor
 1993
 64-bit microprocessor
 4GB memory
 Cache or queue memory 16kB
 Pentium contained 8KB instruction cache & 8KB data cache
 Execute instructions at the rate of 110 MIPs
 two version of Pentium operated with a clocking frequency
of 60MHz & 66MHz
 Double-clock Pentium, operating at 120MHz & 133MHz also
available

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 Evolution of the Microprocessor …
• The Future of the Microprocessors
 No one can really make accurate Predictions.
 Beginning in late 2002, 64 bits in width, 128 bit data bus, code
name Merced, joint venture called EPIC(Explicitly Parallel
Instruction Computing) of Intel & Hewlett-Packard.

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 Main tasks of Microprocessor
The microprocessor performs three main tasks for the
computer system:
1. Data transfer between microprocessor and memory or
I/O devices.
2. Simple arithmetic and logic operations.
3. Program flow via simple decisions.

 The power of the microprocessor is in its capability to

execute billions of millions of instructions per second
from a program or software (group of instructions)
stored in memory.

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 Buses
• A group of lines used to transfer bits between
microprocessor and other components (microprocessor,
RAM, ROM, I/O) of computer is called bus.

There are 3 types of buses-

1. Data bus (Bi-directional)
 transfers information between microprocessor and its
memory and I/O address space.
2. Address bus (Unidirectional)
 requests a memory location from the memory or I/O
location from I/O devices.
3. Control bus (Unidirectional)
 contains lines that select memory or I/O and cause them
to perform a read or write operation.
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 Buses…(bus structure)

MRDC – Memory read control MWTC – Memory write control

IORC – I/O read control IOWC – I/O write control
* Write- MP will write
Read- MP will read
IOWC=0, MP is writing data from the data bus to an I/O
device whose address appears on the address bus.
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 Cache Memory
• An ultra-high speed, directly accessible, relatively small
semiconductor memory block used to store
data/instructions that computer may need in the immediate
future.
• Increases system bandwidth by reducing no. of external
memory fetches required by the processor i.e. speed up
the operation.

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 Microcontroller
• A device/microcomputer that includes microprocessor,
memory, several signal lines on a single chip fabricated
using VLSI technology. A single chip microcomputer is called
a microcontroller.
• The microcontroller on single chip, which typically includes a
microprocessor, 64 byte RAM, 1-2 kilo byte ROM and
several signal lines to connect I/O devices.
• Microcontroller are used for such as controlling appliances,
traffic lights etc.

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 some Important Terms
• Bit (b) - a binary digit, 0 or 1.
• Byte (B) - a group of 08 bits. (1 byte = 8 bits)
• Instruction - a command in binary, recognized & executed
by the computer.

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The Microprocessor
& its architecture

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 8, 16, 32 & 64-bit MP

• 8, 16, 32 and now 64 define the bitness of a MP. For a

simple answer we can say that it relates to the maximum
memory a processor register can address. A ‘x’ bit CPU
can handle 2^x bytes of memory.
• Each MP recognizes & processes a group of bits called
word & MP classified according to their word length.
• For example: A processor with an 8-bits is known as 8-bit
MP. Intel 8080, 8085, etc. are 8-bit MP.
• Similarly, a processor with an 16-bits is known as 16-bit MP.
The 8086 is Intel’s 1st 16-bit MP.
• 8086 MP’s registers are 16-bit in size. That’s why it is called
16-bit MP.

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 Register
A register is one of a small set of data holding places that
are part of a computer processor.
Registers are two types:
1. General-purpose or multipurpose Registers
 these registers hold various data sizes and used for
almost any purpose
2. Special purpose Registers
 used in special purposes

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 General-purpose or multipurpose Registers
Bit position 15 8 7 0

AX AH AL Accumulator
BX BH BL Base index
CX CH CL Count
DX DH DL Data
BP Base pointer
SI Source index
DI Destination index
• The MP has 07 general purpose registers.
• Each registers are 16-bit in size, while some registers can be
divided into two 8-bit register.
• The acceptable 8-bit register pairs are AH-AL, BH-BL, CH-CL, DH-
DL. These pairs forms AX, BX, CX, DX registers respectively.
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 General-purpose Registers…
1. AX register
 Called 16-bit accumulator while AH/AL is 8-bit accumulator
 Used for instructions such as Multiplication & division
2. BX register
 16-bit Base index register while BH/BL is 8-bits
 sometimes holds offset address
3. CX register
 16-bit Count register while CH/CL is 8-bits
 Holds the count for various instructions such as SHIFT,
ROTATE, LOOP, etc
4. DX register
 16-bit Data register while DH/DL is 8-bits
 Holds a part of the result from multiplication or part of the
dividend before a division.
 Need for I/O devices 29
Prepared by Mehdi Hasan Chowdhury, EEE, CUET
 General-purpose Registers…
5. BP register
 16-bit Base Pointer register
 Points to a memory location
6. SI register
 16-bit Source Index register
 Addresses source string data for the string instructions
7. DI register
 16-bit Destination Index register
 Addresses string destination data for the string instructions

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 Special-purpose Registers
Special-purpose registers include IP, SP, FLAGS
1. IP register
 Called 16-bit Instruction Pointer.
 The Instruction pointer, which points to the next instruction in a
program, is used by the microprocessor to find the next
sequential instruction in a program located within the code
segment.
2. SP register
 16-bit Stack Pointer, addresses an area of memory called the
stack.
 The stack memory stores data through this pointer.
3. FLAGS register
 A flag resister (F or FL) is a 16-bit registers which indicates
some condition produced by the execution of an instruction and
controls certain operation of the MP.
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 Special-purpose Registers…
FLAGS register
 Flag resister contains 09 active flags. Among them 06 are
status flags (indicate some condition produced by an
instruction) and 03 are control flags (control certain operation of
processor).
 The flags are -
 Carry (C)
 Parity (P)
 Auxiliary carry (A)
 Zero (Z)
 Sign (S)
 Trap (T)
 Interrupt (I)
 Direction (D)
 Overflow (O) 32
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Special-purpose Registers (FLAGS register…)

Undefined/unused flags

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Special-purpose Registers (FLAGS register…)
1) C (Carry) Flag
 It holds the carry after addition or the borrow after
subtraction.

FFH 1111 1111

 FFH 1111 1111
FEH 1 1111 1110

Carry here, C=1

If No carry, C=0

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Special-purpose Registers (FLAGS register…)
2) P (Parity) Flag
 Parity is the count of ones in register.
 expressed as even or odd.
 Logic 0 for odd parity; logic 1 for even parity.
 if a number contains no one bits, it has even parity

FFH 1111 1111

 FFH 1111 1111
FEH 1 1111 1110

here, No. of “1”=7,

so Odd parity i.e P=0
If even carry, P=1
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Special-purpose Registers (FLAGS register…)
3) A (Auxiliary carry) Flag
 The auxiliary carry holds the carry (half-carry) after
addition or the borrow after subtraction between bits
positions 3 and 4.

4th position 3rd position

FFH 1111 1111

 FFH 1111 1111
FEH 1 1111 1110

here, “1” transfer between 3rd

and 4th positions bits. so A=1
otherwise, A=0
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Special-purpose Registers (FLAGS register…)
4) Z (Zero) Flag
 The zero flag shows whether the result of an arithmetic
or logical operation is zero or not.
 If result is zero, Z=1. otherwise Z=0.

FFH 1111 1111

 FFH 1111 1111
FEH 1 1111 1110

here, result is not zero. So Z=0

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Special-purpose Registers (FLAGS register…)
5) S (Sign) Flag
 The sign flag holds the arithmetic sign after an arithmetic or
a logical operation.
 If S =1 the sign bit is set and the result is negative (-ve).
 If S = 0, the sign bit is not set and the result is positive (+ve).
 Usually sign bit is the leftmost bit.

6) T (Trap/Trace) Flag
 It enables trapping through an on-chip debugging
(checking error) facility.
 T =1, Debugging enable
 T = 0, Debugging disable

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Special-purpose Registers (FLAGS register…)
7) I (Interrupt) Flag
 The interrupt flag controls the operations of the INTR
(Interrupt request) input pin.
 If I =1, the INTR pin is enabled;
 if I =0, the INTR pin is disabled.

8) D (Direction) Flag
 The D flag selects either the increment or decrement mode
for DI and/or SI registers during string instructions.
 If D=1 the registers are automatically decremented;
 if D=0 the registers are automatically incremented.
 Decrement mode indicates Set direction and write with STD
(set direction) instruction.
 Increment mode indicates Clear direction and write with
cleared with the CLD (clear direction) instruction. 39
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Special-purpose Registers (FLAGS register…)
9) O (Overflow) Flag
 An overflow indicates that the result has exceeded the
capacity of the machine.
 Overflow occurs when signed numbers are added or
subtracted.
 Mainly occurs during multiplication operation.
 If O=1, Overflow occurs;
 if O=0, No overflow.

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 Segment Registers
Segment Registers are additional registers, generate memory
addresses when combined with other registers in the
microprocessor.
In a word, segment registers are section of memory.

CS CODE Segment
DS DATA Segment
ES EXTRA Segment
SS STACK Segment

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 Segment Registers…
1) Code segment (CS)
 The code segment is a section of memory that holds the
code (programs and procedures) used by the
microprocessor.
 The code segment (CS) register defines the starting
address of the section of memory holding code.
 The code segment size is limited to max 64KB.

2) Data segment (DS)

 The data segment contains most data used by a program.
 The data segment (DS) register defines the starting address
of the section of memory holding data.
 The data segment size is limited to max 64KB.
 Data are accessed in the data segment by an offset
address or the contents of other registers that hold the
offset address.
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 Segment Registers…
3) Extra segment (ES)
 ES is an additional data segment used by some of the string
instructions to hold destination data.
 The extra segment (ES) register defines the starting address
of the section of memory used as extra segment.
 Can be used as an extra/additional segment for code or data.
 Max size of the segment is limited to 64KB.

4) Stack segment (SS)

 The stack segment defines the area of memory used for the
stack.
 The stack segment (SS) register defines the starting address
of the section of memory used as stack.
 The stack entry point is determined by the stack segment and
stack pointer registers.
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 Real Mode Memory Addressing
 Real mode operation allows MP to address only the first
1MB of memory space— even if it is the Pentium 4 or
Core2 microprocessor.
 The first 1M byte of memory is called the real memory,
conventional memory, or DOS memory system.

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Segment and Offset address

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 Segment and Offset address…
 Combination of a segment address and an offset
address access a memory location.
 The segment address located within one of the
segment registers, defines the beginning address of
any 64K-byte memory segment.
 The offset address is also held in a register and selects
any location within the 64K byte memory segment. An
offset address is also sometimes referred to as
displacement or logical address.
 A memory location pointed by a segment address of
1000H and offset address of 2000H is written as
1000:2000.
 What is the actual/physical memory location for
1000:2000?
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 Segment and Offset address…
 Calculation of physical address from segment : offset
pair 1000:2000

1. Append 0H to the right of

segment value 10000
2. Add offset value with the
appended segment value 2000
3. The result is the physical
address for the given segment : 12000
offset pair

Physical address = Segment add. * 10 + Offset

If Physical address is 22004H, what will be the Segment and Offset add.?

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 Default Segment and Offset Registers
 8086 has a set of rules that apply to segments whenever
memory is addressed. These rules define the segment and
offset register combination

Segment Offset Combination Purpose

Code / Instruction
CS IP CS:IP
address

DS BX,SI,DI DS:BX/SI Data address

String destination
ES DI ES:DI
address

SS SP or BP SS:SP Stack address

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 8086 Internal Architecture
 8086 MP is internally divided into two separate
functional units:
1. Bus Interface Unit (BIU)
2. Execution Unit (EU)

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 8086 Internal Architecture…
Bus Interface Unit (BIU) Functions:
 To fetch instruction from memory or I/O devices
 To generate physical address
 Supply information to EU

Execution Unit (EU) Functions:

 Decode the instructions that are fetched by the
BIU.
 Execute the instructions.
 Perform arithmetic and logic operations.

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 8086 Internal Architecture…
Instruction Queue:
• To increase the execution speed, BIU fetches as
many as six instruction bytes ahead to time from
memory.
• All six bytes are then held in first in first out 6 byte
register called instruction queue.
• Then all bytes have to be given to EU one by one.
• This pre fetching operation of BIU may be in
parallel with execution operation of EU, which
improves the speed execution of the instruction.
• Fetching the next instruction while the current
instruction executes is called pipelining.

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