What is the full form of CPU

CPU: Central Processing Unit

CPU stands for Central Processing Unit. It is also known as the brain of the computer. It carries out instructions and computer programs and performs all the basic arithmetical and logical operations. CPU is installed in the motherboard on a specific area known as the CPU socket.

Traditionally the term CPU refers to a processor, which includes a control unit and an arithmetical logical unit.

Central Processing Unit (CPU) = Arithmetical Logical Unit (ALU) + Control Unit (CU)

Components of CPUs

Arithmetical Logic Unit: This is a key part of the CPU. This is responsible for performing all the logical and arithmetical operations.

The responsibility for performing arithmetic and logical operations falls to the ALU (Arithmetic Logic Unit). It has two subsections, which are as follows:

• Arithmetic Section
• Section of logic

Let us learn more about these subsections now:

Arithmetic Section: Addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division are examples of arithmetic operations, and the ALU is responsible for carrying out all of these tasks. Additionally, the ALU uses the aforementioned procedures repeatedly to complete all complex computations.

Logic Section: The ALU is responsible for performing all logical processes, which include choosing, comparing, matching, and merging data.

Note: The CPU may have multiple ALUs, and ALUs can be utilised to keep timers that aid in the operation of the computer system.

Control Unit: It is the most important part of the CPU. It instructs the complete computer system to carry out a particular task.

A control unit does not handle any data; rather, it controls how each component of the computer operates, as the name suggests. It gives the computer instructions to carry out previously saved data by using electrical impulses to communicate with the computer system. It pulls instructions from the memory unit, decodes them, and then carries out the commands. As a result, it manages how the computer operates. Its primary responsibility is to keep information moving freely throughout the CPU. Here is a list of several of the main responsibilities that the control unit has:

• The control unit, among other components of the computer, controls data and transfers data and commands.
• All of the computer's units must be managed by the control unit.
• The control unit's primary job is to read instructions or data from the memory unit, interpret those instructions or data, and then use that information to guide how the computer should operate.
• The control unit manages the communication among output and input devices for the transferring of information or results from memory. Data processing and storage are not the responsibility of the control unit.

Registers: Registers are a special type of memory device. They store the data that have to be processed and are already processed by the processor.

Types of CPUs

CPUs can be divided into three major categories:

• Transistor CPUs
• Small Scale Integration CPUs
• Large Scale Integration CPUs

History

The term CPU was first used in the computer industry in the early 1960s. Initially, the term CPU was used to define a device for software execution, and it came with the advent of the stored program computer. Some of the important events related to the history of CPU are as follows:

• Silicon, the basic component of processors, was discovered by Baron Jons Jackob in 1823.
• In 1903, Nikola Tesla patented the electrical logic circuits (gates or switches).
• In 1947, the first transistor was invented by John Barden, Walter Brattain, and William Shockley at the Bell Laboratories.
• In 1958, Robert Noyce and Jack Kilby developed the first integrated circuit.
• On 15 November 1971, Intel introduced the first microprocessor, the Intel 4004.
• In March 1991, AMD introduced the AM386 microprocessor family.
• On 22 March 1993, Intel released the Pentium processor, a 60 MHz processor with 3.1 million transistors.
• On 4 January 2000, Intel released the Celeron 553 MHz bus processor.
• On 22 April 2006, Intel released the Core 2 Duo processor E6320.
• In November 2008, Intel released the first Core i7 Desktop processors.
• In January 2010, Intel released the first Core i5 Mobile processors (i5-430M and i5-520E).