Course Objectives

The main objective of this course is to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of the internal structure and functionality of a computer system. The course will cover the following concepts:

• Basic functional units of a computer and their interactions
• Instruction set architecture and execution
• Data representation and computer arithmetic
• CPU control unit design
• Memory system design
• Input/Output subsystems and techniques
• Pipelining and parallel processing
• Cache memory and memory hierarchy

Course Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:

1. Understand the basic organization and architecture of computer systems.
2. Write and analyze assembly language programs.
3. Design and analyze memory systems and their interaction with the CPU.
4. Understand the principles of CPU control unit design and implementation.
5. Analyze the performance of pipelined processors and understand the challenges of parallel processing.

Detailed Syllabus

Module 1: Functional blocks of a computer

• CPU, memory, input-output subsystems, control unit.
• Instruction set architecture of a CPU – registers, instruction execution cycle, RTL interpretation of instructions, addressing modes, instruction set.
• Case study – instruction set of 8085 processor.
• Data representation: signed number representation, fixed and floating point representations, character representation.
• Computer arithmetic – integer addition and subtraction, ripple carry adder, carry look-ahead adder, etc. multiplication – shift-and-add, Booth multiplier, carry save multiplier, etc. Division restoring and non-restoring techniques, floating point arithmetic.

Module 2: Introduction to x86 architecture

• CPU control unit design: Hardwired and micro-programmed design approaches.
• Case study – design of a simple hypothetical CPU.
• Memory system design: semiconductor memory technologies, memory organization.
• Peripheral devices and their characteristics: Input-output subsystems, I/O device interface, I/O transfers – program controlled, interrupt driven and DMA, privileged and non-privileged instructions, software interrupts and exceptions. Programs and processes –role of interrupts in process state transitions, I/O device interfaces – SCII, USB.

Module 3: Pipelining

• Basic concepts of pipelining, throughput and speedup, pipeline hazards.
• Parallel Processors: Introduction to parallel processors, Concurrent access to memory and cache coherency.

Module 4: Memory Organization

• Memory interleaving, concept of hierarchical memory organization, cache memory, cache size vs. block size, mapping functions, replacement algorithms, write policies.

Suggested Books

• Computer Organization and Architecture by Moris Mano
• Computer Organization and Design: The Hardware/Software Interface by David A. Patterson and John L. Hennessy
• Computer Organization and Embedded Systems by Carl Hamacher

Reference Books

• Computer Architecture and Organization by John P. Hayes
• Computer Organization and Architecture: Designing for Performance by William Stallings
• Computer System Design and Architecture by Vincent P. Heuring and Harry F. Jordan

List of Experiments

1. Computer Anatomy- Memory, Ports, Motherboard and add-on cards.
2. Dismantling and assembling PC.
3. Introduction to 8085 kit.
4. Addition of two 8 bit numbers, sum 8 bit.
5. Subtraction of two 8 bit numbers.
6. Find 1’s complement of 8-bit number.
7. Find 2’s complement of 8-bit number.
8. Shift an 8-bit no. by one bit.
9. Find Largest of two 8 bit numbers.
10. Find Largest among an array of ten numbers (8 bit).
11. Sum of series of 8 bit numbers.
12. Introduction to 8086 kit.
13. Addition and subtraction of two 16 bit numbers, sum 16 bit.
14. Implement of Booth’s algorithm for arithmetic operations.
15. Find 1’s and 2’s complement of 16-bit number.
16. Implement simple programs using I/O based interface.

Course Outcomes

Upon completion of this lab, students will be able to:

1. Assemble a personal computer.
2. Implement various assembly language programs for basic arithmetic and logical operations.
3. Demonstrate the functioning of microprocessor/microcontroller-based systems with I/O interface.

Reference Books

• Fundamentals of Microprocessors and Microcontrollers by B. Ram