Processor

At the center of every computer system is a very smart and special chip: the Processor. Without it, the computer doesn't know what to do or how to do things. The Processor has two very important roles: it is a super fast calculator and the conductor of all the computer components. But how does it do all that?  

Hi! I'm one of the first CPUs that was available for everyone, the Intel 4004. Back in my days, CPU's had 16 or 32 pins that allowed us to communicate with components. Nowadays, some CPUs have 1700 pins to talk with the rest of the computer!

 

Under the Hood

At the lowest level, the Processor consists of one fundamental electronic component: the transistor. Of course, a CPU doesn't have just one transistor, it has many, many, many of them. The function of a transistor is fairly simple, it either opens or closes an electrical circuit based on the amount of energy flowing through. They are very useful for the CPU, because they are insanely fast. Even the slightest difference in energy can cause them to switch back and forth.   Combining these transistors, allow us to create what they call "logic gates". These clusters of transistors can make certain decisions based on the current going through them as a group. Let's look at the logic gate AND, for example. Imagine there are two buttons (which are manual transistors, in a sense) connected to a lightbulb. Press one button, and nothing happens. Press both buttons at the same time, and the light turns on. So, for an AND gate to open, all transistors in the cluster must allow power through. If one of the transistors does not, the gate closes.   There are a few base varieties of these logic gates that can be combined into more advanced logic gates to make even more complex circuits.