This course presents the core concepts of computer architecture and design ideas embodied in many machines, and emphasizes a quantitative approach to cost/performance trade-offs. This course concentrates on uniprocessor systems. A few machines are studied to illustrate how these concepts are implemented; how various trade-offs that exist among design choices are treated; and how good designs make efficient use of technology. Future trends in computer architecture are also discussed. Topics covered may include fundamentals of computer design; Performance and cost; Instruction set design and measurements of use; Pipeline design techniques; Memory hierarchy design; Input output subsystems;
By the end of this course, the student should be able to