Consider a 32-bit microprocessor, with a 16-bit external data bus, driven by…
2015
Consider a 32-bit microprocessor, with a 16-bit external data bus, driven by an 8 MHz input clock. Assume that this microprocessor has a bus cycle whose minimum duration equals four input clock cycles. What is the maximum data transfer rate for this microprocessor ?
- A.
8×106 bytes/sec
- B.
4×106 bytes/sec
- C.
16×106 bytes/sec
- D.
4×109 bytes/sec
Attempted by 290 students.
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Correct answer: B
Solution:
Determine the bus cycle frequency: the input clock is 8 MHz and each bus cycle lasts four input clock cycles, so bus cycles per second = 8 MHz ÷ 4 = 2 MHz.
Determine bytes transferred per bus cycle: the external data bus is 16 bits = 2 bytes per bus cycle.
Compute the data transfer rate: 2 MHz × 2 bytes = 4×106 bytes/sec
So the maximum data transfer rate is 4×106 bytes/sec (4 MB/s).
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