System for reducing number of lookups in a branch target...

Details System for reducing number of lookups in a branch target... System for reducing number of lookups in a branch target...

2006-08-16

2009-12-29

Ellis, Richard (Department: 2183)

Electrical computers and digital processing systems: processing

Processing control

Branching

Reexamination Certificate

active

07640422

ABSTRACT:
A technique for reducing lookups to a branch target address cache (BTAC) is disclosed. In this technique, a branch target address is retrieved from the BTAC in response to a miss in looking up an instruction address in an instruction cache (I-cache). The branch target address is associated with the instruction address. The branch target address retrieved from the BTAC is stored in the I-cache. With this disclosed technique, subsequent instruction addresses are looked up in the I-cache, nonparallel to the BTAC, thus saving power by reducing needless BTAC lookups.

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Webster's Ninth New Collediate Dictionary, Merriam-Webster Inc., 1990, pp. 96.

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