Quick questions about Electron Binary

Discussion in 'Computer Science & Culture' started by HawkI, Jun 19, 2017.

  1. HawkI Registered Senior Member

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    335
    I read somewhere that Electrons that represent 1 have more voltage than 0, now this might seem like a really silly question but are 1 Electrons slightly faster than 0 Electrons?

    Also are circuit boards with logic gates still behaving like an alternating current? or are they let off the hook to behave like a direct current?

    I don't know much about machines

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  3. Nacho Registered Senior Member

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    137
    That is somewhat true. A computer has what are called gates. They are transistor circuits, of 1 or more transistors. Normally there is no current (electrons) flowing through the gate. They logically (not physically!) assign that the binary number 0. If a threshold current is applied to 1 part of the transistor, the base, it will turn the transistor to conducting ... with current (electrons) flowing through the gate. They logically (not physically!) assign that the binary number 1. In today's micro processors, that voltage is around 3 volts.

    So, it is not any property of an electron that codes the binary values 0/1. It is the conduction, whether or not there is a current/voltage present through the gate. If there is a current present (binary 1), then there will be multiple electrons flowing through the gate. How many there will be, I don't know.

    If we could get to where we could build a gate based on the property of 1 electron (spin, voltage, etc), I think that would dwarf the advances in computers we've had over the last 50 years.

    All the micro-processors use direct current.

    Link on transistors: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transistor#Simplified_operation

    Link on threshhold voltage: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Threshold_voltage

    Pretty good link on gate logic: https://www.pctechguide.com/cpu-arc...-architecture-logic-gates-mosfets-and-voltage

    [EDIT: I think I stated that backwards, and applying a voltage to the base actually turns the transistor to OFF, so that it then doesn't conduct electrons. The logic is basically the same, assigning binary 1 or 0 to 1 of 2 conditions]
     
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  5. TheFrogger Banned Valued Senior Member

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    2,175
    Nacho pretty much covered it.

    A charge is applied to each "bit" (binary digit) to read "one."

    It is called a BI-nary digit because it has two possible positions:

    1:2
    0:1

    Mathematics works from right-to-left, doubling at each bit.

    So then the number ten has one eight, and one two in it.

    Doubled:16|8|4|2|1
    Binary::::::0|1|0|1|0
     
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  7. someguy1 Registered Senior Member

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    727

    Yes but bits are not electrons, this is the OP's primary confusion. There are zillions of electrons involved in each bit.
     
  8. TheFrogger Banned Valued Senior Member

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    2,175
    A bit is anything that can hold a charge (i.e. magnetic.)

    In electronics bytes are a sheet of paper divided as such: #

    ...but in more bits.
     

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