Fundamentals of Parallel Multicore Architecture

This text provides all the material for a graduate or senior undergraduate course that focuses on the architecture of multicore processors. The book is also useful as a reference for professionals who deal with programming on multicore or designing multicore chips. It addresses programming issues in shared memory multiprocessors, covers the architectures for shared memory multiprocessors, and contains interviews with experts in parallel multicore architecture. It also offers many pedagogical features, including mini case studies, alternative points of view, examples, and online programming assignments and solutions.

Although multicore is now a mainstream architecture, there are few textbooks that cover parallel multicore architectures. Filling this gap, Fundamentals of Parallel Multicore Architecture provides all the material for a graduate or senior undergraduate course that focuses on the architecture of multicore processors. The book is also useful as a reference for professionals who deal with programming on multicore or designing multicore chips.

The text’s coverage of fundamental topics prepares students to study research papers in the multicore architecture area. The text offers many pedagogical features, including:

• Sufficiently short chapters that can be comfortably read over a weekend
• Introducing each concept by first describing the problem and building intuition that leads to the need for the concept
• "Did you know?" boxes that present mini case studies, alternative points of view, examples, and other interesting facts or discussion items
• Thought-provoking interviews with experts who share their perspectives on multicore architectures in the past, present, and future
• Online programming assignments and solutions that enhance students’ understanding

The first several chapters address programming issues in shared memory multiprocessors, such as the programming model and techniques to parallelize regular and irregular applications. The core of the book covers the architectures for shared memory multiprocessors. The final chapter contains interviews with experts in parallel multicore architecture.