Alpha AXP architecture

Abstract

The Alpha AXP 64-bit computer architecture is designed for high performance and longevity. Because of the focus on multiple instruction issue, the architecture does not contain facilities such as branch delay slots, byte writes, and precise arithmetic exceptions. Because of the focus on multiple processors, the architecture does contain a careful sharedmemory model, atomic-update primitive instructions, and relaxed read/write ordering. The first implementation of the Alpha AXP architecture is the world's fastest single-chip microprocessor. The DECchip 21064 runs multiple operating systems and runs native-compiled programs that were translated from the VAX and MIPS architectures.