512-bit

Bit
1 4 8 12 16 18 24 26 31 32 36 48 60 64 128 256 512
Application
16 32 64
Floating point precision
×½ ×1 ×2 ×4 ×8
Floating point decimal precision
32 64 128

In computer architecture, 512-bit integers, memory addresses, or other data units are those that are at most 512 bits wide. Also, 512-bit CPU and ALU architectures are those that are based on registers, address buses, or data buses of that size.

There are currently no mainstream general-purpose processors built to operate on 512-bit integers or addresses, though a number of processors do operate on 512-bit data. As of 2013, the Intel Xeon Phi has a vector processing unit with 512-bit vector registers, each one holding sixteen 32-bit elements or eight 64-bit elements, and a single instruction can operate on all these values in parallel. However, the Xeon Phi's vector processing unit does not operate on individual numbers that are 512 bits in length.

Uses

• Some GPUs such as the Nvidia GTX280, GTX285, Quadro FX 5800 and several Tesla products move data across a 512-bit memory bus. Then AMD Radeon R9 290 and 295X2 followed.
• Many hash functions, such as SHA-512, have a 512-bit output.
• A 512-bit CPU would be capable of addressing more bytes than there are fundamental particles in the observable universe.
• AVX-512 are 512-bit extensions to the 256-bit Advanced Vector Extensions SIMD instructions for x86 instruction set architecture proposed by Intel in July 2013, and scheduled to be supported in 2015 with Intel's Knights Landing processor.