Bit slicing is a computer architectural strategy whereby a processor is constructed from smaller microprocessor modules, each of which contains an arithmetic and logic unit (ALU) handling a 1-, 2-, or 4-bit field. The elementary building block of a bit-sliced microprocessor is a smaller chip designed to be interconnected other others like itself to act as the central processing unit (CPU) of the microprocessor as a whole. Each of these smaller chips performs operations on a "slice" or segment of the bit-sliced microprocessor's word length. For example, 4-bit chips can be interconnected to create a processor that is 8, 12, 16, or any other multiple of 4 bits wide. Each of these smaller chips is known as a slice or RALU (Register Arithmetic Logic Unit). The only part of a bit-sliced microprocessor that is "sliced" is its central processing unit (CPU): the rest of the architecture is conventional.

Slices can...