Sekoitusliitäntöjä

Sekoitusliitäntöjä, known in English as multiplexers or muxes, are digital electronic components that select one of several analog or digital input signals and forward the selected input into a single output line. The selection of a particular input is controlled by a separate set of digital select signals. The operation of a multiplexer can be thought of as a digitally controlled switch.

Multiplexers are commonly used in digital systems to implement logic functions, route data signals, and reduce the number of wires required in a system. For instance, a multiplexer can be used to select data from different sources, such as memory locations or input/output devices, and route it to a central processing unit. In telecommunications, multiplexers are employed to combine multiple data streams into a single channel for transmission over a common medium, a process known as multiplexing.

The number of input lines a multiplexer can handle is typically a power of two, such as 2, 4, 8, or 16. The number of select lines required to control a multiplexer with $n$ input lines is $\log_2 n$. For example, a 4-to-1 multiplexer has four input lines and two select lines. The select lines determine which of the four inputs is passed to the output.

Different types of multiplexers exist, including analog multiplexers that handle analog signals and digital multiplexers that handle digital signals. The internal logic of a multiplexer is typically implemented using logic gates such as AND, OR, and NOT gates. Integrated circuits are widely available that contain multiplexers with various configurations. Their ability to consolidate multiple signal paths into one makes them fundamental building blocks in digital circuit design and communication systems.