Design and Implementation of System Features for the MC68000

The MC68000 combines state-of-the-art technology, advanced circuit design techniques, and computer science to achieve an architecturally advanced 16-bit microprocessor. The processor is implemented by a microprogrammed control of an execution unit. The processor incorporates advanced system features, including multi-level vectored interrupts, privilege states, illegal instruction policing, and bus cycle abort. This paper discusses the implementation of the system features and the influence of the implementation method on the processor design.