What function does the ^ (caret) operator serve in Java?
When I try this:
int a = 5^n;
...it gives me:
for n = 5, returns 0
for n = 4, returns 1
for n = 6, returns 3
...so I guess it doesn't perform exponentiation. But what is it then?
What does the ^ operator do in Java?
Viewed 439200
19 Answers
As many people have already pointed out, it's the XOR operator. Many people have also already pointed out that if you want exponentiation then you need to use Math.pow.
But I think it's also useful to note that ^ is just one of a family of operators that are collectively known as bitwise operators:
Operator Name Example Result Description
a & b and 3 & 5 1 1 if both bits are 1.
a | b or 3 | 5 7 1 if either bit is 1.
a ^ b xor 3 ^ 5 6 1 if both bits are different.
~a not ~3 -4 Inverts the bits.
n << p left shift 3 << 2 12 Shifts the bits of n left p positions. Zero bits are shifted into the low-order positions.
n >> p right shift 5 >> 2 1 Shifts the bits of n right p positions. If n is a 2's complement signed number, the sign bit is shifted into the high-order positions.
n >>> p right shift -4 >>> 28 15 Shifts the bits of n right p positions. Zeros are shifted into the high-order positions.
From here.
These operators can come in handy when you need to read and write to integers where the individual bits should be interpreted as flags, or when a specific range of bits in an integer have a special meaning and you want to extract only those. You can do a lot of every day programming without ever needing to use these operators, but if you ever have to work with data at the bit level, a good knowledge of these operators is invaluable.
It's bitwise XOR, Java does not have an exponentiation operator, you would have to use Math.pow() instead.
XOR operator rule =>
0 ^ 0 = 0
1 ^ 1 = 0
0 ^ 1 = 1
1 ^ 0 = 1
Binary representation of 4, 5 and 6 :
4 = 1 0 0
5 = 1 0 1
6 = 1 1 0
now, perform XOR operation on 5 and 4:
5 ^ 4 => 1 0 1 (5)
1 0 0 (4)
----------
0 0 1 => 1
Similarly,
5 ^ 5 => 1 0 1 (5)
1 0 1 (5)
------------
0 0 0 => (0)
5 ^ 6 => 1 0 1 (5)
1 1 0 (6)
-----------
0 1 1 => 3
XOR operator rule
0 ^ 0 = 0
1 ^ 1 = 0
0 ^ 1 = 1
1 ^ 0 = 1
Bitwise operator works on bits and performs bit-by-bit operation. Assume if a = 60 and b = 13; now in binary format they will be as follows −
a = 0011 1100
b = 0000 1101
a^b ==> 0011 1100 (a)
0000 1101 (b)
------------- XOR
0011 0001 => 49
(a ^ b) will give 49 which is 0011 0001
As others have said, it's bitwise XOR. If you want to raise a number to a given power, use Math.pow(a , b), where a is a number and b is the power.
AraK's link points to the definition of exclusive-or, which explains how this function works for two boolean values.
The missing piece of information is how this applies to two integers (or integer-type values). Bitwise exclusive-or is applied to pairs of corresponding binary digits in two numbers, and the results are re-assembled into an integer result.
To use your example:
- The binary representation of 5 is 0101.
- The binary representation of 4 is 0100.
A simple way to define bitwise XOR is to say the result has a 1 in every place where the two input numbers differ.
With 4 and 5, the only difference is in the last place; so
0101 ^ 0100 = 0001 (5 ^ 4 = 1) .
As already stated by the other answer(s), it's the "exclusive or" (XOR) operator. For more information on bit-operators in Java, see: http://java.sun.com/docs/books/tutorial/java/nutsandbolts/op3.html
It is the bitwise xor operator in java which results 1 for different value (ie 1 ^ 0 = 1) and 0 for same value (ie 0 ^ 0 = 0).
As an addition to the other answers, it's worth mentioning that the caret operator can also be used with boolean operands, and it returns true (if and only if) the operands are different:
System.out.println(true ^ true); // false
System.out.println(true ^ false); // true
System.out.println(false ^ false); // false
System.out.println(false ^ true); // true
^ = (bitwise XOR)
Description
Binary XOR Operator copies the bit if it is set in one operand but not both.
example
(A ^ B) will give 49 which is 0011 0001
Related