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C# Bitwise Operators

Bitwise operators are used to manipulate the individual bits of integer values. These operators work on the binary representation of numbers, and they include:

Key Bitwise Operators

Example 1: Bitwise AND

// Bitwise AND Example
int a = 5;  // 0101 in binary
int b = 3;  // 0011 in binary
int result = a & b;  // 0001 (1 in decimal)
Console.WriteLine(result);

Output:

1

Code Explanation: The bitwise AND operator compares the binary representation of a (0101) and b (0011) and returns a new value (0001), which is 1 in decimal.

Example 2: Bitwise OR

// Bitwise OR Example
int a = 5;  // 0101 in binary
int b = 3;  // 0011 in binary
int result = a | b;  // 0111 (7 in decimal)
Console.WriteLine(result);

Output:

7

Code Explanation: The bitwise OR operator compares the binary values of a and b and sets each bit to 1 if at least one bit is 1, resulting in 0111, which is 7 in decimal.

Example 3: Bitwise XOR

// Bitwise XOR Example
int a = 5;  // 0101 in binary
int b = 3;  // 0011 in binary
int result = a ^ b;  // 0110 (6 in decimal)
Console.WriteLine(result);

Output:

6

Code Explanation: The bitwise XOR operator compares the binary values of a and b and sets each bit to 1 if only one of the bits is 1. This results in 0110, which is 6 in decimal.

Example 4: Left Shift

// Left Shift Example
int x = 2;  // 0010 in binary
int result = x << 1;  // Shift bits to the left, result is 0100 (4 in decimal)
Console.WriteLine(result);

Output:

4

Code Explanation: The left shift operator shifts the bits of x one position to the left, effectively multiplying the value by 2.

Example 5: Right Shift

// Right Shift Example
int x = 4;  // 0100 in binary
int result = x >> 1;  // Shift bits to the right, result is 0010 (2 in decimal)
Console.WriteLine(result);

Output:

2

Code Explanation: The right shift operator shifts the bits of x one position to the right, effectively dividing the value by 2.

Key Takeaways

  • The bitwise AND operator & returns a 1 only when both bits are 1.
  • The bitwise OR operator | returns a 1 when at least one bit is 1.
  • The bitwise XOR operator ^ returns a 1 only when one bit is 1 and the other is 0.
  • Left shift << multiplies the value by 2, and right shift >> divides the value by 2.
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