A Static Array is a fundamental linear data structure that stores elements in contiguous memory locations with a fixed size determined at compile time. This efficient data structure is widely used in various applications, from implementing lookup tables to storing collections of items with known sizes.
Core Characteristics
- Fixed size determined at compile time and cannot be changed at runtime
- Elements stored in contiguous memory locations
- Provides constant-time access to any element using indexing
- Memory-efficient for known-size collections
Key Operations
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Access() This operation retrieves an element at a specified index. Arrays provide direct access to any element via its index, making this operation extremely efficient regardless of array size. Complexity: O(1) - Constant time operation
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Write() This operation sets the value of an element at a specified index. Since the array size is fixed, writing to an existing position is straightforward and efficient, requiring only a single memory operation. Complexity: O(1) - Constant time operation
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Search() This operation finds the position of a specific value in the array. Since arrays don't maintain any particular order by default, searching requires checking each element sequentially from the beginning. Complexity: O(n) - Linear time operation
Common Applications
- Lookup tables and constant data storage
- Matrix and multi-dimensional data representation
- Implementation of other data structures like stacks and queues
- Buffer implementations with fixed sizes
- Storing and processing sequential data with known boundaries