the balanced sorting network
This paper introduces a new sorting network, called the balanced sorting network , that sorts n items in O ([lg n ] 2 ) time using ( n /2)(lg n ) 2 comparators. Although these bounds are comparable to many existing sorting networks, the balanced sorting network possess some distinct advantages. In particular, its structure is highly regular consisting of a sequence of identical balanced merging networks . We prove that lg n identical merging networks are both necessary and sufficient to sort n items. We also present an explicit implementation of our network on the shuffle exchange interconnection model in which the direction of the comparitors are all identical and fixed.
sorting network paper timing structure sequence merging implementation interconnect model direct