Java is one of the most predominant programming languages in India, commanding around 20 percent of the market share. A bitwise operator in Java is a symbol/notation that performs a specified operation on standalone bits, taken one at a time. It is used to manipulate individual bits of a binary number and can be used with a variety of integer types – char, int, long, short, byte.
A bitwise operator in Java can be broadly classified into 7 types:Â
| Bitwise Operator in Java | Symbol | Description |
| Bitwise AND | | | Preserves a bit in the result if and only if it exists in both operands. |
| Bitwise OR | & | Preserves a bit if it exists in either of the two operands. |
| Bitwise XOR | ^ | Preserves a bit if it is present only in one operand but not both. |
| Bitwise COMPLEMENT | ~ | Also known as 1’s complement. Just reverse the bits of the operand. |
| Bitwise LEFT SHIFT | << | The bits in the left operand are shifted to the left by the number of places specified in the right operand. |
| SIGNED RIGHT SHIFT | >> | The bits in the left operand are shifted to the right by the number of places specified in the right operand. |
| UNSIGNED RIGHT SHIFT | >>> | Exactly like SIGNED RIGHT SHIFT plus shifted bits are filled with zero. |
Let us now explore in detail each bitwise operator in Java:
1. OR (A | B)
Truth Table
| A | B | Output |
| 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 1 | 1 | 1 |
Example
A = 1011 1110
B = 0011 0101
A | B = 1011 1111
Syntax
class Main {
  public static void main(String[] args) {
    int operand1 = 190, operand2 = 53, output;
    // bitwise OR between 190 and 53
    output = operand1 | operand2;
    System.out.println(output);  // program prints 191
  }
}
2. AND (A & B)
Truth Table
| A | B | Output |
| 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1 | 1 | 1 |
Example
A = 1011 1110
B = 0011 0101
A & B = 0011 0100
Syntax
class Main {
  public static void main(String[] args) {
    int operand1 = 190, operand2 = 53, output;
    // bitwise OR between 190 and 53
    output = operand1 | operand2;
    System.out.println(output);  // program prints 52
  }
}
- INCLUSIVE OR / XOR (A ^ B)
Truth Table
| A | B | Output |
| 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 1 | 1 | 0 |
Example
A = 1011 1110
B = 0011 0101
A ^ B = 1000 0011
Syntax
class Main {
  public static void main(String[] args) {
    int operand1 = 190, operand2 = 53, output;
    // bitwise OR between 190 and 53
    output = operand1 | operand2;
    System.out.println(output);  // program prints 131
  }
}
3. COMPLEMENT (A ~ B)
In decimal terms, the bitwise complement of a number A is – (A+1). However, in the binary domain, we need to first calculate its 1’s complement and then convert it into its 2’s complement to get the desired output.
1’s Complement – Just reverse the bits. For example:
A = 1011 1110 (190)
1’s Complement of A = 0100 0001
2’s Complement of A = 1’s Complement of A + 1 = 0100 0010
Syntax
class Main {
  public static void main(String[] args) {
    int operand4 = 190, output;
    // bitwise complement of 190
    output = ~operand4;
    System.out.println(output);  // prints -191
  }
}
- LEFT SHIFT (A << 1)
Suppose A = 1011 1110
A << 1 = ?
This bitwise operator in Java makes all the bits shift to the left by 1, i.e., the output is 0111 1100. The left-most bit (most significant bit or MSB) is discarded, and a 0 is added to the rightmost empty place (least significant bit or LSB). This is done for every vacant place at the right.
Syntax
class Main {
  public static void main(String[] args) {
    int operand = 3; // binary – 11Â
    // 1-bit left shift operationÂ
    int output= operand << 1;
    System.out.println(output);  // prints 2
  }
}
4. SIGNED RIGHT SHIFT (A >>2)
This bitwise operator in Java shifts the bit pattern to the right by the specified number of places. LSBs are discarded, and the MSBs are filled with the sign bit. 0 represents a positive sign, while 1 represents a negative sign.
Syntax
class Main {
  public static void main(String[] args) {
    int operand 1 = 2;
    int operand2 = -2; Â
    // 2 bit signed right shift
    System.out.println(operand1 >> 2);  // prints 1
    System.out.println(operand2 >> 2);  // prints -1
  }
}
5. UNSIGNED RIGHT SHIFT (A >>>2)
The operation here is exactly similar to SIGNED RIGHT SHIFT except that the vacant left-most bits are replaced with 0 instead of the sign bits.
Syntax
class Main {
  public static void main(String[] args) { Â
    int operand = 240; // binary number – 1111 0000   Â
    // 2 bit unsigned right shift
    System.out.println(operand >>> 2);  // prints 60
  }
}
Conclusion
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