What Is Atomic In Java

What Does Atomic Mean?

Atomic is a toolkit of variable java.util.concurrent.atomic package classes, which assist in writing lock and wait-free algorithms with the Java language. An algorithm requiring only partial threads for constant progress is lock-free. In a wait-free algorithm, all threads make progress continuously, even in cases of thread failure or delay. Lock and wait-free algorithms are also known as nonblocking algorithms. Nonblocking algorithms are used for process and thread scheduling at the operating system and Java virtual machine levels.

Techopedia Explains Atomic

All java.util.concurrent.atomic package classes have the “atomic” prefix in their names. There are different types of atomic variables available in the java.util.concurrent.atomic package, including:

• AtomicBoolean AtomicInteger AtomicIntegerArray AtomicIntegerFieldUpdater AtomicLong AtomicLongArray AtomicLongFieldUpdater AtomicReference