Introduction
A sorting network consists of two items: comparators and wires. Each wire carries with it a value, and each comparator takes two wires as input and output. When two values enter a comparator, the comparator emits the lower value from the top wire, and the higher value from the bottom wire. A network of wires and comparators that will correctly sort all possible inputs into ascending order is called a sorting network.
The full operation of a simple sorting network is shown below. It is easy to see why this sorting network will correctly sort the inputs; note that the first four comparators will "sink" the largest value to the bottom and "float" the smallest value to the top. The final comparator simply sorts out the middle two wires.
Read more about this topic: Sorting Network
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