Python Bitwise XOR Operator

The Python bitwise XOR (exclusive OR) operator is represented by the caret symbol ^. The bitwise XOR operator performs an XOR operation on the individual bits of two integers. It returns a new integer where each bit is set to 1 if the corresponding bits in the operands are different, and 0 if they are the same.

Here’s the syntax of the bitwise XOR operator:

operand1 ^ operand2

Here are some examples of how the bitwise XOR operator works:

# Example 1
a = 5  # Binary: 0101
b = 3  # Binary: 0011

result = a ^ b  # Binary: 0110, Decimal: 6
print(result)   # Output: 6

# Example 2
x = 0b1100  # Binary: 1100 (12 in decimal)
y = 0b1010  # Binary: 1010 (10 in decimal)

result = x ^ y  # Binary: 0110, Decimal: 6
print(result)    # Output: 6

In Example 1, we perform a bitwise XOR operation on integers a and b. The binary representation of a is 0101, and the binary representation of b is 0011. The result of the XOR operation is 0110, which is 6 in decimal.

In Example 2, we use binary literals to define the values of x and y. We then perform the XOR operation, resulting in the binary 0110, which is 6 in decimal.

The bitwise XOR operator can be useful in various programming scenarios, such as when you need to toggle specific bits or perform bitwise encryption and decryption operations.