> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.syntblaze.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Java Bitwise AND
The `&` operator in Java is a binary operator that functions as either a bitwise AND or a logical (non-short-circuiting) AND, depending on the data types of its operands.
## Bitwise AND (Integral Types)
When applied to integral data types (`byte`, `short`, `int`, `long`, `char`), the `&` operator performs a bit-by-bit comparison of the two's complement binary representation of the operands.
**Mechanics:**
* For each corresponding bit position, the result bit is `1` if and only if both operand bits are `1`. Otherwise, the result bit is `0`.
* Java applies binary numeric promotion before the operation. If neither operand is a `long`, both are promoted to `int`. If one is a `long`, the other is promoted to `long`.
**Syntax:**
```java theme={"dark"}
int a = 12; // Binary: 0000 1100
int b = 25; // Binary: 0001 1001
int result = a & b; // Binary: 0000 1000 (Decimal: 8)
```
## Logical AND (Boolean Types)
When applied to `boolean` operands, the `&` operator performs a logical AND operation.
**Mechanics:**
* The expression evaluates to `true` if and only if both the left-hand side (LHS) and right-hand side (RHS) operands evaluate to `true`.
* **Non-short-circuiting evaluation:** Unlike the conditional AND operator (`&&`), the `&` operator guarantees the evaluation of both operands. Even if the LHS evaluates to `false` (which mathematically guarantees the final result will be `false`), the RHS expression is still fully executed.
**Syntax:**
```java theme={"dark"}
boolean condition1 = false;
boolean condition2 = true;
boolean result = condition1 & condition2; // Evaluates to false
```
## Truth Table
The underlying logic for both contexts maps to the following truth table (where `1` maps to `true` and `0` maps to `false`):
| Operand 1 (LHS) | Operand 2 (RHS) | Result (`LHS & RHS`) |
| :-------------- | :-------------- | :------------------- |
| `1` / `true` | `1` / `true` | `1` / `true` |
| `1` / `true` | `0` / `false` | `0` / `false` |
| `0` / `false` | `1` / `true` | `0` / `false` |
| `0` / `false` | `0` / `false` | `0` / `false` |
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