How a Go Program Compiles down to Machine Code

Stream extensively uses the Go programming language, citing its significant impact on productivity and speed, which has allowed them to implement crucial components of their technology stack. The Go 1.11 compiler is highlighted for its role in transforming Go source code into executable files, with a focus on three key phases: scanning, parsing, and code generation. The scanning phase breaks down the source code into tokens, while the parsing phase organizes these tokens into an Abstract Syntax Tree (AST), providing a structured representation of the code. Code generation then converts the AST into machine code, using an intermediate Static Single Assignment (SSA) form that allows for optimization. The text explains that these optimizations make the resulting code more efficient, by eliminating redundant code and enhancing execution speed. The Go compiler's approach to generating and optimizing SSA results in a faster implementation, underscoring the language's efficiency and performance. The document also offers insights into the practical application of Go's scanning and parsing packages, although these are not directly used by the Go compiler itself.