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sparse
A GPU resource that only needs part of its memory actually backed, so huge resources can be partially loaded.
Sparse (partially-resident) resources let you declare a very large texture or buffer while only committing physical memory to the regions you currently use. The hardware maps in tiles on demand, so you can stream or virtualize enormous resources that would never fit in memory all at once. It is a Vulkan capability commonly used for megatextures and large virtual worlds.
See also
- samplerA GPU object that describes how a texture should be read — how it's filtered and how coordinates outside its edges behave.
- SSBOA large GPU buffer that shaders can both read from and write to freely.
- shared memoryFast scratch memory that a group of GPU threads can all read and write to cooperate.