What is it?
An array is a linear data structure, which is also referred to as a list, collection, or Tensors. They are Vectors which necessarily work allocating sequential data in memory. Each data point inside the array is called an element. Elements must be of the same type, and are indexed from start to finish, normally starting on in programming languages.
Types of arrays
An implementation of the array structure can be divided in two types: static arrays and dynamic arrays.
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Static arrays
Static arrays have fixed sizes defined at compile time, being stored in the stack. This means that once the array is instantiated, it can’t change its size, and Pointers are needed to access variables.
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Dynamic arrays
Dynamic arrays can have unknown sizes at compile time, being stored on heap. Each time its size changes at run time , it re-allocates in a memory space that fits all data, meaning that you can change the size in the heap, while maintaining a pointer in the stack.
Where dynamic arrays are not enough
Dynamic arrays flexibility to change its size at run time may be not enough. This is where Linked Lists come in! They can be more flexible regarding memory allocation.