Introduction to Arrays in C Programming

An array in C is a collection of similar type of data items stored at contiguous memory locations. It can store primitive data types such as int, char, double, float, etc., as well as derived data types like pointers and structures. For example, an array can store the marks of a student in 6 subjects at contiguous memory locations.

The properties of an array in C programming language are: each element is of the same data type and size, elements are stored at contiguous memory locations, and elements can be randomly accessed by calculating their address using the base address and the size of the data element.

Using an array in C programming language leads to code optimization by requiring less code to access the data. This is because only a few lines of code are required to access the elements of the array, making the code more efficient.

Using an array in C programming language would be beneficial when there is a need to store similar elements, such as storing the marks of a student in multiple subjects. Instead of defining different variables for each subject, an array can be used to store the marks at contiguous memory locations.

The first element of an array in C programming language is stored at the smallest memory location. This signifies the starting point of the array and allows for easy calculation of the address of each element based on the base address and the size of the data element.