← All parts of this equation

Equation 3 · Part 2 · Serving a Frontier Model: The KV Cache, Batching, and What a Token Actually Costs

subscript

nkvn_{\mathrm{kv}}
subscript

What this part means

The lower label selects a particular version, component, or indexed member of the quantity. For example, x₀ and xₜ can be values at different positions.

Its job in the formula

A subscript distinguishes a version, component, step, or member of a quantity. It does not automatically mean multiplication.

The passage around this formula

for L layers, nkvn_{\mathrm{kv}} key–value heads, head dimension dheadd_{\mathrm{head}} , sequence length s , batch size b , and p bytes per element. The factor of two counts keys and values.

Read this part in the article →

Learn the underlying idea

A subscript is a label attached below a symbol. It often selects a time step, component, category, or member of a sequence.

Open the illustrated subscripts: which member of a family? guide →

Sources cited in the article section

These citations provide research context; check each source for the exact claim it supports.