How does the use of the stack change during the execution of a program?

During program execution, the stack is used to store information about function calls, local variables, and control flow.

When a function is called, a frame (call context) is placed on the stack, which contains:

• Return address (where to return after the function completes)
• Local variables
• Function parameters

When the function finishes, its frame is removed from the stack.

In Go, the stack grows and shrinks dynamically as needed, allowing efficient memory use. For example, when a recursive function is called, the stack expands, and when functions return, it contracts.

Example:

func factorial(n int) int {
    if n == 0 {
        return 1
    }
    return n * factorial(n-1)
}

func main() {
    result := factorial(5)
    fmt.Println(result) // 120
}

Here, each call to factorial adds a new frame to the stack, which is removed upon returning from the function.