compression is how tightly packed the air is in the engine. say your engines compression ratio is 10:1(10 to 1). this means that the pistons compressed the air/fuel mixture 10 times its original pressure. the higher the preesure, the more excited the molecules get, resulting in a more violent explosion.
this is why low compression pistons are used in turbo engines. the air pressure going in is already pretty high, so if the pistons compress it anymore, it could explode prematurely, causing a condition known as "knock". this is bad, because it will cause the piston to move the opposite way when it is not supposed to causing your engine to go BOOM. so not only do you use lower compression pistons, you use a higher octane fuel. a fuels octane rating is its resistance to burn, so a higher octane fuel also helps in preventing knock.
Though this is not saying you can't build a high compression turbo motor...it just takes a bit more tuning and the right parts too. My friend was able to make 600awhp on his Galant VR4 on a fully built 4G63 with 10:1 custom made pistons with a GT35r at only 23lbs of boost.
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