scholarly journals Random-telegraph-noise-enabled true random number generator for hardware security

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
James Brown ◽  
Jian Fu Zhang ◽  
Bo Zhou ◽  
Mehzabeen Mehedi ◽  
Pedro Freitas ◽  
...  

Abstract The future security of Internet of Things is a key concern in the cyber-security field. One of the key issues is the ability to generate random numbers with strict power and area constrains. “True Random Number Generators” have been presented as a potential solution to this problem but improvements in output bit rate, power consumption, and design complexity must be made. In this work we present a novel and experimentally verified “True Random Number Generator” that uses exclusively conventional CMOS technology as well as offering key improvements over previous designs in complexity, output bitrate, and power consumption. It uses the inherent randomness of telegraph noise in the channel current of a single CMOS transistor as an entropy source. For the first time multi-level and abnormal telegraph noise can be utilised, which greatly reduces device selectivity and offers much greater bitrates. The design is verified using a breadboard and FPGA proof of concept circuit and passes all 15 of the NIST randomness tests without any need for post-processing of the generated bitstream. The design also shows resilience against machine learning attacks performed by the LSTM neural network.

Author(s):  
SELÇUK COŞKUN ◽  
İHSAN PEHLİVAN ◽  
AKİF AKGÜL ◽  
BİLAL GÜREVİN

The basis of encryption techniques is random number generators (RNGs). The application areas of cryptology are increasing in number due to continuously developing technology, so the need for RNGs is increasing rapidly, too. RNGs can be divided into two categories as pseudorandom number generator (PRNGs) and true random number generator (TRNGs). TRNGs are systems that use unpredictable and uncontrollable entropy sources and generate random numbers. During the design of TRNGs, while analog signals belonging to the used entropy sources are being converted to digital data, generally comparators, flip-flops, Schmitt triggers, and ADCs are used. In this study, a computer-controlled new and flexible platform to find the most appropriate system parameters in ADC-based TRNG designs is designed and realized. As a sample application with this new platform, six different TRNGs that use three different outputs of Zhongtang, which is a continuous time chaotic system, as an entropy source are designed. Random number series generated with the six designed TRNGs are put through the NIST800–22 test, which has the internationally highest standards, and they pass all tests. With the help of the new platform designed, ADC-based high-quality TRNGs can be developed fast and also without the need for expertise. The platform has been designed to decide which entropy source and parameter are better by comparing them before complex embedded TRNG designs. In addition, this platform can be used for educational purposes to explain how to work an ADC-based TRNG. That is why it can be utilized as an experiment set in engineering education, as well.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott Stoller

Random numbers are an important, but often overlooked part of the modern computing environment. They are used everywhere around us for a variety of purposes, from simple decision making in video games such as a coin toss, to securing financial transactions and encrypting confidential communications. They are even useful for gambling and the lottery. Random numbers are generated in many ways. Pseudo random number generators (PRNGs) generate numbers based on a formula. True random number generators (TRNGs) capture entropy from the environment to generate randomness. As our society and our devices become more connected in the digital world, it is important to develop new ways to generate truly random numbers in order to secure communications and connected devices. In this work a novel memristor-based True Random Number Generator is designed and a physical implementation is fabricated and tested using a W-based self-directed channel (SDC) memristor. The circuit was initially designed and prototyped on a breadboard. A custom Printed Circuit Board (PCB) was fabricated for the final circuit design and testing of the novel memristor-based TRNG. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Statistical Test Suite (STS) was used to check the output of the TRNG for randomness. The TRNG was demonstrated to pass 13 statistical tests out of the 15 in the STS.


2020 ◽  
Vol 102 (4) ◽  
pp. 2887-2904
Author(s):  
Ngoc Nguyen ◽  
Georges Kaddoum ◽  
Fabio Pareschi ◽  
Riccardo Rovatti ◽  
Gianluca Setti

AbstractLow-power devices used in Internet-of-things networks have been short of security due to the high power consumption of random number generators. This paper presents a low-power hyperchaos-based true random number generator, which is highly recommended for secure communications. The proposed system, which is based on a four-dimensional chaotic system with hidden attractors and oscillators, exhibits rich dynamics. Numerical analysis is provided to verify the dynamic characteristics of the proposed system. A fully customized circuit is deployed using 130 nm CMOS technology to enable integration into low-power devices. Four output signals are used to seed a SHIFT-XOR-based chaotic data post-processing to generate random bit output. The chip prototype was simulated and tested at 100 MHz sampling frequency. The hyperchaotic circuit consumes a maximum of 980 $$\upmu $$ μ W in generating chaotic signals while dissipates a static current of 623 $$\upmu $$ μ A. Moreover, the proposed system provides ready-to-use binary random bit sequences which have passed the well-known statistical randomness test suite NIST SP800-22. The proposed novel system design and its circuit implementation provide a best energy efficiency of 4.37 pJ/b at a maximum sampling frequency of 100 MHz.


2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (7) ◽  
pp. 1001-1011
Author(s):  
Dhirendra Kumar ◽  
Rahul Anand ◽  
Sajai Vir Singh ◽  
Prasanna Kumar Misra ◽  
Ashok Srivastava ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
pp. 2100062
Author(s):  
Kyung Seok Woo ◽  
Jaehyun Kim ◽  
Janguk Han ◽  
Jin Myung Choi ◽  
Woohyun Kim ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 3330
Author(s):  
Pietro Nannipieri ◽  
Stefano Di Matteo ◽  
Luca Baldanzi ◽  
Luca Crocetti ◽  
Jacopo Belli ◽  
...  

Random numbers are widely employed in cryptography and security applications. If the generation process is weak, the whole chain of security can be compromised: these weaknesses could be exploited by an attacker to retrieve the information, breaking even the most robust implementation of a cipher. Due to their intrinsic close relationship with analogue parameters of the circuit, True Random Number Generators are usually tailored on specific silicon technology and are not easily scalable on programmable hardware, without affecting their entropy. On the other hand, programmable hardware and programmable System on Chip are gaining large adoption rate, also in security critical application, where high quality random number generation is mandatory. The work presented herein describes the design and the validation of a digital True Random Number Generator for cryptographically secure applications on Field Programmable Gate Array. After a preliminary study of literature and standards specifying requirements for random number generation, the design flow is illustrated, from specifications definition to the synthesis phase. Several solutions have been studied to assess their performances on a Field Programmable Gate Array device, with the aim to select the highest performance architecture. The proposed designs have been tested and validated, employing official test suites released by NIST standardization body, assessing the independence from the place and route and the randomness degree of the generated output. An architecture derived from the Fibonacci-Galois Ring Oscillator has been selected and synthesized on Intel Stratix IV, supporting throughput up to 400 Mbps. The achieved entropy in the best configuration is greater than 0.995.


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