Efficient modular arithmetic units for low power cryptographic applications

The demand for high security in energy constrained devices such as mobiles and PDAs is growing rapidly. This leads to the need for efficient design of cryptographic algorithms which offer data integrity, authentication, non-repudiation and confidentiality of the encrypted data and communication channels. The public key cryptography is an ideal choice for data integrity, authentication and non-repudiation whereas the private key cryptography ensures the confidentiality of the data transmitted. The latter has an extremely high encryption speed but it has certain limitations which make it unsuitable for use in certain applications. Numerous public key cryptographic algorithms are available in the literature which comprise modular arithmetic modules such as modular addition, multiplication, inversion and exponentiation. Recently, numerous cryptographic algorithms have been proposed based on modular arithmetic which are scalable, do word based operations and efficient in various aspects. The modular arithmetic modules play a crucial role in the overall performance of the cryptographic processor. Hence, better results can be obtained by designing efficient arithmetic modules such as modular addition, multiplication, exponentiation and squaring. This thesis is organized into three papers, describes the efficient implementation of modular arithmetic units, application of these modules in International Data Encryption Algorithm (IDEA). Second paper describes the IDEA algorithm implementation using the existing techniques and using the proposed efficient modular units. The third paper describes the fault tolerant design of a modular unit which has online self-checking capability --Abstract, page iv

A Survey on the Best Choice for Modulus of Residue Code

Nowadays, the development of technology and the growing need for dense and complex chips have led chip industries to increase their attention on the circuit testability. Also, using the electronic chips in certain industries, such as the space industry, makes the design of fault tolerant circuits a challenging issue. Coding is one of the most suitable methods for error detection and correction. The residue code, as one of the best choices for error detection aims, is wildly used in large arithmetic circuits such as multiplier and also finds a wide range of applications in processors and digital filters. The modulus value in this technique directly effect on the area overhead parameter. A large area overhead is one of the most important disadvantages especially for testing the small circuits. The purpose of this paper is to study and investigate the best choice for residue code check base that is used for simple and small circuits such as a simple ripple carry adder. The performances are evaluated by applying stuck-at-faults and transition-faults by simulators. The efficiency is defined based on fault coverage and normalized area overhead. The results show that the modulus 3 with 95% efficiency provided the best result. Residue code with this modulus for checking a ripple carry adder, in comparison with duplex circuit, 30% improves the efficiency

Low-cost duplication for separable error detection in computer arithmetic

Low-cost arithmetic error detection will be necessary in the future to ensure correct and safe system operation. However, current error detection mechanisms for arithmetic either have high area and energy overheads or are complex and offer incomplete protection against errors. Full duplication is simple, strong, and separable, but often is prohibitively costly. Alternative techniques such as arithmetic error coding require lower hardware and energy overheads than full duplication, but they do so at the expense of high design effort and error coverage holes. The goal of this research is to mitigate the deficiencies of duplication and arithmetic error coding to form an error detection scheme that may be readily employed in future systems. The techniques described by this work use a general duplication technique that employs an alternate number system in the duplicate arithmetic unit. These novel dual modular redundancy organizations are referred to as low-cost duplication, and they provide compelling efficiency and coverage advantages over prior arithmetic error detection mechanisms.Electrical and Computer Engineerin

Investigations into the feasibility of an on-line test methodology

This thesis aims to understand how information coding and the protocol that it supports can affect the characteristics of electronic circuits. More specifically, it investigates an on-line test methodology called IFIS (If it Fails It Stops) and its impact on the design, implementation and subsequent characteristics of circuits intended for application specific lC (ASIC) technology. The first study investigates the influences of information coding and protocol on the characteristics of IFIS systems. The second study investigates methods of circuit design applicable to IFIS cells and identifies the· technique possessing the characteristics most suitable for on-line testing. The third study investigates the characteristics of a 'real-life' commercial UART re-engineered using the techniques resulting from the previous two studies. The final study investigates the effects of the halting properties endowed by the protocol on failure diagnosis within IFIS systems. The outcome of this work is an identification and characterisation of the factors that influence behaviour, implementation costs and the ability to test and diagnose IFIS designs

Residue Number System Based Building Blocks for Applications in Digital Signal Processing

Předkládaná disertační práce se zabývá návrhem základních bloků v systému zbytkových tříd pro zvýšení výkonu aplikací určených pro digitální zpracování signálů (DSP). Systém zbytkových tříd (RNS) je neváhová číselná soustava, jež umožňuje provádět paralelizovatelné, vysokorychlostní, bezpečné a proti chybám odolné aritmetické operace, které jsou zpracovávány bez přenosu mezi řády. Tyto vlastnosti jej činí značně perspektivním pro použití v DSP aplikacích náročných na výpočetní výkon a odolných proti chybám. Typický RNS systém se skládá ze tří hlavních částí: převodníku z binárního kódu do RNS, který počítá ekvivalent vstupních binárních hodnot v systému zbytkových tříd, dále jsou to paralelně řazené RNS aritmetické jednotky, které provádějí aritmetické operace s operandy již převedenými do RNS. Poslední část pak tvoří převodník z RNS do binárního kódu, který převádí výsledek zpět do výchozího binárního kódu. Hlavním cílem této disertační práce bylo navrhnout nové struktury základních bloků výše zmiňovaného systému zbytkových tříd, které mohou být využity v aplikacích DSP. Tato disertační práce předkládá zlepšení a návrhy nových struktur komponent RNS, simulaci a také ověření jejich funkčnosti prostřednictvím implementace v obvodech FPGA. Kromě návrhů nové struktury základních komponentů RNS je prezentován také podrobný výzkum různých sad modulů, který je srovnává a determinuje nejefektivnější sadu pro různé dynamické rozsahy. Dalším z klíčových přínosů disertační práce je objevení a ověření podmínky určující výběr optimální sady modulů, která umožňuje zvýšit výkonnost aplikací DSP. Dále byla navržena aplikace pro zpracování obrazu využívající RNS, která má vůči klasické binární implementanci nižší spotřebu a vyšší maximální pracovní frekvenci. V závěru práce byla vyhodnocena hlavní kritéria při rozhodování, zda je vhodnější pro danou aplikaci využít binární číselnou soustavu nebo RNS.This doctoral thesis deals with designing residue number system based building blocks to enhance the performance of digital signal processing applications. The residue number system (RNS) is a non-weighted number system that provides carry-free, parallel, high speed, secure and fault tolerant arithmetic operations. These features make it very attractive to be used in high-performance and fault tolerant digital signal processing (DSP) applications. A typical RNS system consists of three main components; the first one is the binary to residue converter that computes the RNS equivalent of the inputs represented in the binary number system. The second component in this system is parallel residue arithmetic units that perform arithmetic operations on the operands already represented in RNS. The last component is the residue to binary converter, which converts the outputs back into their binary representation. The main aim of this thesis was to propose novel structures of the basic components of this system in order to be later used as fundamental units in DSP applications. This thesis encloses improving and designing novel structures of these components, simulating and verifying their efficiency via FPGA implementation. In addition to suggesting novel structures of basic RNS components, a detailed study on different moduli sets that compares and determines the most efficient one for different dynamic range requirements is also presented. One of the main outcomes of this thesis is concluding and verifying the main condition that should be met when choosing a moduli set, in order to improve the timing performance of a DSP application. An RNS-based image processing application is also proposed. Its efficiency, in terms of timing performance and power consumption, is proved via comparing it with a binary-based one. Finally, the main considerations that should be taken into account when choosing to use the binary number system or RNS are also discussed in details.

Self-Checking Ripple-Carry Adder with Ambipolar Silicon Nanowire FET

For the rapid adoption of new and aggressive technologies such as ambipolar Silicon NanoWire (SiNW), addressing fault-tolerance is necessary. Traditionally, transient fault detection implies large hardware overhead or performance decrease compared to permanent fault detection. In this paper, we focus on on-line testing and its application to ambipolar SiNW. We demonstrate on self - checking ripple - carry adder how ambipolar design style can help reduce the hardware overhead. When compared with equivalent CMOS process, ambipolar SiNW design shows a reduction in area of at least 56% (28%) with a decreased delay of 62% (6%) for Static (Transmission Gate) design style

Public key cryptosystems : theory, application and implementation

The determination of an individual's right to privacy is mainly a nontechnical matter, but the pragmatics of providing it is the central concern of the cryptographer. This thesis has sought answers to some of the outstanding issues in cryptography. In particular, some of the theoretical, application and implementation problems associated with a Public Key Cryptosystem (PKC).The Trapdoor Knapsack (TK) PKC is capable of fast throughput, but suffers from serious disadvantages. In chapter two a more general approach to the TK-PKC is described, showing how the public key size can be significantly reduced. To overcome the security limitations a new trapdoor was described in chapter three. It is based on transformations between the radix and residue number systems.Chapter four considers how cryptography can best be applied to multi-addressed packets of information. We show how security or communication network structure can be used to advantage, then proposing a new broadcast cryptosystem, which is more generally applicable.Copyright is traditionally used to protect the publisher from the pirate. Chapter five shows how to protect information when in easily copyable digital format.Chapter six describes the potential and pitfalls of VLSI, followed in chapter seven by a model for comparing the cost and performance of VLSI architectures. Chapter eight deals with novel architectures for all the basic arithmetic operations. These architectures provide a basic vocabulary of low complexity VLSI arithmetic structures for a wide range of applications.The design of a VLSI device, the Advanced Cipher Processor (ACP), to implement the RSA algorithm is described in chapter nine. It's heart is the modular exponential unit, which is a synthesis of the architectures in chapter eight. The ACP is capable of a throughput of 50 000 bits per second

On Fault Tolerance Methods for Networks-on-Chip

Technology scaling has proceeded into dimensions in which the reliability of manufactured devices is becoming endangered. The reliability decrease is a consequence of physical limitations, relative increase of variations, and decreasing noise margins, among others. A promising solution for bringing the reliability of circuits back to a desired level is the use of design methods which introduce tolerance against possible faults in an integrated circuit. This thesis studies and presents fault tolerance methods for network-onchip (NoC) which is a design paradigm targeted for very large systems-onchip. In a NoC resources, such as processors and memories, are connected to a communication network; comparable to the Internet. Fault tolerance in such a system can be achieved at many abstraction levels. The thesis studies the origin of faults in modern technologies and explains the classification to transient, intermittent and permanent faults. A survey of fault tolerance methods is presented to demonstrate the diversity of available methods. Networks-on-chip are approached by exploring their main design choices: the selection of a topology, routing protocol, and flow control method. Fault tolerance methods for NoCs are studied at different layers of the OSI reference model. The data link layer provides a reliable communication link over a physical channel. Error control coding is an efficient fault tolerance method especially against transient faults at this abstraction level. Error control coding methods suitable for on-chip communication are studied and their implementations presented. Error control coding loses its effectiveness in the presence of intermittent and permanent faults. Therefore, other solutions against them are presented. The introduction of spare wires and split transmissions are shown to provide good tolerance against intermittent and permanent errors and their combination to error control coding is illustrated. At the network layer positioned above the data link layer, fault tolerance can be achieved with the design of fault tolerant network topologies and routing algorithms. Both of these approaches are presented in the thesis together with realizations in the both categories. The thesis concludes that an optimal fault tolerance solution contains carefully co-designed elements from different abstraction levelsSiirretty Doriast

Techniques for the realization of ultra- reliable spaceborne computer Final report

Bibliography and new techniques for use of error correction and redundancy to improve reliability of spaceborne computer