Asymptotic Improvement of the Gilbert-Varshamov Bound on the Size of Binary Codes

Given positive integers $n$ and $d$, let $A_2(n,d)$ denote the maximum size of a binary code of length $n$ and minimum distance $d$. The well-known Gilbert-Varshamov bound asserts that $A_2(n,d) \geq 2^n/V(n,d-1)$, where $V(n,d) = \sum_{i=0}^{d} {n \choose i}$ is the volume of a Hamming sphere of radius $d$. We show that, in fact, there exists a positive constant $c$ such that $$A_2(n,d) \geq c \frac{2^n}{V(n,d-1)} \log_2 V(n,d-1)$$ whenever $d/n \le 0.499$. The result follows by recasting the Gilbert- Varshamov bound into a graph-theoretic framework and using the fact that the corresponding graph is locally sparse. Generalizations and extensions of this result are briefly discussed.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures; to appear in the IEEE Transactions on Information Theory, submitted August 12, 2003, revised March 28, 200

Architectures for Code-based Post-Quantum Cryptography

L'abstract è presente nell'allegato / the abstract is in the attachmen

Signing with Codes

Code-based cryptography is an area of classical cryptography in which cryptographic primitives rely on hard problems and trapdoor functions related to linear error-correcting codes. Since its inception in 1978, the area has produced the McEliece and the Niederreiter cryptosystems, multiple digital signature schemes, identification schemes and code-based hash functions. All of these are believed to be resistant to attacks by quantum computers. Hence, code-based cryptography represents a post-quantum alternative to the widespread number-theoretic systems. This thesis summarizes recent developments in the field of code-based cryptography, with a particular emphasis on code-based signature schemes. After a brief introduction and analysis of the McEliece and the Niederreiter cryptosystems, we discuss the currently unresolved issue of constructing a practical, yet provably secure signature scheme. A detailed analysis is provided for the Courtois, Finiasz and Sendrier signature scheme, along with the mCFS and parallel CFS variations. Finally, we discuss a recent proposal by Preetha et al. that attempts to solve the issue of provable security, currently failing in the CFS scheme case, by randomizing the public key construct. We conclude that, while the proposal is not yet practical, it represents an important advancement in the search for an ideal code-based signature scheme

A Flexible NTT-based multiplier for Post-Quantum Cryptography

In this work an NTT-based (Number Theoretic Transform) multiplier for code-based Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) is presented, supporting Quasi Cyclic Low/Moderate-Density Parity-Check (QC LDPC/MDPC) codes. The cyclic matrix product, which is the fundamental operation required in this application, is treated as a polynomial product and adapted to the specific case of QC-MDPC codes proposed for Round 3 and 4 in the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) competition for PQC. The multiplier is a fundamental component in both encryption and decryption, and the proposed solution leads to a flexible NTT-based multiplier, which can efficiently handle all types of required products, where the vectors have a length ≈104 and can be moderately sparse. The proposed architecture is implemented using both Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) and Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) technologies and, when compared with the best published results, it features a 10 times reduction of the encryption times with the area increased by 3 times. The proposed multiplier, incorporated in the encryption and decryption stages of a code-based PQC cryptosystem, leads to an improvement over the best published results between 3 to 10 times in terms of LC product (LUT times latency)

Cryptography based on the Hardness of Decoding

This thesis provides progress in the fields of for lattice and coding based cryptography. The first contribution consists of constructions of IND-CCA2 secure public key cryptosystems from both the McEliece and the low noise learning parity with noise assumption. The second contribution is a novel instantiation of the lattice-based learning with errors problem which uses uniform errors

Anticodes and error-correcting for digital data transmission

The work reported in this thesis is an investigation in the field of error-control coding. This subject is concerned with increasing the reliability of digital data transmission through a noisy medium, by coding the transmitted data. In this respect, an extension and development of a method for finding optimum and near-optimum codes, using N.m digital arrays known as anticodes, is established and described. The anticodes, which have opposite properties to their complementary related error-control codes, are disjoined fron the original maximal-length code, known as the parent anticode, to leave good linear block codes. The mathematical analysis of the parent anticode and as a result the mathematical analysis of its related anticodes has given some useful insight into the construction of a large number of optimum and near-optimum anticodes resulting respectively in a large number of optimum and near-optimum codes. This work has been devoted to the construction of anticodes from unit basic (small dimension) anticodes by means of various systematic construction and refinement techniques, which simplifies the construction of the associated linear block codes over a wide range of parameters. An extensive list of these anticodes and codes is given in the thesis. The work also has been extended to the construction of anticodes in which the symbols have been chosen from the elements of the finite field GF(q), and, in particular, a large number of optimum and near-optimum codes over GF(3) have been found. This generalises the concept of anticodes into the subject of multilevel codes

Prefactor Reduction of the Guruswami-Sudan Interpolation Step

The concept of prefactors is considered in order to decrease the complexity of the Guruswami-Sudan interpolation step for generalized Reed-Solomon codes. It is shown that the well-known re-encoding projection due to Koetter et al. leads to one type of such prefactors. The new type of Sierpinski prefactors is introduced. The latter are based on the fact that many binomial coefficients in the Hasse derivative associated with the Guruswami-Sudan interpolation step are zero modulo the base field characteristic. It is shown that both types of prefactors can be combined and how arbitrary prefactors can be used to derive a reduced Guruswami-Sudan interpolation step.Comment: 13 pages, 3 figure

Sur l'algorithme de décodage en liste de Guruswami-Sudan sur les anneaux finis

This thesis studies the algorithmic techniques of list decoding, first proposed by Guruswami and Sudan in 1998, in the context of Reed-Solomon codes over finite rings. Two approaches are considered. First we adapt the Guruswami-Sudan (GS) list decoding algorithm to generalized Reed-Solomon (GRS) codes over finite rings with identity. We study in details the complexities of the algorithms for GRS codes over Galois rings and truncated power series rings. Then we explore more deeply a lifting technique for list decoding. We show that the latter technique is able to correct more error patterns than the original GS list decoding algorithm. We apply the technique to GRS code over Galois rings and truncated power series rings and show that the algorithms coming from this technique have a lower complexity than the original GS algorithm. We show that it can be easily adapted for interleaved Reed-Solomon codes. Finally we present the complete implementation in C and C++ of the list decoding algorithms studied in this thesis. All the needed subroutines, such as univariate polynomial root finding algorithms, finite fields and rings arithmetic, are also presented. Independently, this manuscript contains other work produced during the thesis. We study quasi cyclic codes in details and show that they are in one-to-one correspondence with left principal ideal of a certain matrix ring. Then we adapt the GS framework for ideal based codes to number fields codes and provide a list decoding algorithm for the latter.Cette thèse porte sur l'algorithmique des techniques de décodage en liste, initiée par Guruswami et Sudan en 1998, dans le contexte des codes de Reed-Solomon sur les anneaux finis. Deux approches sont considérées. Dans un premier temps, nous adaptons l'algorithme de décodage en liste de Guruswami-Sudan aux codes de Reed-Solomon généralisés sur les anneaux finis. Nous étudions en détails les complexités de l'algorithme pour les anneaux de Galois et les anneaux de séries tronquées. Dans un deuxième temps nous approfondissons l'étude d'une technique de remontée pour le décodage en liste. Nous montrons que cette derni're permet de corriger davantage de motifs d'erreurs que la technique de Guruswami-Sudan originale. Nous appliquons ensuite cette même technique aux codes de Reed-Solomon généralisés sur les anneaux de Galois et les anneaux de séries tronquées et obtenons de meilleures bornes de complexités. Enfin nous présentons l'implantation des algorithmes en C et C++ des algorithmes de décodage en liste étudiés au cours de cette thèse. Tous les sous-algorithmes nécessaires au décodage en liste, comme la recherche de racines pour les polynômes univariés, l'arithmétique des corps et anneaux finis sont aussi présentés. Indépendamment, ce manuscrit contient d'autres travaux sur les codes quasi-cycliques. Nous prouvons qu'ils sont en correspondance biunivoque avec les idéaux à gauche d'un certain anneaux de matrices. Enfin nous adaptons le cadre proposé par Guruswami et Sudan pour les codes à base d'ideaux aux codes construits à l'aide des corps de nombres. Nous fournissons un algorithme de décodage en liste dans ce contexte