Key Generation in Wireless Sensor Networks Based on Frequency-selective Channels - Design, Implementation, and Analysis

Key management in wireless sensor networks faces several new challenges. The scale, resource limitations, and new threats such as node capture necessitate the use of an on-line key generation by the nodes themselves. However, the cost of such schemes is high since their secrecy is based on computational complexity. Recently, several research contributions justified that the wireless channel itself can be used to generate information-theoretic secure keys. By exchanging sampling messages during movement, a bit string can be derived that is only known to the involved entities. Yet, movement is not the only possibility to generate randomness. The channel response is also strongly dependent on the frequency of the transmitted signal. In our work, we introduce a protocol for key generation based on the frequency-selectivity of channel fading. The practical advantage of this approach is that we do not require node movement. Thus, the frequent case of a sensor network with static motes is supported. Furthermore, the error correction property of the protocol mitigates the effects of measurement errors and other temporal effects, giving rise to an agreement rate of over 97%. We show the applicability of our protocol by implementing it on MICAz motes, and evaluate its robustness and secrecy through experiments and analysis.Comment: Submitted to IEEE Transactions on Dependable and Secure Computin

A Semiblind Two-Way Training Method for Discriminatory Channel Estimation in MIMO Systems

Discriminatory channel estimation (DCE) is a recently developed strategy to enlarge the performance difference between a legitimate receiver (LR) and an unauthorized receiver (UR) in a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) wireless system. Specifically, it makes use of properly designed training signals to degrade channel estimation at the UR which in turn limits the UR's eavesdropping capability during data transmission. In this paper, we propose a new two-way training scheme for DCE through exploiting a whitening-rotation (WR) based semiblind method. To characterize the performance of DCE, a closed-form expression of the normalized mean squared error (NMSE) of the channel estimation is derived for both the LR and the UR. Furthermore, the developed analytical results on NMSE are utilized to perform optimal power allocation between the training signal and artificial noise (AN). The advantages of our proposed DCE scheme are two folds: 1) compared to the existing DCE scheme based on the linear minimum mean square error (LMMSE) channel estimator, the proposed scheme adopts a semiblind approach and achieves better DCE performance; 2) the proposed scheme is robust against active eavesdropping with the pilot contamination attack, whereas the existing scheme fails under such an attack.Comment: accepted for publication in IEEE Transactions on Communication

Secure OFDM System Design for Wireless Communications

Wireless communications is widely employed in modern society and plays an increasingly important role in people\u27s daily life. The broadcast nature of radio propagation, however, causes wireless communications particularly vulnerable to malicious attacks, and leads to critical challenges in securing the wireless transmission. Motivated by the insufficiency of traditional approaches to secure wireless communications, physical layer security that is emerging as a complement to the traditional upper-layer security mechanisms is investigated in this dissertation. Five novel techniques toward the physical layer security of wireless communications are proposed. The first two techniques focus on the security risk assessment in wireless networks to enable a situation-awareness based transmission protection. The third and fourth techniques utilize wireless medium characteristics to enhance the built-in security of wireless communication systems, so as to prevent passive eavesdropping. The last technique provides an embedded confidential signaling link for secure transmitter-receiver interaction in OFDM systems

Massive MIMO transmission techniques

Next generation of mobile communication systems must support astounding data traffic increases, higher data rates and lower latency, among other requirements. These requirements should be met while assuring energy efficiency for mobile devices and base stations. Several technologies are being proposed for 5G, but a consensus begins to emerge. Most likely, the future core 5G technologies will include massive MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) and beamforming schemes operating in the millimeter wave spectrum. As soon as the millimeter wave propagation difficulties are overcome, the full potential of massive MIMO structures can be tapped. The present work proposes a new transmission system with bi-dimensional antenna arrays working at millimeter wave frequencies, where the multiple antenna configurations can be used to obtain very high gain and directive transmission in point to point communications. A combination of beamforming with a constellation shaping scheme is proposed, that enables good user isolation and protection against eavesdropping, while simultaneously assuring power efficient amplification of multi-level constellations

Telecommunication Systems

This book is based on both industrial and academic research efforts in which a number of recent advancements and rare insights into telecommunication systems are well presented. The volume is organized into four parts: "Telecommunication Protocol, Optimization, and Security Frameworks", "Next-Generation Optical Access Technologies", "Convergence of Wireless-Optical Networks" and "Advanced Relay and Antenna Systems for Smart Networks." Chapters within these parts are self-contained and cross-referenced to facilitate further study