The exploration of leveraging physical attributes of hardware for cryptographic purposes has become a topic of research. Among these avenues, the utilization of Physical Unclonable Functions (PUFs) is one feature that is widely studied. PUFs provide the ability to generate encryption keys for device authentication by exploiting inherent variations in physical structures. In this research work, the focus lies on probing the characteristics of a DRAM-based PUF structure on the Intel Galileo Platform to discern its degradation traits and assess its suitability as a cryptographic primitive. As the adoption of PUFs in diverse applications surges, it becomes imperative to scrutinize their susceptibility to various forms of side-channel attacks. The research work is divided into two parts.
First, experimental investigations have been undertaken to ascertain the vulnerability of the DRAM PUF which is the magnetic fault injection to understand its resilience against such threats. Secondly, the analysis of PUF measurements has been conducted to elucidate its potential as a dependable source for physical cryptography, particularly in the context of the oblivious transfer protocol which is based on the fuzzy transfer protocol.
The results contributes to a deeper understanding of its application as a physical token as well as the security implications associated with deploying PUFs in cryptographic applications and pave the way for the development of robust countermeasures to mitigate emerging risks. / Master of Science / In the digital realm of ubiquitous smart devices, ensuring security has become utmost important. Various studies have been conducted to explore the use of physical hardware features for cryptography. The PUF, which are characteristics of the hardware stemming from the variations in the manufacturing process is one such feature that can be used to generate a secure key for device verification.
In this study, DRAM-based PUF structure is analyzed for two purposes. The first part of the research is the study of vulnerability of such DRAM-based PUF due to a type of external stimuli where magnetic field radiation is subjected on the DRAM cells to alter the original decay characteristics of the cells. It will help in providing an understanding of its risk towards such effects. The next part of the research work investigates the use of such DRAM-based PUF as a physical cryptographic key where the sender physically transfers the DRAM chip to the receiver and device authentication happens using the DRAM-based PUF.
The research work aims to deepen the understanding of PUFs and their applications. This understanding is crucial for developing resilient security measures and address emerging threats posed by malicious attackers in the digital landscape. Ultimately, these efforts aim to ensure the integrity and confidentiality of sensitive information in an increasingly interconnected world.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:VTETD/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/119221 |
| Date | 31 May 2024 |
| Creators | Ayaluru Venkata Krishnan, Sruthi |
| Contributors | Electrical and Computer Engineering, Xiong, Wenjie, Stavrou, Angelos, Wang, Haining |
| Publisher | Virginia Tech |
| Source Sets | Virginia Tech Theses and Dissertation |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | ETD, application/pdf |
| Rights | In Copyright, http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ |
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