Grant: Discovery Grants Program - Individual

Lightweight cryptography refers to the design and implementation of security algorithms that are targeted to digital hardware embedded systems constrained in resources, such as area, power, and energy. Examples of such systems include RFID tags, smartcards, and nodes in wireless sensor networks and the constrained nature of such systems poses unique challenges for the design of system security. The intent of this research is to investigate the design, implementation, and application of lightweight cryptographic algorithms such as block ciphers, stream ciphers, and hash functions targeted to embedded systems. In this research, we will explore the design and implementation issues of lightweight cryptography, targeted to both application specific integrated circuits (ASICs) and field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), and will include consideration of all requirements important to embedded systems, including area, power, and energy. Since many embedded systems can be expected to utilize multiple cryptographic algorithms, we will examine aspects such as resource sharing to improve efficiency. Further, the designs and implementations will consider the application of side-channel attacks and methods will be investigated to mitigate these attacks. Research outcomes will include the creation of new lightweight cipher and hash algorithms, analysis of new and existing algorithms, and the development of novel, efficient implementations targeted to important applications such as wireless sensor networks. The research undertaken will contribute significantly to the knowledge associated with lightweight cryptographic hardware design and is expected to influence the engineering practice associated with embedded system security. This will be of significant value, both in terms of intellectual property and training of highly qualified personnel, to Canadian industry and government organizations in the information technology and telecommunications sectors.