Detection of laser-based security attacks
AssigneeQUALCOMM Incorporated
InventorsAlan Lewis, Zhengming Fu, Nan Chen, Adam Cezary Polak, Laura Fuentes, Gregory Bullard, Mark Todorovich
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Abstract
Various embodiments include integrated approaches to detecting attempts to breach system-level or chip-level security using photo-generated currents induced by lasers or other radiation sources. Various embodiments integrate photo-detection circuits with a secure processor or other circuit in such a manner that the response to a security attack is fast enough to prevent loss of secure or private information are described. Various embodiments include circuits capable of providing a permanent record of photocurrent detection.
Claims9
A method of detecting an incident of radiation on a photocurrent detection circuit, comprising:
- resetting a photocurrent detection circuit, wherein the photocurrent detection circuit comprises:
- a first N-type metal-oxide-semiconductor (NMOS) device electrically connected to a first P-type metal-oxide-semiconductor (PMOS) device to form an inverter, wherein the photocurrent detection circuit is reset by turning on the first PMOS device of the inverter;
- an inverting buffer, wherein an input of the inverting buffer is coupled to an output of the inverter;
- and
- an additional NMOS device having a source of the additional NMOS device directly coupled to ground, and a drain of the additional NMOS device directly coupled to the output of the inverter;
- determining that a photocurrent is induced on the photocurrent detection circuit by radiation based on an output of the inverting buffer going from low to high;
- and
- performing a countermeasure in response to determining that the photocurrent is induced, wherein the countermeasure comprises disabling buffers in clock or data paths due to the photocurrent induced by radiation.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.