Hard to Crack Hardware

Fascinating development using Logic locks and Spin alignment. 

Hard-to-Crack Hardware

King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (Saudi Arabia)

November 14, 2022

A team of researchers at Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) has created an integrated circuit logic lock that could advance cyberattack-resistant electronic devices. The researchers based the logic lock on a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ), which uses spintronics to function.

 The MTJ's electronic output relies on the spin alignment of the electrons inside it, and only generates the correct output for the circuit when it receives the appropriate key signal input. KAUST's Yehia Massoud said, "With the advancement in fabrication methods, the possibility of using emerging spintronic device structures in the chip design has increased. These properties make spintronic devices a potential choice for exploring hardware security."