PUF-based magnetometer with safety protection circuit

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12326489-B2
Application number	US-202318463316-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 8, 2023
Priority date	Jul 18, 2023
Publication date	Jun 10, 2025
Grant date	Jun 10, 2025

Abstract

A PUF-based magnetometer with a safety protection circuit is provided. The PUF-based magnetometer includes a TMR magnetometer main structure, a control circuit, a column encoder circuit, a row encoder circuit, a multiplexer and a dynamic comparator. The TMR magnetometer main structure includes n*n TMR sensors, and the TMR magnetometer main structure can also form a PUF circuit together with a control circuit, a column encoder circuit, a row encoder circuit, a multiplexer and a dynamic comparator to realize a function of a TMR magnetometer. The PUF circuit generates PUF response signals based on random deviations of a TMR sensor fabrication process. The PUF response signals generated by the PUF circuit make it more difficult for attackers to locate specific positions of the TPR sensors, and even make it hard to know the existence of the deviations of the TMR sensors.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A PUF-based magnetometer with a safety protection circuit, comprising:
a TMR magnetometer main structure, wherein the TMR magnetometer main structure comprises n*n TMR sensors, n is an integer greater than or equal to 2, and the n*n TMR sensors are arranged in n rows and n columns to form a TMR sensor array;
wherein each TMR sensor of the n*n TMR sensors has a power terminal, a first control terminal, a second control terminal and an output terminal; wherein
when valid signals are input to the first control terminal and the second control terminal of a TMR sensor of the n*n TMR sensors, the TMR sensor is enabled, and the output terminal of the TRM sensor outputs data; otherwise, the TMR sensor is disabled, and the output terminal of the TRM sensor does not output data;
in the TMR sensor array, a working voltage is accessed to the power terminals of the n*n TMR sensors, first control terminals of n TMR sensors in a jth row are connected and a connecting terminal is a jth row selection terminal of the TRM sensor array, wherein second control terminals n TMR sensors in a jth column are connected and a connecting terminal is a jth column selection terminal of the TRM sensor array, output terminals of the n TMR sensors in the jth column are connected and a connecting terminal is a jth output terminal of the TRM sensor array, and j=1, 2, . . . , and n;
wherein the PUF-based magnetometer further comprises:
a control circuit, configured to generate a row selection signal and a column selection signal, and configured to send the row selection signal to a row encoder circuit and the column selection signal to a column encoder circuit;
the row encoder circuit, configured to generate and output a corresponding row position signal according to the row selection signal, wherein the row position signal is n-bit binary data comprising two bits of valid data and (n−2) bits of invalid data;
the column encoder circuit, configured to generate and output a corresponding column position signal according to the column selection signal, wherein the column position signal is n-bit binary data comprising two bits of valid data and (n−2) bits of invalid data; wherein a jth bit of data of the row position signal is input to the jth row selection terminal of the TMR sensor array, and a jth bit of data of the column position signal is input to the jth column selection terminal of the TMR sensor array; wherein when the row position signal and the column position signal are input to the TMR sensor array, the two bits of valid data in the row position signal correspond to two valid rows, the two bits of valid data in the column position signal correspond to two valid columns, wherein the two valid rows are in one-to-one correspondence with the two valid columns, and each valid row and the corresponding valid column form a valid row-column position, such that two valid row-column positions are obtained; at this moment, one bit of valid data, namely a valid signal, is input to each of the first control terminal and the second control terminal of two TMR sensors of the n*n TMR sensors at the two valid row-column positions in the TMR sensor array, the two TMR sensors are enabled, the output terminals of the two TMR sensors output data, and the output terminals of the other TMR sensors do not output data;

a multiplexer, having n input terminals and two output terminals, wherein then input terminals of the multiplexer are connected to the first output terminal to the nth output terminal of the TMR sensor array in a one-to-one corresponding manner, and the multiplexer is configured to correspondingly output data output by the output terminals of the two enabled TMR sensors in the TMR sensor array through the two output terminals; and
a dynamic comparator, having a positive input terminal, a reverse input terminal and an output terminal, wherein the positive input terminal and the reverse input terminal of the dynamic comparator are connected to the two output terminals of the multiplexer in a one-to-one corresponding manner, and the dynamic comparator is configured to compare data input to the positive input terminal and data input to the reverse input terminal to generate a corresponding PUF response signal and output the PUF signal through the output terminal.

2. The PUF-based magnetometer with the safety protection circuit according to claim 1 , wherein each TMR sensor of the n*n TMR sensors comprises a tunneling magnetic resistor and two electronic switches, wherein each electronic switch of the two electronic switches has a first connecting terminal, a second connecting terminal and a control terminal;
wherein when a valid signal is input to the control terminal of an electronic switch of the two electronic switches, the first connecting terminal and the second connecting terminal of the electronic switch are connected; otherwise, the first connecting terminal and the second connecting terminal of the electronic switch are disconnected;
wherein the two electronic switches are respectively defined as a first electronic switch and a second electronic switch,
wherein the first connecting terminal of the first electronic switch is the power terminal of the TMR sensor, and the second connecting terminal of the first electronic switch is connected to one terminal of the tunneling magnetic resistor, the other terminal of the tunneling magnetic resistor is connected to the first connecting terminal of the second electronic switch,
wherein the second connecting terminal of the second electronic switch is the output terminal of the TMR sensor, the control terminal of the first electronic switch is the first control terminal of the TMR sensor, and the control terminal of the second electronic switch is the second control terminal of the TMR sensor.

3. The PUF-based magnetometer with the safety protection circuit according to claim 1 , wherein the dynamic comparator comprises a first MOS transistor, a second MOS transistor, a third MOS transistor, a fourth MOS transistor, a fifth MOS transistor, a sixth MOS transistor, a seventh MOS transistor, an eighth MOS transistor, a ninth MOS transistor, a tenth MOS transistor, an eleventh MOS transistor, a twelfth MOS transistor, a thirteenth MOS transistor, a fourteenth MOS transistor, a fifteenth MOS transistor, a sixteenth MOS transistor, a seventeenth MOS transistor, an eighteenth MOS transistor, a nineteenth MOS transistor, a twentieth MOS transistor, a twenty-first MOS transistor, a twenty-second MOS transistor, a twenty-third MOS transistor, a twenty-fourth MOS transistor, a twenty-fifth MOS transistor, a twenty-sixth MOS transistor and a twenty-seventh MOS transistor,
wherein the first MOS transistor, the second MOS transistor, the third MOS transistor, the fourth MOS transistor, the fourteenth MOS transistor, the fifteenth MOS transistor, the sixteenth MOS transistor, the seventeenth MOS transistor, the eighteenth MOS transistor, the nineteenth MOS transistor, the twentieth MOS transistor, the twenty-first MOS transistor, the twenty-second MOS transistor and the twenty-third MOS transistor are all PMOS transistors, and the fifth MOS transistor, the sixth MOS transistor, the seventh MOS transistor, the eighth MOS transistor, the ninth MOS transistor, the tenth MOS transistor, the eleventh MOS transistor, the twelfth MOS transistor, the thirteenth MOS transistor, the twenty-fourth MOS transistor, the twenty-fifth MOS transistor, the twenty-sixth MOS transistor and the twenty-seventh MOS transistor are all NMOS transistors;
wherein a supply voltage is provided to a source of the fourteenth MOS transistor, a source of the fifteenth MOS transistor, a source of the sixteenth MOS transistor, a source of the seventeenth MOS transistor, a source of the eighteenth MOS transistor, a source of the nineteenth MOS transistor, a source of the twenti

Assignees

• Univ Wenzhou

Inventors

• Wang Pengjun
• Li Xiangyu
• Li Gang
• Ye Hao

Classifications

• H10W42/405

  using active circuits · CPC title

• G09C1/00

  Apparatus or methods whereby a given sequence of signs, e.g. an intelligible text, is transformed into an unintelligible sequence of signs by transposing the signs or groups of signs or by replacing them by others according to a predetermined system (cryptographic typewriters G09C3/00) · CPC title

• H10D84/83

  of only insulated-gate FETs [IGFET] · CPC title

• G01R33/0094

  Sensor arrays · CPC title

• G01R33/0023

  Electronic aspects, e.g. circuits for stimulation, evaluation, control; Treating the measured signals; calibration (G01R33/0017 takes precedence) · CPC title