Integrated circuit with electromagnetic energy anomaly detection and processing

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016112083-A1
Application number	US-201514703139-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	May 4, 2015
Priority date	Mar 2, 2011
Publication date	Apr 21, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

An integrated circuit includes an antenna, a die manufactured from a semiconducting material, an RF energy collection and processing means disposed on or within said die and including at least a receiver and a processing means, an input configured to supply power to said RF energy collection and processing means and an output for operative communication by said RF energy collection and processing means. The integrated circuit is configurable and operable to provide at least one of electromagnetic emission anomaly detection, tamper detection, anti-tamper monitoring, degradation monitoring, health monitoring, counterfeit detection, software changes monitoring, firmware changes monitoring and monitoring of other RF energy anomalies.

First claim

1 . A device comprising:
at least one electronic component; an antenna; and an integrated circuit comprising: a die manufactured from a semiconducting material, a radio frequency (RF) energy collection and processing apparatus integrated into said die and coupled to said antenna, said RF energy collection and processing apparatus comprising: an emission detection apparatus receiving emission(s) of RF energy emitted, external to said integrated circuit, from said at least one electronic component when said device is supplied with a power signal and/or an oscillating signal, at least one processor coupled to said emission detection apparatus, and algorithms causing said at least one processor to process signature(s) of said emission(s) and determine states(s) of said at least one electronic component attributable to said signature(s) of said emission(s).

2 . The device of claim 1 , wherein said oscillating signal is one of a monotonic oscillating signal, a multi-tone input, a modulating oscillating signal and a modulated oscillating signal.

3 . The device of claim 1 , wherein said oscillating signal is one of a monotonic oscillating signal, a multi-tone input, a modulating oscillating signal and a modulated oscillating signal.

4 . The device of claim 1 , further comprising an oscillator source sweeping across a frequency band which depends on anticipated inputs of said device, said sweeping occurring in a continuous or discretized manner.

5 . The device of claim 1 , wherein said RF energy is further emitted from integrated circuit dies, wire bonds, semiconductor traces, board traces, wires, cables, structural capacitive coupling or structural inductive coupling.

6 . The device of claim 1 , wherein said emission detection apparatus includes a receiver being at least one of a heterodyne receiver, superhetrodyne receiver, a wideband crystal video receiver, a tuned Radio frequency crystal video receiver, a narrowband scanning superhetrodyne receiver, a channelized receiver, a microscan receiver, an acousto-optic receiver, a cryogenically cooled receiver and a tuner technology.

7 . The system of claim 1 , wherein said RF energy collection and processing apparatus has a noise figure of at least one of less than 5, less than 1, less than 0.5 and less than 0.1.

8 . The device of claim 1 , wherein said RF energy collection and processing apparatus utilizes Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) in excess of one million points.

9 . The device of claim 1 , wherein said oscillating signal is supplied by at least one of a temperature compensated Crystal Oscillator (TCXO), microcomputer compensated Crystal Oscillators (MXCO), Oven Controlled Crystal Oscillator (OCXO), small atomic frequency standards (Rubidium (Rb) and Rubidium oscillators (RbXO)), and high performance atomic standards.

10 . The device of claim 1 , wherein said at least one processor further performs a Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) on said emission(s), wherein said at least one processor performs successive low-pass and high-pass filtering operations.

11 . The device of claim 1 , wherein said at least one processor provides large scale comparison of emissions and reduces said large scale comparison to narrowband comparison.

12 . The device of claim 1 , wherein said antenna is at least one of stacked loop, fractal, irregular loop, array of dipoles, parabolic antenna shape structure, Vivaldi antenna, equiangular spiral, skewed spiral, micromachined horn and waveguide structure.

13 . The device of claim 1 , wherein said at least one processor further obtains discrete wavelet transform coefficient statistics, obtains relative phase measurement and compares obtained phase measurement to anticipated phase measurements.

14 . The device of claim 1 , wherein said at least one processor further measures at least one of a precise phase relationship of harmonics, cross-modulation products, and inter-modulation components.

15 . The device of claim 1 , wherein said at least one processor further analyzes at least one of frequency locations of emissions components, phases of emissions, cross-modulation and inter-modulation components generated by the internal circuitry, shape of any individual emission, and quality factors of any individual emissions or timing characteristics of emissions and assess condition of the device to discern between genuine and counterfeit device.

16 . The device of claim 1 , wherein said at least one processor further establishes baseline RF characteristics and obtains at least one of local spectral power density statistics, Emission Frequency Location, Emission Peak Magnitude, Emission Phase Noise, Emission Symmetry, Emission Skewness, and Emission Local Noise Floor.

17 . An apparatus for detecting state(s) of an electrical device, said apparatus comprising:
an antenna; an integrated circuit comprising: a die manufactured from a semiconducting material, a radio frequency (RF) energy collection and processing apparatus integrated into said die and coupled to said antenna, said RF energy collection and processing apparatus comprising: an emission detection apparatus receiving emission(s) of RF energy emitted, external to said integrated circuit, from the electrical device being energized with a signal, at least one processor coupled to said emission detection apparatus, and algorithms causing said at least one processor to process signature(s) of said emission(s) and determine states(s) of said at least one electronic component attributable to said signature(s) of said emission(s).

18 . The apparatus of claim 17 , further comprising a robotic arm having a tip that is positioned, during operation of said apparatus, at a distance above a surface of the electrical device.

19 . The apparatus of claim 18 , wherein said antenna is an antenna array mounted on said tip and wherein said antenna array comprises a low noise amplifier (LNA).

20 . The apparatus of claim 19 , wherein said antenna array with said LNA is interchangeable based on performance parameters of said electrical device.

21 . The apparatus of claim 18 , wherein said robotic arm is operable to change an orientation of said antenna.

22 . The apparatus of claim 18 , further comprising a sensor operable to adjust said distance to the electrical device having variable heights and wherein said antenna is positionable between about one micrometer and about one centimeter from the surface of the electrical device.

23 . The apparatus of claim 17 , wherein said antenna is stationary mounted and wherein the electrical device is mounted for a movement beneath said antenna.

24 . The apparatus of claim 17 , wherein said antenna is an antenna array configured to provide an interference from an antenna pattern of each antenna element in said antenna array when said each antenna element is weighted to enhance a gain on different areas of the electrical device in order to inspect individual parts on the electrical device without a need for a mechanical or a robotic steering.

25 . The apparatus of claim 17 , further comprising an illumination source illuminating the electrical device at at least one of a single frequency monotonic, multi-tone and complex modulated RF energy and enhancing the RF energy received at said emission detection apparatus.

26 . The apparatus of claim 25 , wherein said illumination source introduces free field EM field strengths at sele

Assignees

• Nokomis Inc

Inventors

• Keller Iii Walter J
• Pathak Bogdan A

Classifications

• G06F21/76

  in application-specific integrated circuits [ASIC] or field-programmable devices, e.g. field-programmable gate arrays [FPGA] or programmable logic devices [PLD] · CPC title

• H04B1/26 Primary

  for superheterodyne receivers (multiple frequency-changing H03D7/16) · CPC title

• G06F21/87

  by means of encapsulation, e.g. for integrated circuits · CPC title

• G06F21/44

  Program or device authentication · CPC title

• H10W44/248

  for antennas · CPC title