Securely configurable gate arrays utilizing anti-tamper memory

This Small Business Technology Transfer Phase I project proposal describes a program to develop secure FPGA architectures and configuration algorithms that exploit the unique capabilities of a new anti-tamper memory technology called AT-MRAM, that provides strong protection against invasive attacks used to recover the intellectual property stored in the FPGA configuration. AT-MRAM provides protective layers, that when breached cause the data stored in the memory to be erased with no remanence. The erasure mechanism does not require applied power. The AT-MRAM protective layers also function as electromagnetic shielding, providing immunity to EM-based side-channel attacks. In addition, AT-MRAM is intrinsically radiation hard. There is not a single secure FPGA available today with an unpowered zero-remanence erasure feature that is triggered by removal of shielding layers. This unique capability will greatly enhance FPGA security.