title: Using Quantum Confinement to Uniquely Identify Devices.
abstract: Modern technology unintentionally provides resources that enable the trust of everyday interactions to be undermined. Some authentication schemes address this issue using devices that give a unique output in response to a challenge. These signatures are generated by hard-to-predict physical responses derived from structural characteristics, which lend themselves to two different architectures, known as unique objects (UNOs) and physically unclonable functions (PUFs). The classical design of UNOs and PUFs limits their size and, in some cases, their security. Here we show that quantum confinement lends itself to the provision of unique identities at the nanoscale, by using fluctuations in tunnelling measurements through quantum wells in resonant tunnelling diodes (RTDs). This provides an uncomplicated measurement of identity without conventional resource limitations whilst providing robust security. The confined energy levels are highly sensitive to the specific nanostructure within each RTD, resulting in a distinct tunnelling spectrum for every device, as they contain a unique and unpredictable structure that is presently impossible to clone. This new class of authentication device operates with minimal resources in simple electronic structures above room temperature.
authors.affiliation: Physics Department, Lancaster University, Lancaster, LA1 4YB, UK.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Roberts
authors.affiliation: School of Computing and Communications, Lancaster University, Lancaster, LA1 4WA, UK.
authors.forename: I E
authors.initials: IE
authors.lastname: Bagci
authors.affiliation: School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of Manchester, M13 9PL, UK.
authors.forename: M A M
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Zawawi
authors.affiliation: School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of Manchester, M13 9PL, UK.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sexton
authors.affiliation: Physics Department, Lancaster University, Lancaster, LA1 4YB, UK.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Hulbert
authors.affiliation: Physics Department, Lancaster University, Lancaster, LA1 4YB, UK.
authors.forename: Y J
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Noori
authors.affiliation: Physics Department, Lancaster University, Lancaster, LA1 4YB, UK.
authors.forename: M P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Young
authors.affiliation: Physics Department, Lancaster University, Lancaster, LA1 4YB, UK.
authors.forename: C S
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Woodhead
authors.affiliation: School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of Manchester, M13 9PL, UK.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Missous
authors.affiliation: School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, University of Manchester, M13 9PL, UK.
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Migliorato
authors.affiliation: School of Computing and Communications, Lancaster University, Lancaster, LA1 4WA, UK.
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Roedig
authors.affiliation: Physics Department, Lancaster University, Lancaster, LA1 4YB, UK.
authors.forename: R J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Young