Smart Engine for Public Key cryptography

Abstract

The need for security in embedded application is continuously rising. Public Key cryptography is one of the ways to secure data communication. But Public Key processing requires large computation capability. Processors are commonly used to perform complex operations. However, the processing load generated by Public Key cannot be addressed by CPUs without significantly degrading system performances. Of course, we can use hardware accelerators. But pure RTL blocks are not flexible enough to support the various Public Key algorithms (ECC, RSA, ECDSA, ...). Moreover, data transfers must still be controlled by the main processor.

Smart Engine provides the optimal combination of hardware and software (micro-code). This kind of architecture provides the best of both worlds: the efficiency of hardware and the flexibility of software.

Furthermore, the Smart Engine is scalable. It provides an optimal balance between gate-count, performance, functionality and power. And by supporting standard interfaces, the Smart Engine is really easy to integrate in complex system.

This white paper explains why and how the Smart Engine is ideally applied to Public Key cryptography. It provides details on the architecture as we have implemented it in the BA414E Public Key Crypto Engine.

If you have any questions on this paper or if you would like to learn more about Barco Silex high-quality IP cores, please do not hesitate to take contact with us.

Sébastien Rabou
Product manager
sebastien.rabou@barco.com

Thierry Pauwels
Marketing & Sales Support
IP Products
Thierry.Pauwels@barco.com