Lightweight digital hardware random number generators

Abstract

Random Number Generator (RNG) plays an essential role in many sensor network systems and applications, such as security and robust communication. We have developed the first digital hardware random number generator (DHRNG). DHRNG has a small footprint and requires ultra-low energy. It uses a new recursive structure that directly targets efficient FPGA implementation. The core idea is to place or extract random values in FPGA configuration bits and randomly connect the building blocks. We present our architecture, introduce accompanying protocols for secure public key communication, and adopt the NIST randomness test on the DHRNG's output stream.