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Physics

Enhancing Co-packaging Optics Enabled Silicon Photonics Security Assurance Hardware Fingerprinting

Liton Kumar Biswas, M. Shafkat M. Khan, Himanandhan Reddy Kottur, Hao Wang, Hamed Dalir, Navid Asadizanjani

Featured June 30, 2026

Original Paper

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Simply

Tiny, specially designed patterns are hidden inside computer chips that use light, making each chip glow with a unique 'color barcode' to prove it's real and not a fake.

In depth
The paper introduces a novel hardware fingerprinting technique for silicon photonic integrated circuits (PICs) by embedding photonic crystal (PhC) patterns into existing density-control filler regions. These nanostructures are designed to resonate at specific wavelengths, creating a unique, multidimensional optical signature for each device based on wavelength, polarization, and incident angle. This approach leverages standard fabrication processes and inherent process variations to provide a cost-effective and unclonable security feature.

Key Takeaways

  • 1
    The paper proposes embedding photonic crystal (PhC) patterns into existing density-control filler regions of PICs to create unique hardware fingerprints.
  • 2
    Each PhC pattern generates a distinctive optical signature based on its resonant wavelength, polarization response, and incident angle, enabling multidimensional encoding.
  • 3
    The method is cost-effective and robust, requiring no extra fabrication steps and leveraging inherent nanofabrication variations to enhance fingerprint uniqueness and resistance to cloning.

Conceptual Flow

HIGH LEVEL
1
Methodology: Embedding Unique Optical IDs

The paper's method hides tiny light-bending patterns inside chips to give each one a secret, uncopyable identity.

Standard Chip Design
Empty Filler Areas
Add Special Patterns
Chip with Hidden ID
2
Results: Distinct Light Signatures

These hidden patterns make each chip reflect light in its own special way, like a unique fingerprint of colors.

Light on Chip
Hidden ID Patterns
Reflect Unique Colors
Unique Light Signature