PUFrt: First Quantum‑Tunneling PUF IP Enhances IoT Security with Unmatched Stability

Physical unclonable functions (PUFs) are already a proven cornerstone for securing Internet of Things (IoT) devices, yet most commercial solutions still rely on SRAM‑based PUFs that can drift under changing environmental conditions.

In a bid to deliver a more reliable root‑of‑trust, Taiwanese start‑up PUFsecurity – a subsidiary of eMemory Technology – has announced PUFrt, the industry’s first quantum‑tunneling PUF IP.

PUFrt is a hardware root‑of‑trust that generates unique IDs, delivers true random numbers for key creation, and embeds secure key storage within a tamper‑resistant OTP fabric.

“By harnessing quantum tunneling, we create a PUF that is both stable and untraceable,” said Charles Hsu, president of PUFsecurity. “The IP produces secret numbers that are invisible to observers, ensuring each chip’s uniqueness and resilience.”

Conventional SRAM PUFs suffer from repeatability issues: every power‑cycle can produce a different signature because of MOSFET mismatch and sensitivity to temperature, noise, voltage, and electromagnetic interference. PUFrt eliminates these variations.

PUFrt fuses the quantum‑tunneling PUF with a one‑time‑programmable (OTP) cell and a seed‑driven true random number generator, offering a “three‑in‑one” solution that many competitors lack.

Unlike most vendors that either store keys in eFuse or inject them into OTP, PUFrt lets the PUF generate the key internally. This means the operator never sees the secret, and the key is intrinsically tied to the chip’s hardware fingerprint.

PUFsecurity builds on its parent company’s NeoPUF architecture, which leverages random gate‑oxide variations to produce quantum‑tunneling currents that are immune to annealing below 600 °C. This guarantees that environmental changes cannot tamper with the fingerprint.

The IP has been validated on a 28 nm process and forthcoming releases will target 55 nm, 40 nm embedded flash, and FinFET nodes for automotive and AI applications.

Today, two customers have deployed PUFrt in production, while ten additional companies across the U.S., China, and Taiwan are evaluating the IP through PUFsecurity’s IPGO program.

— Originally published on EE Times.