AESware: Developing AES-enabled low-power multicore processors leveraging open RISC-V cores with a shared lightweight AES accelerator

As open-source RISC-V cores continue to be released, the development of low-power multicore processors utilizing these cores is invigorating the edge/IoT device market. Nevertheless, comprehensive research on developing low-power multicore processors with integrated security features using existing...

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Main Authors: Eunjin Choi, Jina Park, Kyuseung Han, Woojoo Lee
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2024-12-01
Series:Engineering Science and Technology, an International Journal
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2215098624002805
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author Eunjin Choi
Jina Park
Kyuseung Han
Woojoo Lee
author_facet Eunjin Choi
Jina Park
Kyuseung Han
Woojoo Lee
author_sort Eunjin Choi
collection DOAJ
description As open-source RISC-V cores continue to be released, the development of low-power multicore processors utilizing these cores is invigorating the edge/IoT device market. Nevertheless, comprehensive research on developing low-power multicore processors with integrated security features using existing open RISC-V cores remains limited. This study addresses this gap by introducing AESware, a dedicated lightweight hardware designed for energy-efficient AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) task execution, contributing to the development of AES-specific low-power RISC-V multicore processors. AESware supports variable key lengths and ensures minimal power consumption with a compact design. This standalone IP (Intellectual Property) is compatible with various open RISC-V cores, offering scalability and convenience. And importantly, we propose the most energy-efficient architecture for multicore processors equipped with AESware. Instead of assigning dedicated AESware to each core, we introduce a shared AESware architecture to maximize energy efficiency. We develop an operational algorithm for task scheduling in AESware, achieving maximum utilization and minimal latency while maintaining its lightweight nature. To evaluate our solution, we developed 24 processors into three groups: AESware-equipped, baseline, and those with an external AES accelerator per core. After FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) prototyping for functional verification and power consumption analysis via 45 nm process technology synthesis, our findings revealed significant energy savings. AESware-equipped processors achieved up to 76%, 47%, and 33% energy savings at dual-, quad-, and octa-core configurations compared to baseline, respectively, and were more energy-efficient in running AES applications than those with individual accelerators.
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spelling doaj-art-9cd6fa161f7d4cc082b315fcd814e1cf2024-12-07T08:27:27ZengElsevierEngineering Science and Technology, an International Journal2215-09862024-12-0160101894AESware: Developing AES-enabled low-power multicore processors leveraging open RISC-V cores with a shared lightweight AES acceleratorEunjin Choi0Jina Park1Kyuseung Han2Woojoo Lee3Department of Intelligent Semiconductor Engineering, Chung-Ang University, Seoul, 06974, KoreaDepartment of Intelligent Semiconductor Engineering, Chung-Ang University, Seoul, 06974, KoreaAI SoC Research Division, Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute, Daejeon, 34129, KoreaDepartment of Intelligent Semiconductor Engineering, Chung-Ang University, Seoul, 06974, Korea; Corresponding author.As open-source RISC-V cores continue to be released, the development of low-power multicore processors utilizing these cores is invigorating the edge/IoT device market. Nevertheless, comprehensive research on developing low-power multicore processors with integrated security features using existing open RISC-V cores remains limited. This study addresses this gap by introducing AESware, a dedicated lightweight hardware designed for energy-efficient AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) task execution, contributing to the development of AES-specific low-power RISC-V multicore processors. AESware supports variable key lengths and ensures minimal power consumption with a compact design. This standalone IP (Intellectual Property) is compatible with various open RISC-V cores, offering scalability and convenience. And importantly, we propose the most energy-efficient architecture for multicore processors equipped with AESware. Instead of assigning dedicated AESware to each core, we introduce a shared AESware architecture to maximize energy efficiency. We develop an operational algorithm for task scheduling in AESware, achieving maximum utilization and minimal latency while maintaining its lightweight nature. To evaluate our solution, we developed 24 processors into three groups: AESware-equipped, baseline, and those with an external AES accelerator per core. After FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array) prototyping for functional verification and power consumption analysis via 45 nm process technology synthesis, our findings revealed significant energy savings. AESware-equipped processors achieved up to 76%, 47%, and 33% energy savings at dual-, quad-, and octa-core configurations compared to baseline, respectively, and were more energy-efficient in running AES applications than those with individual accelerators.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2215098624002805Edge deviceAESRISC-VEmbedded processorMulti-core processor architectureFPGA prototyping
spellingShingle Eunjin Choi
Jina Park
Kyuseung Han
Woojoo Lee
AESware: Developing AES-enabled low-power multicore processors leveraging open RISC-V cores with a shared lightweight AES accelerator
Engineering Science and Technology, an International Journal
Edge device
AES
RISC-V
Embedded processor
Multi-core processor architecture
FPGA prototyping
title AESware: Developing AES-enabled low-power multicore processors leveraging open RISC-V cores with a shared lightweight AES accelerator
title_full AESware: Developing AES-enabled low-power multicore processors leveraging open RISC-V cores with a shared lightweight AES accelerator
title_fullStr AESware: Developing AES-enabled low-power multicore processors leveraging open RISC-V cores with a shared lightweight AES accelerator
title_full_unstemmed AESware: Developing AES-enabled low-power multicore processors leveraging open RISC-V cores with a shared lightweight AES accelerator
title_short AESware: Developing AES-enabled low-power multicore processors leveraging open RISC-V cores with a shared lightweight AES accelerator
title_sort aesware developing aes enabled low power multicore processors leveraging open risc v cores with a shared lightweight aes accelerator
topic Edge device
AES
RISC-V
Embedded processor
Multi-core processor architecture
FPGA prototyping
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2215098624002805
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