A Lightweight and Efficient Authentication Protocol Based on AST PUF and Schnorr for IoT

Abstract

This study presents an innovative authentication scheme that integrates Physical Unclonable Functions (PUFs) and Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKP) to provide efficient and secure authentication for Internet of Things (IoT) devices. Traditional PUF-based protocols offer strong security but incur high resource costs and slow authentication. To address this, we propose a joint scheme. First, a unified architecture combining a PUF–True Random Number Generator (TRNG) is introduced. This architecture utilizes a feedback permutation obfuscation mechanism and an arbitration delay deviation with a metastable design from a ring oscillator, ensuring the PUF–TRNG system possesses both attack resistance and true random properties. The architecture provides synchronization for both PUF and TRNG in the protocol. Next, we integrate Schnorr’s ZKP with a PUF-based key encapsulation and reconstruction scheme to construct an end-to-end anonymous identity authentication protocol that does not require real-time participation of a trusted third party. The protocol requires only two handshakes, significantly reducing the number of protocol rounds compared to related protocols. Finally, the PUF–TRNG architecture has been implemented on the Xilinx XC7A100T development board. Experimental results show that the PUF circuit effectively resists various modeling attacks. Formal verification with ProVerif demonstrates confidentiality, mutual authentication, and robustness against mainstream attacks. The protocol reduces area overhead and computational time by 43.04% and 42.99%, respectively, compared to similar protocols.