17.6 A 100MHz Self-Calibrating RC Oscillator Capable of Clock-Glitch Detection for Hardware Security in a 3nm FinFET Process
Nandish Mehta, Stephen G. Tell, Sanquan Song, Sudhir S. Kudva, Brian Zimmer, Mahmut E. Sinangil, C. Thomas Gray · 2025
On-chip oscillators are emerging as a critical circuit for improving the security of system-on-chips (SoCs). Many SoCs utilize an on-chip oscillator during boot-up, eliminating the need for external references (e.g., crystal) that could expose SoCs to vulnerabilities from external clock attacks. Additionally, on-chip oscillators are frequently employed for precise monitoring of critical system clocks [1]. Their functionality can be extended to detect clock-glitch attacks, allowing a single validated and proven IP to serve multiple critical security applications. While several stable on-chip oscillators have been reported [2]–[6], they are unable to detect clock glitches. Conversely, works such as [7] and [8] can detect clock glitches but cannot provide a stable clock.