Image encryption based on synchronization of fractional chaotic systems

This paper deals with a synchronization scheme for two fractional chaotic systems which is applied in image encryption. Based on Pecora and Carroll (PC) synchronization, fractional-order Lorenz-like system forms a master–slave configuration, and the sufficient conditions are derived to realize synchronization between these two systems via the Laplace transformation theory. An image encryption algorithm is introduced where the original image is encoded by a nonlinear function of a fractional chaotic state. Simulation results show that the original image is well masked in the cipher texts and recovered successfully through chaotic signals. Further, the cryptanalysis is conducted in detail through histogram, information entropy, key space and sensitivity to verify the high security.