53Gbps native GF(24)2 composite-field AES-encrypt/decrypt accelerator for content-protection in 45nm high-performance microprocessors

An on-die, reconfigurable AES encrypt/decrypt hardware accelerator is fabricated in 45nm CMOS, targeted for content-protection in high-performance microprocessors. Compared to conventional AES implementations, this design computes the entire AES round in native GF(2⁴)² composite-field with one-time GF(2⁸)-to-GF(2⁴)² mapping cost amortized over multiple AES iterations. This approach along with a fused Mix/InvMixColumns circuit and folded ShiftRow datapath results in 20% area savings and 67% reduction in worst-case interconnect length, enabling AES-128/192/256 ECB block throughput of 53/44/38Gbps, 125mW power measured at 1.1V, 50°C.