COPMA: Compact and Optimized Polynomial Multiplier Accelerator for High-Performance Implementation of LWR-Based PQC

The rapid progress in quantum computing has initiated a new round of cryptographic innovation, that is, developing postquantum cryptography (PQC) to resist attacks from well-established quantum computers. In this brief, we propose a novel compact and optimized polynomial multiplier accelerator (COPMA) for high-performance implementation of learning-with-rounding (LWR)-based PQC. As not many LWR-based PQC schemes are available in the literature, we have just used Saber, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) third-round PQC standardization finalist, as a typical case study example. First of all, we have formulated the polynomial multiplication, the major component of Saber, into a novel “subpolynomial”-based processing format for compact computation (yet has the potential for fast operation). Then, we have designed the proposed algorithm into an area-efficient polynomial multiplication hardware accelerator with high-frequency operational capability. Finally, we have verified the efficiency of the developed COPMA and have deployed it to build a cryptoprocessor. The implementation and analysis demonstrate the superior performance of the proposed COPMA. The proposed strategy is highly efficient and can be extended to build other PQC hardware accelerators.