Reconfigurable Gates with Sub-10nm Ambipolar SB-FinFETs for Logic Locking & Obfuscation

Examples of compact reconfigurable logic gates utilizing Schottky-barrier (SB) FinFETs that take advantage of workfunction engineering (WFE) are provided. When applied to independent-gate SB-FinFETs, WFE has been shown to be capable of forming minimalist two transistor (2T) NAND,NOR and XOR logic gates that can lower power and area requirements by a factor of (5×) and (2×), respectively, with similar PDP figures as conventional FinFET logic circuits. Here, we introduce a new class of work-function engineered reconfigurable logic gates that can implement multiple logic functionality. Examples of reconfigurable gates include 2T gates that can implement (1-NOR-NOR-NAND) and (0-NAND-NAND-NOR) output functions as well as a 4T gate (1-AB'-A'B-OR) that can provide four distinct functional outputs with only two select bits. TCAD simulations are used to verify logic operation and disclose dynamic performance of the proposed ultra-compact reconfigurable circuits. Optimized for maximum reconfigurability, the PDP figures are higher by an order of magnitude as compared to the static logic circuits built using the same FinFET architecture. The fine-grain and ultra-fast reconfigurability of these circuits would be especially welcomed for logic-locking and obfuscation operations used to enhance hardware security in IC design.