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Tiny AES cores

Overview

Not all encryption requirements demand gigabit performance, and Helion recognise that in order for IP to be an effective choice, it should never be a compromise. Where many IP vendors may limit you to a choice of one or two solutions, Helion are different. We have developed a range of four AES core families each offering a different speed/area balance which together cover any throughput requirement up to many tens of Gbps.....but with plenty of emphasis placed on the lower end of the spectrum too. This way you can choose the most optimal fit for your particular requirement. In this section we look at the Tiny AES core family.

Helion Tiny AES Solutions

The Helion Tiny AES core is our smallest solution, and was designed specifically for applications where data rates are low but minimal area is absolutely paramount. This requirement applies to many applications, for example set-top boxes, mobile wireless communications systems or satcomms. The result is the smallest fully featured AES solution available today spanning all ASIC and FPGA technologies.

Despite its extremely small footprint, the Tiny AES core is a very capable performer. It offers full AES encryption and decryption using any combination of the three AES key sizes (128-, 192-, and 256-bits). It can be used to implement any of the common block cipher modes (take a look at our AES modes pages for more information). The table below outlines the kind of area and performance achievable using the Tiny AES core.

Measured Area and Performance
128-bit keysize ECB Encryption and Decryption including hardware key expansion

TARGET PERFORMANCE LOGIC RAM
ASIC (0.13um CMOS) >100 Mbps <5k gates -
Actel ProASIC3 (-2) >21 Mbps 829 tiles 3 RAM4K9s
Altera Cyclone III (C6) >35 Mbps 417 LEs 3 M9Ks
Altera Stratix IV (C2) >80 Mbps 213 ALMs 2 M9Ks
Xilinx Spartan-3A (-5) >30 Mbps 166 slices 1 RAMB16
Xilinx Spartan-6 (-2) >29 Mbps 91 slices -
Xilinx Virtex-5 (-3) >77 Mbps 94 slices -
Xilinx Virtex-6 (-3) >86 Mbps 88 slices -
Xilinx Kintex-7 (-3) >95 Mbps 91 slices -

If the performance of the Helion Tiny AES core does not match your needs, try looking at our Standard AES cores for higher throughput capabilities.

Datasheets

For full details of the Helion Tiny AES cores, please download the datasheet appropriate to your target technology.

Click here for the ASIC core data sheet (PDF format)
Click here for the Actel FPGA core data sheet (PDF format)
Click here for the Altera FPGA core data sheet (PDF format)
Click here for the Xilinx FPGA core data sheet (PDF format)
Whitepapers
Click here for an easy to read overview on AES in hardware (PDF format)

Contact

For more detailed information on this or any of our other products and services, please feel free to email us at helioncores@heliontech.com and we will be pleased to discuss how we can assist with your individual requirements.

 
What about FIPS compliance?

All Helion AES cores have been successfully FIPS certified. Click here for full details.....
Are you new to AES....?

Take a look at our Whitepaper for an easy to read overview on AES in hardware.....

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