Customized cell detector for laser-induced-fault detection

Laser is an effective mean to inject faults in a secure circuit and then to perform a subsequent fault attack. While high-precision laser beams are very expensive, a large-spot laser is far more affordable and easier to set-up for fault injection. In this paper, we discuss hardware countermeasures against laser-induced fault attacks and we propose a new laser detector based on customized logic gates. This detector is smaller and more sensitive than most standard cells. According to simulation results, it is very effective in detecting large spot laser attacks.