A 3.15 mm QR code storing an encrypted and compressed image shown placed on an integrated circuit and an image of the QR code placed next to a dime. (Courtesy of Adam Markman\/Brhram Javidi)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nCorrupted and recycled integrated circuits or microchips posed a significant threat to the international electronics supply chain. Bogus or used computer chips may not matter much when they cause poor cell phone reception or an occasional laptop computer crash in personal use. But the problem becomes exponentially more serious when counterfeit or hacked chips turn up in the U.S. military.<\/p>\n
The problem has been exacerbated in recent years by the fact that much of the national production of microcircuits has moved offshore, where prices are lower but ensuring quality control is more difficult.<\/p>\n
In 2012, a Senate Armed Services Committee report found that more than 100 cases of suspected counterfeit electronics parts from China had made their way into the Department of Defense supply chain. In one notable example, officials said counterfeit circuits were used in a high-altitude missile meant to destroy incoming missiles. Fixing the problem cost the government $2.675 million, the report said.<\/p>\n
Unlike commercial QR codes, Javidi\u2019s little black and white boxes can be scaled as small as microns or a few millimeters and would replace the electronic part number that is currently stamped on most microchips.<\/p>\n
Javidi says he can compress vital information about a chip \u2013 its functionality, capacity, and part number \u2013 directly into the QR code so it can be obtained by the reader without accessing the Internet. This is important in cybersecurity circles, because linking to the Internet greatly increases vulnerability to hacking or corruption. Javidi’s work with QR codes was supported in part by the National Science Foundation.<\/p>\n
To further protect the information in the QR code, Javidi applies an optical imaging \u201cmask\u201d that scrambles the QR code design into a random mass of black-and-white pixels that look similar to the snowy images one might see on a broken TV. He then adds yet another layer of security through a random phase photon-based encryption that turns the snowy image into a darkened nighttime sky with just a few random stars or dots of pixilated light.<\/p>\n
The end result is a self-contained, highly secure, information-laden microscopic design that is nearly impossible to duplicate. Only individuals who have the special corresponding codes could decrypt the QR image.<\/p>\n
And that is important to all of us.<\/p>\n
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