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Authentication chip with integrated temperature sensor

Infineon Technologies has introduced a chip that uses asymmetric authentication featuring elliptic curve cryptography (ECC) and integrated temperature sensor that can be used by battery and electronics manufacturers to detect unauthorised accessories and after-market replacements. The new ORIGA SLE95050 family includes a version with an integrated temperature sensor that can improve the safety level of batteries for electronic devices such as digital cameras, mobile phones and portable computers. The chip can also be used for printer cartridges, replacement parts, medical disposables, networking equipment or other accessories, such as earphones, speakers, docking stations and chargers. The ECC asymmetric authentication uses two different keys (one public, one private) to encrypt and decrypt information. ECC increases the level of security as the private key is hidden in the ORIGA chip. The private key is protected in the ORIGA chip which is integrated into the accessory or the battery. For comparison, symmetric solutions require an additional authenticating chip in the host device for a secure implementation.

The ORIGA chip also complies with emerging battery safety regulations. It has a built-in analogue-to-digital converter that allows convenient temperature monitoring from either its on-chip or an external sensor. This is done by just sending a bus command through the single wire interface. This single wire interface of the ORIGA chip allows smooth system integration and remote powering over this single line. With non-volatile memory (NVM) of up to 1kbit including NVM for write-protection and unique chip ID, ORIGA also provides the added benefit of personalisation by storing data about the specific accessory, the logistics chain and the usage of the accessory itself. The SLE95050 operates at the temperature range from -25°C to 85°C and at an operating voltage range of 2.0V to 5.5V. The ORIGA SLE95050 family comprises two members. The SLE95050F1 includes the temperature monitoring feature and SLE95050F2 without temperature monitoring.