Patents by Inventor Alexandre Sarafianos

Alexandre Sarafianos has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 11942440
    Abstract: An integrated circuit includes a semiconductor substrate having a rear face. A first semiconductor well within the substrate includes circuit components. A second semiconductor well within the substrate is insulated from the first semiconductor well and the rest of the substrate. The second semiconductor well provides a detection device that is configurable and designed to detect a DFA attack by fault injection into the integrated circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 6, 2020
    Date of Patent: March 26, 2024
    Assignee: STMicroelectronics (Rousset) SAS
    Inventors: Alexandre Sarafianos, Abderrezak Marzaki
  • Publication number: 20230119204
    Abstract: A semiconductor substrate includes a buried semiconductor layer and semiconductor wells. A device for detecting a possible thinning of the semiconductor substrate via the rear face thereof is formed on and in the semiconductor wells. The device is a non-inverting buffer including an input terminal and an output terminal, the device being powered between a supply terminal and a reference terminal where the buried semiconductor layer provides the supply terminal. A control circuit delivers an input signal in a first state to the input terminal and outputs a control signal indicating a detection of a thinning of the substrate if a signal generated at the output terminal in response to the input signal is in a second state different from the first state.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 15, 2022
    Publication date: April 20, 2023
    Applicant: STMicroelectronics (Rousset) SAS
    Inventors: Alexandre SARAFIANOS, Abderrezak MARZAKI
  • Patent number: 11562933
    Abstract: A semiconductor substrate includes a buried semiconductor layer and semiconductor wells. A device for detecting a possible thinning of the semiconductor substrate via the rear face thereof is formed on and in the semiconductor wells. The device is a non-inverting buffer including an input terminal and an output terminal, the device being powered between a supply terminal and a reference terminal where the buried semiconductor layer provides the supply terminal. A control circuit delivers an input signal in a first state to the input terminal and outputs a control signal indicating a detection of a thinning of the substrate if a signal generated at the output terminal in response to the input signal is in a second state different from the first state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 25, 2020
    Date of Patent: January 24, 2023
    Assignee: STMicroelectronics (Rousset) SAS
    Inventors: Alexandre Sarafianos, Abderrezak Marzaki
  • Patent number: 11387194
    Abstract: A semiconductor substrate has a front face and a back face. A first contact and a second contact, spaced apart from each other, are located on the front face. An electrically conductive wafer is located on the back face. A detection circuit is configured to detect a thinning of the substrate from the back face. The detection circuit including a measurement circuit that takes a measurement of a resistive value of the substrate between said at least one first contact, said at least one second contact and said electrically conductive wafer. Thinning is detected in response to the measured resistive value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 12, 2020
    Date of Patent: July 12, 2022
    Assignee: STMicroelectronics (Rousset) SAS
    Inventors: Alexandre Sarafianos, Fabrice Marinet, Julien Delalleau
  • Patent number: 11270957
    Abstract: A semiconductor substrate of an integrated circuit is protected by a coating. The semiconductor includes a front face and a rear face. To detect a breach of the integrity of a semiconductor substrate of an integrated circuit from the rear face, an opening of the coating facing the rear face of the substrate is detected. In response thereto, an alarm is generated. The detection is performed by making resistance measurements with respect to the semiconductor substrate and comparing the measured resistance to a nominal resistive value of the semiconductor substrate.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 5, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 8, 2022
    Assignee: STMicroelectronics (Rousset) SAS
    Inventors: Alexandre Sarafianos, Bruno Nicolas, Daniele Fronte
  • Patent number: 11189578
    Abstract: The disclosure concerns an electronic chip including a resistive region and a first switch of selection of a first area in contact with the resistive region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 10, 2019
    Date of Patent: November 30, 2021
    Assignee: STMICROELECTRONICS (ROUSSET) SAS
    Inventors: Alexandre Sarafianos, Bruno Nicolas, Daniele Fronte
  • Patent number: 11049419
    Abstract: In an embodiment, a circuit includes a supply terminal, a reference terminal, a logic circuit coupled between the supply terminal and the reference terminal, and an auxiliary circuit coupled to the logic circuit. The auxiliary circuit includes a plurality of switches configured to be controlled to produce random criterions. Each random criterion causes, on each transition of an output signal of the logic, an attenuation of a current flowing between a supply terminal of the circuit and a reference terminal of the circuit; or an increase of the current flowing between the supply terminal of the circuit and the reference terminal of the circuit; or an additional current flowing through the logic circuit on a current path not passing through the supply terminal; or no change in the current flowing between the supply terminal of the circuit and the reference terminal of the circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 12, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 29, 2021
    Assignee: STMicroelectronics (Rousset) SAS
    Inventors: Alexandre Sarafianos, Thomas Ordas, Yanis Linge
  • Patent number: 11011479
    Abstract: An electronic chip includes a first well having a first PN junction located therein, a second buried well located under and separated from the first well, and a first region forming a second PN junction with the second well. A detection circuit is coupled to the first well and configured to output a digital signal that has a first logic value when a potential difference within the first region is above a threshold and a second logic value when the potential difference within the first region is below the threshold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 5, 2019
    Date of Patent: May 18, 2021
    Assignee: STMICROELECTRONICS (ROUSSET) SAS
    Inventors: Alexandre Sarafianos, Bruno Nicolas, Daniele Fronte
  • Patent number: 10998306
    Abstract: A circuit for protecting an integrated circuit against fault injection attacks includes an element including a dielectric which is destroyed, resulting in the occurrence of a short-circuit. The element is connected between two terminals that receive a power supply voltage of the integrated circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 10, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 4, 2021
    Assignee: STMicroelectronics (Rousset) SAS
    Inventors: Daniele Fronte, Pierre-Yvan Liardet, Alexandre Sarafianos
  • Patent number: 10949572
    Abstract: The supply voltage for a module of an integrated circuit managed to support protection against side channel attacks. Upon startup of the integrated circuit, one action from the following actions is selected in response to a command: supplying the module with the supply voltage having a fixed value that is selected from a plurality of predetermined values, or varying the value of the supply voltage in time with a pulsed signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 14, 2019
    Date of Patent: March 16, 2021
    Assignee: STMicroelectronics (Rousset) SAS
    Inventors: Alexandre Sarafianos, Thomas Ordas, Yanis Linge, Jimmy Fort
  • Publication number: 20210057358
    Abstract: An integrated circuit includes a semiconductor substrate having a rear face. A first semiconductor well within the substrate includes circuit components. A second semiconductor well within the substrate is insulated from the first semiconductor well and the rest of the substrate. The second semiconductor well provides a detection device that is configurable and designed to detect a DFA attack by fault injection into the integrated circuit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 6, 2020
    Publication date: February 25, 2021
    Applicant: STMicroelectronics (Rousset) SAS
    Inventors: Alexandre SARAFIANOS, Abderrezak MARZAKI
  • Patent number: 10892234
    Abstract: An integrated circuit includes a semiconductor substrate having a rear face. A first semiconductor well within the substrate includes circuit components. A second semiconductor well within the substrate is insulated from the first semiconductor well and the rest of the substrate. The second semiconductor well provides a detection device that is configurable and designed, in a first configuration, to detect a thinning of the substrate via its rear face, and in a second configuration, to detect a DFA attack by fault injection into the integrated circuit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 8, 2018
    Date of Patent: January 12, 2021
    Assignee: STMicroelectronics (Rousset) SAS
    Inventors: Alexandre Sarafianos, Abderrezak Marzaki
  • Patent number: 10878132
    Abstract: A device can be used for detecting faults. A shift register is suitable for shifting, in tempo with a clock, a binary signal alternating between two logic levels, in successive cells of the shift register. A first logic circuit is suitable for comparing values contained in at least one pair of cells of the register.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2018
    Date of Patent: December 29, 2020
    Assignee: STMICROELECTRONICS (ROUSSET) SAS
    Inventors: Alexandre Sarafianos, Thomas Ordas
  • Publication number: 20200365528
    Abstract: A semiconductor substrate has a front face and a back face. A first contact and a second contact, spaced apart from each other, are located on the front face. An electrically conductive wafer is located on the back face. A detection circuit is configured to detect a thinning of the substrate from the back face. The detection circuit including a measurement circuit that takes a measurement of a resistive value of the substrate between said at least one first contact, said at least one second contact and said electrically conductive wafer. Thinning is detected in response to the measured resistive value.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 12, 2020
    Publication date: November 19, 2020
    Applicant: STMicroelectronics (Rousset) SAS
    Inventors: Alexandre SARAFIANOS, Fabrice MARINET, Julien DELALLEAU
  • Patent number: 10769513
    Abstract: An electronic device includes a logic circuit and an auxiliary circuit. The logic circuit includes a first terminal coupled to a supply voltage terminal, a second terminal intended coupled to a reference voltage terminal and an output terminal configured to deliver a signal in a high state or a low state. The auxiliary circuit is coupled between the first terminal and the second terminal and is configured to randomly generate or not generate an additional current between the first terminal and the second terminal on each change of state of the signal on the output terminal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 8, 2020
    Assignee: STMICROELECTRONICS (ROUSSET) SAS
    Inventors: Alexandre Sarafianos, Thomas Ordas, Yanis Linge, Jimmy Fort
  • Patent number: 10734329
    Abstract: In some embodiments, an electronic chip includes a doped semiconductor substrate of a first conductivity type, and wells of the second conductivity type on the side of the front face of the chip, in and on which wells circuit elements are formed. One or more slabs of a second conductivity type are buried under the wells and are separated from the wells. The electronic chip also includes, for each buried slab, a biasable section of the second conductivity type, which extends from the front face of the substrate to the buried slab. A first MOS transistor with a channel of the first conductivity type is disposed in the upper portion of each section, where the first transistor is an element of a flip-flop. A circuit is used for detecting a change in the logic level of one of the flip-flops.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 2, 2017
    Date of Patent: August 4, 2020
    Assignee: STMICROELECTRONICS (ROUSSET) SAS
    Inventors: Alexandre Sarafianos, Thomas Ordas
  • Patent number: 10691840
    Abstract: A secure electronic chip including a plurality of biased semiconductor wells and a well biasing current detection circuit. Each of the wells includes a transistor and a bias contact electrically isolated from the transistor. The detection circuit is electrically coupled to each bias contact and is configured to detect a bias current passing through the bias contact that is indicative of an attempt to tamper with the electronic chip.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 25, 2016
    Date of Patent: June 23, 2020
    Assignee: STMICROELECTRONICS (ROUSSET) SAS
    Inventors: Alexandre Sarafianos, Jimmy Fort, Clement Champeix, Jean-Max Dutertre, Nicolas Borrel
  • Publication number: 20200194318
    Abstract: A semiconductor substrate includes a buried semiconductor layer and semiconductor wells. A device for detecting a possible thinning of the semiconductor substrate via the rear face thereof is formed on and in the semiconductor wells. The device is a non-inverting buffer including an input terminal and an output terminal, the device being powered between a supply terminal and a reference terminal where the buried semiconductor layer provides the supply terminal. A control circuit delivers an input signal in a first state to the input terminal and outputs a control signal indicating a detection of a thinning of the substrate if a signal generated at the output terminal in response to the input signal is in a second state different from the first state.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 25, 2020
    Publication date: June 18, 2020
    Applicant: STMicroelectronics (Rousset) SAS
    Inventors: Alexandre SARAFIANOS, Abderrezak MARZAKI
  • Patent number: 10685923
    Abstract: An electronic chip including a plurality of buried doped bars and a circuit for detecting an anomaly of an electric characteristic of the bars.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 16, 2020
    Assignee: STMICROELECTRONICS (ROUSSET) SAS
    Inventors: Alexandre Sarafianos, Jimmy Fort, Thierry Soude
  • Patent number: 10615086
    Abstract: A semiconductor substrate includes a buried semiconductor layer and semiconductor wells. A device for detecting a possible thinning of the semiconductor substrate via the rear face thereof is formed on and in the semiconductor wells. The device is a non-inverting buffer including an input terminal and an output terminal, the device being powered between a supply terminal and a reference terminal where the buried semiconductor layer provides the supply terminal. A control circuit delivers an input signal in a first state to the input terminal and outputs a control signal indicating a detection of a thinning of the substrate if a signal generated at the output terminal in response to the input signal is in a second state different from the first state.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 4, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 7, 2020
    Assignee: STMicroelectronics (Rousset) SAS
    Inventors: Alexandre Sarafianos, Abderrezak Marzaki