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IEEE International Symposium on Design and Diagnostics of Electronic Circuits & Systems (DDECS)

Monolithic Quantum Random Number Generator Containing Si-LED, SPAD and Analog Processing

Horst Zimmermann, David Bugl, Bernhard Goll, Michael Hofbauer, Kerstin Schneider-Hornstein, Hiwa Mahmoudi

Published Apr 27, 2026• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

This work describes a monolithically integrated photonic quantum random number generator (QRNG) in$0.35 \mu ~\mathrm{m}$CMOS. This QRNG consists of a light-emitting diode inside a deep N-well, a ring single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD), a fast cascoded active quenching and resetting circuit, and an analog evaluation circuit determining whether the random bit is a “0” or “1”. The random bits are created by comparison of two consecutive time intervals between photon detections using charging and discharging a capacitor with a constant current as well as a comparator. The time intervals can be in the range from 10 ns to$10 \mu ~\mathrm{s}$. With$\pm 3.3 ~\mathrm{V}$supply voltage, the power consumption of the complete circuits is between 1.1 mW and 4.55 mW depending on the LED emission and detection rate of the SPAD. After XOR-hashing, the NIST tests were passed.

DOI
10.1109/ddecs69233.2026.11521003

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A monolithically integrated optoelectronic device is realized in 0.35um high voltage CMOS technology. It consists of a ring shaped single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD) around a Si-CMOS-LED to generate random events. The LED-emitted photons transmit through the short distance between the Si-LED and SPAD and some of them can be detected by the SPAD. In this device, time intervals between single-photon events are independent quantum random variables. Experimental results show an increase of more than a factor of three in the photon counting rate compared to earlier reported results.
A quantum random number generator (QRNG) based on a silicon nanocrystals (Si-NCs) light emitting device (LED) coupled with a silicon single photon avalanche photodiode (Si-SPAD) is presented. A simple setup is used for the generation of random bits. The modeled approach assures a negligible bias on datasets of 100 Mbits length. The raw data pass all the statistical tests in the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) suite without any post-processing operations. The bit-rate of 0.6 Mbps is achieved. The information-theoretically provable randomness extractor of Toeplitz-hashing function is applied to longer datasets (1 Gbits) to extract the randomness, to minimize the bias, and consequently pass all the NIST tests. Stabilizing the temperature, resetting the applied current to the LED, or a feedback system can also be used as parameter control solutions to generate good quality, long datasets of random numbers suitable for cryptographic applications.
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For globally connected devices like smart phones, personal computers and Internet-of-things devices, the ability to generate random numbers is essential for execution of cryptographic protocols responsible for information security. Generally, a random number generator should be small, robust, utilize as few hardware and energy resources as possible, yet provide excellent randomness at a high enough speed (bitrate) for a given purpose. In this work we present a quantum random number generator (QRNG) which makes use of a photoelectric effect in single-photon avalanche diodes (SPADs) as a source of randomness and is scalable to any desired bitrate. We use the random flip-flop method in which random bits are obtained by periodic sampling of a randomly toggling flip-flop. For the first time we investigate this method in detail and find that, out of two main imperfections, bias is due only to hardware imperfections while autocorrelation predominantly resides with the method itself. SPADs are integrated on a silicon chip together with passive quenching and digital pulse-shaping circuitry, using a standard 180 nm CMOS process. A separate FPGA chip derives random numbers from the detection signals. The basic QRNG cell, made of only two SPADs and a few logic circuits, can generate up to 20 Mbit/s that pass NIST statistical tests without any further postprocessing. This technology allows integration of a QRNG on a single silicon chip using readily available industrial processes.
A 16×1616\times 1616×16 Pixel Post-Processing Free Quantum Random Number Generator Based on SPADs
In this brief, we present a 16 × 16-pixel quantum random number generator (QRNG) based on Single-Photon Avalanche Diodes, implemented in CMOS 150-nm technology. Each pixel consists of two detectors, featuring 17.2 μm ×7.7 μm size, and an arbiter, based on a phase comparator, enhancing the working range of the generator. The QRNG has achieved a random bit efficiency of 90% at a given observation window of 200 ns. The maximum speed is up to 18.2 Mbps for the whole array due to limited readout capability. The measurement result shows the random numbers can pass the standard randomness test without any post-processing.