Abstract
In this paper, a self-calibrating low power sense amplifier has been proposed to generate true random bits by exploiting random switching behavior of a straintronic MTJ. This circuit has applicability in cryptography in which high quality random numbers are crucial for enhanced security. Digital self-calibration mechanism is employed to accommodate manufacturing variations and slow-temporal changes due to aging or temperature-drift. A 16 nm FinFET process is utilized to demonstrate the circuit. The power consumption at a maximum throughput of 100 MHz is estimated as 13 fJ/bit for the analog part that would run continuously to generate random numbers and 8 fJ/bit for the digital part that would operate only when it is required for calibration.