[Cryptech Tech] FPGA for alpha board

[Randy Bush]

> Yes, adding a soft core is one option we have for the future. Using a
> hard core such as Xilinx Zync or Altera SoCs adds a lot of performance,
> but it reduces the ability to actually test and know as well as limit
> what is actually accessible from where.
> 
> In terms of side channel leakage, having an internal interface on chip
> is better than having an interface over the PCB. But this interface will
> be inside the tamper boundary.
> 
> For the next, next generation board (or later revisions of this one) we
> may move to an integrated solution. But for the platform after Novena I
> think our assumption right now is that we really want to have separate
> physical devices. This is because it allows us to decompose the system
> into separate partitions that can more easily be controlled and audited.

makes sense to me.  my tinfoil twitches at having a that large a core
in the fpga.  maybe i can get used to it in time.  but right now, eh ...

randy