 Enhancing block cipher diffusion: A mathematical approach to key-dependent mix column transformationsShiraz Naserelden (), Norma Alias (), Abdelrahamn Altigani (), Maher Waheeb (), Azmi Alazzam (), Muawia A. Elsadig () and Hasan Abu Hilal () Edelweiss Applied Science and Technology, 2025, vol. 9, issue 5, 436-443 Abstract: In this paper, we propose a novel key-dependent MixColumn transformation to enhance the diffusion properties of block ciphers, specifically within the AES framework. The proposed method introduces dynamic variation into the MixColumn step by extracting a pseudo-random value from the round key, which is used to perform cyclic permutations on the MixColumn coefficients. This leads to the construction of a round-dependent transformation matrix, mathematically defined and proven to maintain invertibility over GF(2⁸). We provide a formal mathematical representation of the proposed model and analyze its diffusion characteristics, linear independence, and resistance to cryptanalytic attacks. Our approach eliminates static transformation patterns and introduces key-driven unpredictability, offering a promising direction for adaptive cryptographic primitives without increasing algorithmic complexity or requiring hardware modifications. Keywords: Block ciphers; Advance encryption standard; Finite fields; MixColumn transformation; Encryption; Maximum distance separable. (search for similar items in EconPapers) Downloads: (external link) Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ajp:edwast:v:9:y:2025:i:5:p:436-443:id:6886 Access Statistics for this article More articles in Edelweiss Applied Science and Technology from Learning Gate |
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