From: "Perry E. Metzger" <perry@piermont.com>
Date: Sat, 30 Sep 95 16:41:12 PDT
To: tcmay@got.net (Timothy C. May)
Subject: Re: Simple Hardware RNG Idea
In-Reply-To: <ac9161a3050210040cbd@[205.199.118.202]>
Message-ID: <199509302340.TAA25393@frankenstein.piermont.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain



Timothy C. May writes:
> 2. Incorporating Am-241 or other alpha emitters in microcurie levels would
> require licensing, regulatory oversight, etc., etc. Don't count on it.
> 
> 3. Data rates are fairly low. Anything that "clicks" at high rates (> 1K
> counts per second) would be too radioactive to ship.
> 
> 4. Zener diodes and other random noise sources are cheaper to build, more
> consistent in output, and easier to integrate into actual products.

However, radiation detection devices are far easier to assure correct
operation. You can buy pre-built radiation counters with RS-232
interfaces, so its really just a question in many cases of buying them
and small radation sources, the latter of which is available in most
scientific supply catalogs. Unlike other devices, its very hard for
outsiders to tamper with radation sources to make them produce
specially skewed numbers....

Perry