Aims and scope

Cryptography and Communications: Discrete Structures, Boolean Functions and Sequences publishes scholarly research dedicated to improving the quality of the Discrete Structures, Boolean Functions and Sequences used in communication and cryptographic systems. This research aims to increase the speed and capacity of digital communication and strengthen security by improving the encryption necessary to combat cryptanalytic attacks. With improved encryption, communication will become more secure from the cryptanalytic attacks that threaten the confidentiality and integrity of personal data stored on and transmitted by mobile devices. Increasing the speed, reliability, and capacity of wireless communication is essential for growth, since the radio spectrum is a bounded resource.

While sometimes treated as separate entities with distinct research goals, communication and cryptography often use similar models and techniques and work in tandem in digital networks. As a result, this journal’s distinctive combination encourages researchers to strive for advancements that will improve one or both areas, thus providing a publishing forum for these domains, covering all the fundamental and computational aspects of these research fields.

The journal publishes high-quality papers dealing with cryptography, error-correcting codes, communications and their interactions. Both theoretical and applied papers will be considered.

The scope of the journal focuses on discrete structures used in stream and block ciphers in symmetric cryptography; code division multiple access in communications; and random number generation for statistics, cryptography and numerical methods. In particular, papers covering Boolean functions and sequences, without excluding any other discrete structure used in cryptography and communications, such as finite fields and other algebraic structures, are strongly encouraged. Topics include, but are not limited to:

    Boolean functions for pseudo-random generators in stream ciphers and related cryptographic criteria
    Weights and nonlinearity of Boolean functions, character sums
    Fourier and Walsh transforms and their relation to sequences and Boolean functions
    Multi-output (vectorial) Boolean functions for substitution (S-) boxes in block ciphers, differential and nonlinearity characteristics
    Designs and (single or multi-output) Boolean functions
    Diffusion in block ciphers and Boolean functions
    Cryptanalyses of stream and block ciphers and their relation to discrete structures
    Combinatorics, coding, cryptography and sequences
    Finite fields (or Galois rings), coding, cryptography, and sequences
    Connections between sequences and abstract algebra
    Permutation and multivariate polynomials over finite fields and their use in cryptography
    Linear feedback shift registers, feedback with carry shift registers, and other sequence generators
    Correlation of sequences
    Complexity measures of sequences and multisequences
    Pseudo-randomness of sequences
    Shift register synthesis
    Connections between graphs and discrete structures
    Coding techniques and theories for distributed storage and computing
    Cryptographic sequences derived from automatic sequences
    Uniform distribution, exponential sums and cryptography
    Pseudorandomness and number theoretic objects and applications (coding, cryptography)
    Signal design for communication systems and radar systems in connection with discrete structures)
    LRC codes, minimal codes, RS codes, AG codes