55AA Security Lab

55AA-018

Embedded Systems Principles and Security

Level
Graduate
Status
Under development

Note: this course is still being designed and calibrated; the page content is for reference and does not represent the final teaching version.

Syllabus

Course Overview

Embedded Systems Principles and Security brings microcontrollers, real-time constraints, peripherals, firmware, and IoT security into one framework. The course emphasizes engineering tradeoffs in resource-constrained environments, secure boot, firmware update, and debug-interface risk.

This is a practical bridge from systems programming, organization, and architecture to hardware security.

Prerequisites

  • Computer organization, assembly, and systems programming.
  • Ability to read C/Rust embedded code.
  • Willingness to complete board-level labs and debugging.

Learning Outcomes

  • Explain MCUs, peripherals, interrupts, and real-time scheduling.
  • Write and debug firmware drivers and communication code.
  • Analyze firmware update, secure boot, and key storage.
  • Identify debug-interface and configuration risks in IoT devices.
  • Complete a runnable embedded-security project.

Course Format

  • Two meetings per week: one for core concepts and one for labs, paper discussion, or project review.
  • The course proceeds over 16 weeks, each with a checkable assignment, lab, or project milestone.
  • Reproducibility is required: code, configuration, data, lab logs, and reports must be reviewable by staff or peers.

Weekly Plan

Week 1
Week 2

Embedded hardware, toolchains, and debugging: lab and review

Set up board, serial, and debugging environment. Complete the paired lab, record issues, and explain design tradeoffs in class review.

Session 3Embedded hardware, toolchains, and debugging: lab and review: Concepts, Cases, and Method90 minSession 4Embedded hardware, toolchains, and debugging: lab and review: Lab, Review, and Transfer90 min
Week 3
Week 4

GPIO, timers, and interrupts: lab and review

Implement an interrupt-driven peripheral task. Complete the paired lab, record issues, and explain design tradeoffs in class review.

Session 7GPIO, timers, and interrupts: lab and review: Concepts, Cases, and Method90 minSession 8GPIO, timers, and interrupts: lab and review: Lab, Review, and Transfer90 min
Week 5
Week 6

Real-time constraints and low power: lab and review

Measure latency, jitter, and power. Complete the paired lab, record issues, and explain design tradeoffs in class review.

Session 11Real-time constraints and low power: lab and review: Concepts, Cases, and Method90 minSession 12Real-time constraints and low power: lab and review: Lab, Review, and Transfer90 min
Week 7
Week 8

Buses, sensors, and communication: lab and review

Implement I2C/SPI/UART communication labs. Complete the paired lab, record issues, and explain design tradeoffs in class review.

Session 15Buses, sensors, and communication: lab and review: Concepts, Cases, and Method90 minSession 16Buses, sensors, and communication: lab and review: Lab, Review, and Transfer90 min
Week 9
Week 10

Firmware structure and update: lab and review

Design secure update and rollback strategy. Complete the paired lab, record issues, and explain design tradeoffs in class review.

Session 19Firmware structure and update: lab and review: Concepts, Cases, and Method90 minSession 20Firmware structure and update: lab and review: Lab, Review, and Transfer90 min
Week 11
Week 12

Secure boot and key storage: lab and review

Analyze boot chain and key lifecycle. Complete the paired lab, record issues, and explain design tradeoffs in class review.

Session 23Secure boot and key storage: lab and review: Concepts, Cases, and Method90 minSession 24Secure boot and key storage: lab and review: Lab, Review, and Transfer90 min
Week 13
Week 14

IoT attack surfaces and debug interfaces: lab and review

Audit interfaces and configuration of a device. Complete the paired lab, record issues, and explain design tradeoffs in class review.

Session 27IoT attack surfaces and debug interfaces: lab and review: Concepts, Cases, and Method90 minSession 28IoT attack surfaces and debug interfaces: lab and review: Lab, Review, and Transfer90 min
Week 15
Week 16

Embedded security project: lab and review

Submit firmware, lab notes, and security evaluation. Complete the paired lab, record issues, and explain design tradeoffs in class review.

Session 31Embedded security project: lab and review: Concepts, Cases, and Method90 minSession 32Embedded security project: lab and review: Lab, Review, and Transfer90 min

Assessment

Individual assignments

Concept questions, reading responses, design tasks, and small programming or lab exercises.

25%
Labs and project

Board labs, firmware implementation, measurements, and security analysis.

40%
Participation and review

Participation in discussions, demos, code or paper reviews, and peer feedback.

10%
Final report and defense

Submit reproducible artifacts, a technical report, and a demo explaining methods, results, limitations, and future work.

25%

Course Project

Students complete a board-level project such as a secure sensor node, firmware update mechanism, interface audit, low-power communication, or debug-interface risk assessment.

Policies

  • AI tools are allowed, but generated code, lab notes, and design suggestions must be reviewed by the student and disclosed in the report.
  • Students may not submit code, proofs, configuration, or experimental results they cannot explain; each member must defend their own design, tests, and tradeoffs.
  • Late work affects iteration grades, but the course values reproducible, auditable, and maintainable results over last-minute accumulation.

Reference Courses

International

China 985 Universities