A New Pairwise Key Scheme Based on Deployment Knowledge in Multi-Phase Sensor Networks

The lifetime of a sensor network is generally longer than that of a single sensor node, so to ensure the connectivity of the network, new nodes need to be deployed into the network in multiphase. Such networks are called multiphase sensor networks. In sensor networks, establishing a pairwise key between two neighboring nodes is a fundamental security requirement. However, for sensor nodes with strictly limited capabilities, there are great challenges in establishing a pairwise key between two neighboring sensor nodes deployed at different phases. In order to solve this problem, some scholars have proposed some solutions based on backward key-chains and forward key-chains, however, how to further improve the networks’ resilience against node capture attacks still needs further research; and some scholars have proposed some solutions based on key pools of each phase are independent, but how to improve the probability of establishing a pairwise key between two neighboring nodes deployed at different phases is still a very challenging problem. In this article, we propose a new pairwise key scheme based on deployment knowledge. Theoretical analysis and simulation show that the proposed model can achieve high probability of establishing a pairwise key between two neighboring nodes and good resilience against node capture attacks by setting appropriate parameters.