RF Fingerprinting Using Transient-Based Identification Signals at Sampling Rates Close to the Nyquist Limit

Radio frequency (RF) fingerprinting is regarded as a promising solution to improve wireless security, especially in applications where resource-limited devices are employed. Unlike steady-state signals, such as preambles or data, the use of short-duration transient signals for RF fingerprinting offers distinct advantages for systems with low latency and low complexity requirements. One of the challenges associated with transient-based methods in practice is achieving high performance while utilizing low-cost receivers. In this study, we demonstrate for the first time that the performance of transient-based RF fingerprinting can be enhanced by designing the filter chain in a software defined radio (SDR) receiver, taking into account the relevant signal characteristics. The performance analysis is conducted using transient-based identification signals captured by the SDR receiver, focusing on the sampling rate and duration of the identification signal. In the experiments, signals collected from twenty IEEE 802.11 transmitters are used. Experimental results indicate that so long as the receiver filter parameters and the duration of the identification signal are properly determined, a high classification performance exceeding 92% can be achieved for transient-based RF fingerprinting, even at sampling rates approaching the Nyquist limit.