Constructing new APN functions through relative trace functions

TL;DR

This paper introduces a new class of APN functions over finite fields constructed using relative trace functions and quadratic functions, expanding the known families of functions with optimal cryptographic properties.

Contribution

The paper characterizes conditions for APN-ness of functions formed by trace-based combinations of quadratic functions and constructs an infinite family of such APN functions.

Findings

Established a characterization criterion for APN functions of the form involving trace and quadratic functions.

Constructed an infinite family of APN functions over fields with odd m.

Extended the understanding of APN functions beyond previously known polynomial forms.

Abstract

In 2020, Budaghyan, Helleseth and Kaleyski [IEEE TIT 66(11): 7081-7087, 2020] considered an infinite family of quadrinomials over $\mathbb{F}_{2^{n}}$ of the form $x^3+a(x^{2^s+1})^{2^k}+bx^{3\cdot 2^m}+c(x^{2^{s+m}+2^m})^{2^k}$, where $n=2m$ with $m$ odd. They proved that such kind of quadrinomials can provide new almost perfect nonlinear (APN) functions when $\gcd(3,m)=1$, $ k=0 $, and $(s,a,b,c)=(m-2,\omega, \omega^2,1)$ or $((m-2)^{-1}~{\rm mod}~n,\omega, \omega^2,1)$ in which $\omega\in\mathbb{F}_4\setminus \mathbb{F}_2$. By taking $a=\omega$ and $b=c=\omega^2$, we observe that such kind of quadrinomials can be rewritten as $a {\rm Tr}^{n}_{m}(bx^3)+a^q{\rm Tr}^{n}_{m}(cx^{2^s+1})$, where $q=2^m$ and $ {\rm Tr}^n_{m}(x)=x+x^{2^m} $ for $ n=2m$. Inspired by the quadrinomials and our observation, in this paper we study a class of functions with the form $f(x)=a{\rm Tr}^{n}_{m}(F(x))+a^q{\rm Tr}^{n}_{m}(G(x))$ and determine the APN-ness of this new kind of functions, where $a \in \mathbb{F}_{2^n} $ such that $ a+a^q\neq 0$, and both $F$ and $G$ are quadratic functions over $\mathbb{F}_{2^n}$. We first obtain a characterization of the conditions for $f(x)$ such that $f(x) $ is an APN function. With the help of this characterization, we obtain an infinite family of APN functions for $ n=2m $ with $m$ being an odd positive integer: $ f(x)=a{\rm Tr}^{n}_{m}(bx^3)+a^q{\rm Tr}^{n}_{m}(b^3x^9) $, where $ a\in \mathbb{F}_{2^n}$ such that $ a+a^q\neq 0 $ and $ b $ is a non-cube in $ \mathbb{F}_{2^n} $.