skip to Main Content

Mifare DESFire's Products

Overview

NXP’s MIFARE DESFire Light is a contactless IC designed for easy integration into new and existing systems. Its predefined file system and total available memory of 640 Bytes (equivalent to MIFARE Classic®with 1 kB) make it an excellent choice for single-application designs in a wide variety of use cases. MIFARE DESFire Light is compatible with MIFARE®DESFire® EV2, so designers can easily expand their systems to support new applications. Compatibility with MIFARE DESFire EV2 also lets developers promote their services on NXP´s AppXplorer, a collaboration platform that creates an App Store-like experience on smart cards. MIFARE DESFire Light can also be configured as an NFC Forum NFC Type Tag 4, so it’s ready to use with the broadest range of mobile devices equipped with contactless reading capabilities. Designed for limited-and extended-use applications, MIFARE DESFire Light includes the appropriate protection mechanisms to power trusted services. Depending on the use case, up to five AES 128-bit keys can be used to manage access rights, while the secure messaging option enhances the protection of data and privacy. All of the chip’s hardware and software security features have been externally reviewed, tested, and certified according to Common Criteria EAL4.

Features

RF Interface & Communication Protocol

  • Contactless interface compliant to ISO/IEC 14443A-2/ -3/ -4
  • Support of ISO/IEC 7816-4 communication frames for highest interoperability with mobile and wearables
  • Low power consumption (Hmin) enabling operating distances of up to 10 cm
  • Support of fast data rates: 106 kbit/s, 212 kbit/s, 424 kbit/s, and 848 kbit/s
  • Support of double size (7-byte) Unique Identifiers (UID) and optionally Random ID (RID) according to ISO 14443-3
  • Configurable communication frame size to support up to 128 bytes
  • Fast start-up time for reliable and robust detection of MIFARE DESFire Light in legacy terminals
  • Support of ISO 7816-4 wrapped commands compliant to a subset of MIFARE DESFire EV2 commands

Memory Organization

  • 640 bytes user memory, equivalent to available user memory on legacy MIFARE Classic 1kB product
  • Data retention of 10 years and write endurance of minimum 200.000 cycles
  • File system compliant to ISO/IEC 7816-4 with one predefined Directory File (DF) and a set of Elementary Files (EF)
    • Three standard data files, one with 32 bytes and two with 256 bytes
    • One cyclic record file of 4 records of each 16-byte record size
    • One value file for value operations including upper and lower limits
    • Optional Transaction Message Authentication Code (TMAC) file for transaction protection
  • File system compliant with MIFARE DESFire EV2 file system

User-configurable file naming enabling compatibility to legacy systems and NFC Type 4 Tag compliant configurations

Security and Privacy

  • Common Criteria certification: EAL4 for both Hardware and Software
  • Secure messaging compliant to standard AES according to NIST Special Publication 800-38A and 800-38B
    • Optional enhanced side-channel attack protection using LRP wrapped AES operation according
    • Secure messaging compatible with a subset of MIFARE DESFire EV2 secure messaging
  • Five customers defined AES 128-bit keys including key versions
  • Optional Random ID for enhanced privacy
  • Individual AES 128-bit TMAC key for enhanced transaction protection
  • Transaction counter limit to limit the number of transactions with the application
  • 3-pass mutual authentication
  • Flexible access control configurable per file (EF)
  • Individual key configuration for Read (R) / Write (W) / ReadWrite (RW) / Configuration
  • Configurable secure messaging communication mode
    • Plain communication
    • CMAC protected for message integrity protection
    • Full Enciphered plus CMAC for full encryption of complete data transferred through the contactless interface
  • ECC-based NXP originality signature
  • AES-based originality keys leveraging the LRP wrapped AES authentication

Specific Features

  • Transaction-oriented automatic anti-tearing mechanism
  • Configurable ATS information for card personalization
  • Functional compatibility with MIFARE DESFire EV2 for easy integration of applications designed on MF2DL(H)x0 into flexible multiapplication solutions
  • High input capacitance (50 pF) for small form factor design available
Back To Top