The Impact of Blockchain Propagation Time on Bitcoin Block Time Analysis
Bitcoin’s block time is a crucial factor in understanding the overall speed and efficiency of the network. In this article, we will examine the effects of blockchain propagation time on block time analysis in both ascending and descending order of blocks.
Assumptions
Before we dive into the analysis, let’s assume two main parameters:
- Network Propagation Time: The average time it takes for a transaction to be broadcast to the network and verified by a node.
- Block Time: The interval between the creation of new blocks, which is currently set to 6 seconds.
Analysis
We will consider two scenarios for our analysis:
- Ascending Sequences: A blockchain sequence where transactions are inserted in ascending order. In this scenario, nodes can verify and process transactions more efficiently.
- Descending order: A blockchain ordering where transactions are inserted in descending order. This is the opposite of ascending order.
Time = t0 analysis
At time “t0”, every 6 seconds have passed since the beginning of the network. Consider two blocks, blocks “b1” and “b2”, which were inserted at times “t1” and “t2”.
- Ascending order: Since both nodes verify and process transactions in ascending order, they can see each other’s previous block as it is created.
+ Node A sees b1 and checks its validity. If there are no transactions to verify (for example, a transaction with an empty list), node A waits 6 seconds for the next new block to be verified by another node.
- Descending order: Since nodes verify and process transactions in descending order, they must see all previous blocks before verifying the current block. This means that nodes will not have any information about “b1” until they receive “b2”.
+ Node A sees b1, but does not know if there are other transactions that need to be verified (e.g. a transaction with an empty list). If node A has to wait for another node to add or delete transactions, this can take up to 6 seconds.
Convergence time
As we continue the analysis over time, we can observe that the convergence time between “t0” and subsequent blocks will be different in ascending and descending order. In ascending order, the convergence time is approximately the same as the block time (6 seconds), as nodes verify transactions in ascending order.
However, in descending order, the convergence time will be significantly longer, as nodes must wait for all previous transactions before verifying a new one. This can lead to a significant increase in the average transaction processing time.
Conclusion
In summary, the analysis of block times and propagation time reveals that both ascending and descending order have distinct characteristics in terms of transaction verification efficiency on the Bitcoin network. While ascending order achieves faster convergence time, descending order is more efficient in terms of waiting time. Understanding these differences is key to optimizing the development and deployment of Bitcoin-based systems.
References
- [1] “Bitcoin block time” ( Wikipedia article )
- [2] “Blockchain propagation time” ( CryptoSlate article )
