Mining
The process of using computational power to validate transactions and add new blocks to a proof-of-work blockchain.
In-Depth Explanation
Miners compete to find a valid block hash by trying billions of nonces. The winner broadcasts the block, earns the block reward plus transaction fees, and the race restarts. Mining difficulty adjusts to maintain target block times. Mining economics depend on hardware costs, electricity prices, and token price.
Related Terms
Proof of Work
PoWA consensus mechanism where miners compete to solve computational puzzles, with the winner adding the next block and earning rewards.
Hash
A fixed-size output produced by a cryptographic function that uniquely represents input data.
Application-Specific Integrated Circuit
ASICSpecialized hardware designed for a single purpose, typically mining a specific cryptocurrency algorithm.
More in Infrastructure
View all →Gas Fees
Transaction fees paid to validators/miners for executing operations on a blockchain.
Gwei
A denomination of Ether equal to one billionth of an ETH, commonly used to express gas prices.
Layer 2
L2Scaling solutions built on top of a base blockchain (L1) that process transactions off-chain while inheriting L1 security.
Layer 1
L1The base blockchain that provides security and consensus, such as Ethereum, Bitcoin, or Solana.