What Is Lachesis (Fantom)?
Lachesis is the second component of the Fantom stack, which is a distributed ledger and smart contract platform similar to Ethereum.
What sets Lachesis apart is its unique features and approach.
Utilizing DAG for Transaction Verification
Unlike traditional blockchain structures, Lachesis utilizes a Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG) structure, eliminating the need for blocks in transaction processing.
Instead, it employs nodes for transaction verification.
Fantom, as the world’s first DAG-based smart contract platform, addresses the scalability and confirmation time challenges associated with existing blockchain technologies.
Fantom and Lachesis
The development of Fantom and Lachesis involved a team of experts in various fields, including Distributed Ledger Technology, mathematics, information theory, computer science, finance, and business strategy.
The goal was to create a platform where developers can easily deploy their own smart contracts and decentralized applications (dApps) on a high-performance and scalable blockchain infrastructure.
The growing ecosystem of dApps on Fantom benefits from a wide range of tools that streamline the development process.
The platform is designed to be future-ready for mass adoption, built on open-source technologies that promote transparency.
Advancing Beyond PBFT Algorithm
Lachesis operates using the aBFT (asynchronous Byzantine fault-tolerant) consensus algorithm, an improvement over the PBFT (Practical Byzantine Fault Tolerance) algorithm used by several blockchain projects, including Hyperledger and Tendermint.
Synchronous Consensus Mechanisms
The key distinction between Lachesis and PBFT lies in their consensus mechanisms. Lachesis allows for asynchronous consensus, meaning the time between blocks can be variable.
In contrast, PBFT requires synchronous consensus, where the time between blocks is constant and tied to block creation time.
While having disadvantages, asynchronous consensus networks offer scalability advantages over synchronous networks.
They do not need to wait for all nodes to respond before creating new blocks, resulting in faster transactions and more efficient resource utilization.
This scalability is crucial for various blockchain applications, such as supply chain management and financial transactions.
Compared to existing blockchain consensus algorithms, Lachesis offers greater flexibility, enabling faster block times and improved scalability.