Decentralised Application

Blockchain

A distributed, immutable digital ledger that records transactions across a network of computers without a central authority.

Distributed Ledger Technology

A digital system for recording, sharing, and synchronising data across multiple sites without a central administrator.

Consensus Mechanism

The method by which a distributed network agrees on the current state of the ledger and validates transactions.

Proof of Work

A consensus mechanism requiring computational effort to validate transactions and create new blocks, used by Bitcoin.

Proof of Stake

A consensus mechanism where validators are selected based on the amount of cryptocurrency they hold and stake.

Delegated Proof of Stake

A consensus mechanism where token holders vote for delegates who validate transactions on their behalf.

Byzantine Fault Tolerance

The ability of a distributed system to reach consensus despite some nodes acting maliciously or failing.

Merkle Tree

A hash-based data structure that efficiently verifies the integrity and consistency of large sets of data.

Hash Function

A mathematical function that converts input data of any size into a fixed-size output, used extensively in blockchain security.

Cryptographic Hash

A one-way function producing a fixed-length output that is computationally infeasible to reverse or find collisions for.

Public Key Cryptography

An encryption system using mathematically linked key pairs — a public key for encryption and a private key for decryption.

Digital Signature

A cryptographic mechanism that verifies the authenticity and integrity of digital messages or documents.

A digital form of fiat currency issued and regulated by a country's central bank on blockchain infrastructure.

The ability of different blockchain networks to communicate, share data, and transfer value between each other.

An organisation governed by smart contracts and token holder votes rather than centralised management.

A Layer 2 scaling solution using zero-knowledge proofs to validate off-chain transactions on the main blockchain.

A blockchain network where participation is restricted to authorised entities, common in enterprise applications.

A digital asset created and managed on a blockchain, representing value, utility, or ownership rights.

Zero-Knowledge Succinct Non-Interactive Argument of Knowledge — a compact zero-knowledge proof requiring no interaction between prover and verifier.

A blockchain node that downloads and validates every block and transaction against the complete set of consensus rules.