Barracuda: The power of l-polling in proof of stake blockchains

Abstract

This thesis introduces Barracuda, a novel block propagation protocol for proof-of-stake blockchains that significantly improves network efficiency without compromising security. Traditional block propagation protocols in proof-of-stake systems face challenges with block withholding attacks that can undermine consensus. Barracuda addresses this vulnerability by implementing an ℓ-polling mechanism where validators poll multiple peers to retrieve blocks, drastically reducing the effectiveness of block withholding strategies.

The thesis provides a comprehensive theoretical analysis of Barracuda, demonstrating that the protocol maintains security against powerful adversaries, including those with network control capabilities attempting to execute nothing-at-stake attacks. Through mathematical modeling and simulations, I show that Barracuda achieves near-optimal block propagation throughput while preserving the system’s security guarantees.

This work contributes to the scalability of proof-of-stake blockchains by enabling more efficient communication without sacrificing the crucial property of resistance to block withholding attacks.

Citation

@mastersthesis{rana2020barracuda,
  title={Barracuda: The power of l-polling in proof of stake blockchains},
  author={Rana, Ranvir},
  school={University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign},
  year={2020}
}