Performance evaluation of a quantum-resistant Blockchain: a comparative study with Secp256k1 and Schnorr

Abstract

Popular Secp256k1 and Schnorr algorithms offer strong security in current Blockchains. However, they are vulnerable to quantum attacks. To solve this problem, several quantum-resistant algorithms have been proposed. However, the performance evaluations and tangible analyses of these algorithms on current Blockchains have not been studied yet. In this context, a performance analysis of quantum-resistant algorithms on a Blockchain can provide valuable insight into the efficiency of quantum-resistant algorithms in real-world scenarios. To address this need, we prototyped and analyzed a quantum-resistant Blockchain using the Falcon algorithm. Falcon is selected because it provides smaller signature and key size compared to Crystals-Dilithium and Sphincs+. We then measured in real-time the key size, transaction signature size, and transaction verification time. The paper also discusses the potential scalability limitations of the proposed quantum-resistant Blockchain and suggests an approach to select quantum-resistant algorithms based on different Blockchain use cases. Our approach and benchmark results have implications for the future development and adoption of quantum-resistant Blockchains.