How Does a Pool’s Luck Factor Influence the PPLNS Payout Model?

A pool's luck factor is the ratio of the actual number of shares submitted to find a block versus the statistically expected number of shares. In PPLNS, if a pool is "lucky" (finds a block with fewer shares than expected), miners receive a larger reward relative to their effort.

Conversely, if a pool is "unlucky," miners may have to submit many more shares before receiving a payout, leading to high variance.