How Does the Difficulty Adjustment Algorithm Relate to the Security Expenditure?

The difficulty adjustment algorithm is a mechanism that automatically changes the complexity of the PoW puzzle to maintain a consistent block time despite fluctuations in total hashing power. When more miners join, the difficulty increases, requiring more computational power and thus more energy (security expenditure) to find a block.

This ensures that the cost to attack the network remains high and proportional to the network's value.

What Is the Role of Mining Difficulty in a PoW Network?
How Does the Concept of ‘Difficulty’ Protect a PoW Network?
How Does a Cryptocurrency’s Difficulty Adjustment Mechanism Work?
What Is the “Difficulty Adjustment” in Bitcoin Mining?
What Is a Difficulty Adjustment Algorithm and Why Is It Necessary?
What Is the Purpose of the “Difficulty Adjustment” Algorithm in a PoW Blockchain?
How Does a Cryptocurrency’s Difficulty Adjustment Algorithm Function?
How Does the PoW Difficulty Adjustment Mechanism Work?

Glossar