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Proof-of-Spiking-Neurons(PoSN): Neuromorphic Consensus for Next-Generation Blockchains

M. Z. Haider, M. U Ghouri, Tayyaba Noreen, M. Salman

TL;DR

This work introduces Proof-of-Spiking-Neurons (PoSN), a neuromorphic blockchain consensus that uses spike trains to encode transactions, leading to leader election via spiking dynamics and block finalization through neural synchronization. By implementing PoSN on neuromorphic simulators such as Nengo and PyNN, the authors demonstrate substantial gains in energy efficiency and throughput while preserving Byzantine fault tolerance and fairness, demonstrated on a prototype with spiking kernels and VRF-based tie-breaks. Key contributions include the neural encoding of transactions (rate, temporal, and composite current schemes), a Leaky Integrate-and-Fire based consensus mechanism, and a comprehensive evaluation showing PoSN outperforms PoB and PoR in throughput, latency, and scalability, with favorable resource and security profiles. The proposed approach has strong practical implications for IoT, edge, and large-scale distributed systems, enabling sustainable, adaptive blockchains without mining or stake-based centralization, and motivating hardware-accelerated neuromorphic implementations.

Abstract

Blockchain systems face persistent challenges of scalability, latency, and energy inefficiency. Existing consensus protocols such as Proof-of-Work (PoW) and Proof-of-Stake (PoS) either consume excessive resources or risk centralization. This paper proposes \textit{Proof-of-Spiking-Neurons (PoSN)}, a neuromorphic consensus protocol inspired by spiking neural networks. PoSN encodes transactions as spike trains, elects leaders through competitive firing dynamics, and finalizes blocks via neural synchronization, enabling parallel and event-driven consensus with minimal energy overhead. A hybrid system architecture is implemented on neuromorphic platforms, supported by simulation frameworks such as Nengo and PyNN. Experimental results show significant gains in energy efficiency, throughput, and convergence compared to PoB and PoR. PoSN establishes a foundation for sustainable, adaptive blockchains suitable for IoT, edge, and large-scale distributed systems.

Proof-of-Spiking-Neurons(PoSN): Neuromorphic Consensus for Next-Generation Blockchains

TL;DR

This work introduces Proof-of-Spiking-Neurons (PoSN), a neuromorphic blockchain consensus that uses spike trains to encode transactions, leading to leader election via spiking dynamics and block finalization through neural synchronization. By implementing PoSN on neuromorphic simulators such as Nengo and PyNN, the authors demonstrate substantial gains in energy efficiency and throughput while preserving Byzantine fault tolerance and fairness, demonstrated on a prototype with spiking kernels and VRF-based tie-breaks. Key contributions include the neural encoding of transactions (rate, temporal, and composite current schemes), a Leaky Integrate-and-Fire based consensus mechanism, and a comprehensive evaluation showing PoSN outperforms PoB and PoR in throughput, latency, and scalability, with favorable resource and security profiles. The proposed approach has strong practical implications for IoT, edge, and large-scale distributed systems, enabling sustainable, adaptive blockchains without mining or stake-based centralization, and motivating hardware-accelerated neuromorphic implementations.

Abstract

Blockchain systems face persistent challenges of scalability, latency, and energy inefficiency. Existing consensus protocols such as Proof-of-Work (PoW) and Proof-of-Stake (PoS) either consume excessive resources or risk centralization. This paper proposes \textit{Proof-of-Spiking-Neurons (PoSN)}, a neuromorphic consensus protocol inspired by spiking neural networks. PoSN encodes transactions as spike trains, elects leaders through competitive firing dynamics, and finalizes blocks via neural synchronization, enabling parallel and event-driven consensus with minimal energy overhead. A hybrid system architecture is implemented on neuromorphic platforms, supported by simulation frameworks such as Nengo and PyNN. Experimental results show significant gains in energy efficiency, throughput, and convergence compared to PoB and PoR. PoSN establishes a foundation for sustainable, adaptive blockchains suitable for IoT, edge, and large-scale distributed systems.

Paper Structure

This paper contains 21 sections, 21 equations, 5 figures, 1 table.

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Related Work
  3. Our Protocol: Proof-of-Spiking-Neurons (PoSN)
  4. System Model and Assumptions
  5. Neural Encoding of Transactions
  6. Rate Coding.
  7. Temporal Coding.
  8. Composite Current.
  9. Neuron Spiking Consensus Mechanism
  10. Block Proposal and Leader Election
  11. Block Validation and Finalization
  12. Reward and Incentive Distribution
  13. Fairness and Randomness Guarantees
  14. Protocol Workflow and State Transitions
  15. Implementation and Evaluation
  16. ...and 6 more sections

Figures (5)

  • Figure 1: Roadmap of neuromorphic computing wang2021embracing.
  • Figure 2: Proposed blockchain fraud detection methodology pipeline.
  • Figure 3: Comparison of PoB, PoR, and PoSN: (a) latency stability and (b) throughput stability.
  • Figure 4: Scalability comparison of PoB, PoR, and PoSN: (a) latency vs. validators and (b) throughput vs. validators.
  • Figure 5: Fairness and randomness distribution of leader selection across validators. PoSN exhibits a near-uniform probability curve, indicating balanced and unpredictable leader election.