If you are new to the crypto world, you might not know what Merkle tree is. In this article we will discuss about what is Merkle tree and what is Merkel tree used for.
What is Merkle tree?
A Merkle tree is a hash-based data structure that is a generalization of a hash list. It is a tree structure where each leaf node is the hash of a block of data and each non-leaf node is the hash of its children. Typically , Merkle trees have a branching factor of 2, which means that each node has at most 2 children.
Where is Merkle tree stored?
Root node: The root of the Merkle tree is called the Merkle root, and this Merkle root is stored in the block header. Leaf Nodes: Leaf nodes contain hashes of transaction data. Each transaction in a block hashes its data, then stores that hash (also known as a transaction ID) in the leaf node.
What is Merkle tree used for?
Merkle trees are used for efficient data validation in distributed systems. They are efficient because they use hashes instead of full files. Hashing is a way to encode a file that is much smaller than the actual file itself. Currently, their main use is for peer -to-peer networks such as Tor, Bitcoin, and Git.
I hope now you will know what is Merkle tree and what is Merkle tree used for. Merkle trees have proven themselves very useful in a range of computer science applications - as we have seen, they are very valuable in blockchains.
