Understanding Gigagas: RISE's Performance Metric
What is Gas per Second?
Gas per second (gas/s) is a precise measure of blockchain throughput, calculated by dividing the total gas consumed by the number of seconds in a given period. Unlike transactions per second (TPS), gas/s accurately represents network capacity across different transaction complexities.
Why Gas/s is Superior to TPS
TPS is fundamentally misleading as a performance metric because:
- A simple ETH transfer requires far fewer resources than a complex DeFi operation
- Different transaction types have vastly different computational requirements
- Network demands fluctuate based on the types of transactions processed
The Technical Mechanics of Gas
Every operation on the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) requires computational resources, measured in gas:
- Storage Operations: Writing to blockchain state (expensive)
- Memory Operations: Temporary computation space usage
- Computation: Mathematical calculations, conditionals, and loops
- Data Transmission: Costs for sending transaction data
Each EVM opcode has a specific gas cost reflecting its resource consumption. For example, an SSTORE operation (writing to storage) costs significantly more than an ADD operation (basic arithmetic).
Real-World Transaction Costs
| Transaction Type | Gas (Typical & Approximate) | Description |
|---|---|---|
| ETH Transfer | 21k | Simple value transfer with minimal computation |
| ERC20 Transaction (Token) | 45k to 65k | Token transfers requiring balance checks and updates |
| ERC-1155 Transaction (NFT) | 60k to 120k | NFT operations with metadata handling |
| Uniswap V2 Swap | 100k to 150k | DEX operations with price calculations and liquidity updates |
| Uniswap V3 Swap | 120k to 250k | Advanced DEX with complex tick math and concentrated liquidity |
| Yearn Rebalance | 100k to >1M | Complex DeFi operations across multiple protocols |
RISE's Gigagas Performance
Gigagas/s refers to processing one billion gas units per second. At 1 Gigagas/s, RISE can handle:
- ~47,600 ETH transfers per second (21k gas each)
- ~15,300-22,200 ERC20 transactions per second (45k-65k gas each)
- ~4,000-8,300 NFT operations per second (60k-120k gas each)
- ~4,000-8,000 complex DeFi operations per second (varying gas costs)
Technical Implications
This breakthrough capacity enables:
- Millisecond transaction confirmations even during network congestion
- Support for mass-market applications with millions of users
- Complex DeFi operations at scale without performance degradation
- New on-chain use cases previously considered impractical due to throughput limitations
TPS Reference Point
While we prefer the more accurate Gigagas/s metric, we recognize TPS is still widely used across the industry. For reference, RISE targets 100,000 TPS for simple ETH transfers, substantially exceeding other blockchain networks.
Performance Comparison
| RISE | Ethereum | Typical L2s | Solana | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gas/second | 1+ Gigagas/s | ~700k | ~7M | ~25M |
| TPS (transfers) | ~100,000 | ~33 | ~333 | ~1,190 |