Bitcoin uses a specific elliptic curve and set of mathematical constants, as defined in a
standard called secp256k1, established by the National Institute of Standards and Technology
(NIST). The secp256k1 curve is defined by the following function, which produces
an elliptic curve:
y 2 = (x 3 + 7)over(? p)
or
y 2 mod p = (x 3 + 7) mod p
The mod p (modulo prime number p) indicates that this curve is over a finite field of
prime order p, also written as ? p, where p = 2256 - 232 - 29 - 28 - 27 - 26 - 24 - 1, a very large
prime number.
standard called secp256k1, established by the National Institute of Standards and Technology
(NIST). The secp256k1 curve is defined by the following function, which produces
an elliptic curve:
y 2 = (x 3 + 7)over(? p)
or
y 2 mod p = (x 3 + 7) mod p
The mod p (modulo prime number p) indicates that this curve is over a finite field of
prime order p, also written as ? p, where p = 2256 - 232 - 29 - 28 - 27 - 26 - 24 - 1, a very large
prime number.
