Ethereum: How do zkSync blocks work?
Understanding ZkSync Blocks: A Deep Dive into Ethereum Sidechains
As you delve deeper into the world of zk-Sync, the consensus mechanism built on the Ethereum network, it’s important to understand the intricacies and functionality of its blocks. In this article, we’ll break down what L1 packets are, examine their relationship to rollup blocks, and provide an overview of how these mechanisms ensure secure and efficient interactions between Ethereum and its sidechains.
What is a ZkSync block?
A zk-Sync block refers to a single block on the blockchain that contains multiple transactions. In the context of sidechains, each L1 packet represents a set of transactions executed on the sidechain network. Each transaction is encoded as a separate Merkle branch, or series of hash values, that together form a block.
L1 Packets vs. aggregate blocks
While both terms describe sets of transactions in a single block, their underlying architecture is different:
- L1 bundles: These are the individual components that make up an L1 bundle. They contain multiple transactions encoded as individual Merkle branches or hash values.
- Summary blocks: Aggregate blocks, in contrast, are bundles of transactions combined into a single block. Each transaction in the bundle is combined with the others to create a new block.
How do ZkSync blocks work?
When you send L1 bundles to Ethereum as L1 bundles, they are essentially replicated across the Ethereum network and then added to the aggregate block. Here’s a step-by-step description of how the process works:
- Replication: The original L1 bundle is replicated on the Ethereum mainnet and on all sidechain nodes.
- Merge: Once the replication process is complete, the L1 packets are merged into a single merge block.
- Extraction: The transactions in each L1 packet are hashed to create a unique Merkle branch or hash value for the merged block.
Example
Let’s say you send five L1 packets (each containing three transactions) to Ethereum as L1 packets. The resulting convolutional block will contain five separate blocks, each with its own set of transactions:
Convolutional block 1: transaction 1
Convolutional block 2: transaction 2
Convolutional block 3: transaction 3
Convolutional block 4: transaction 4
Convolutional block 5: transaction 5
In this scenario, each L1 packet is replicated to Ethereum and then added to the convolutional block, resulting in a final merged block containing all five individual packets.
Conclusion
Zk-Sync blocks play an important role in ensuring secure interaction between Ethereum and its sidechains. By understanding how these mechanisms work, developers can design more efficient and scalable applications for their use cases. Whether you are building a decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol or an identity management system, understanding the intricacies of zk-Sync blocks is essential to the success of the Ethereum network.
By following this guide, you will gain a deeper understanding of how L1 packets work in the context of zk-Sync and be better equipped to solve complex problems in the world of decentralized applications.