We propose an optimized ZK-rollup architecture that integrates epidemic multi-party computation (MPC), sparse Merkle tries, triadic ternary tries, erasure coding, and fully homomorphic encryption (FHE) to achieve high scalability, security, privacy, and censorship resistance. The system leverages the scalability benefits of epidemic MPC, where the per-node computation complexity decreases as O(1/N) with the number of nodes N. Erasure coding enhances fault tolerance and data availability, while FHE ensures privacy during computation. Sparse Merkle tries provide compact data representation and proof efficiency, and triadic ternary tries enable fast data retrieval. Preliminary evaluations demonstrate significant improvements in throughput, latency, and proof size compared to state-of-the-art ZK-rollup implementations.
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Introduction
Existing ZK-rollup implementations face challenges in terms of scalability, privacy, and censorship resistance due to centralized computation, monolithic state representations, and reliance on a single sequencer or small validator set. This paper proposes an optimized ZK-rollup architecture that integrates advanced cryptographic techniques and efficient data structures to address these challenges and achieve high scalability, security, privacy, and censorship resistance. -
Background
ZK-rollups are a layer-2 scaling solution for public blockchains that enables off-chain transaction processing while maintaining the security and decentralization of the underlying blockchain. However, current ZK-rollup implementations suffer from scalability bottlenecks, privacy risks, and censorship vulnerabilities. Efficient data structures and proof schemes, along with advanced cryptographic techniques, are crucial for optimizing ZK-rollup performance. -
Proposed Architecture
Our proposed ZK-rollup architecture combines the following key components:
- Epidemic MPC for scalable computation across subgroups
- Sparse Merkle tries for compact state commitments and proofs
- Triadic ternary tries for efficient transaction and account data retrieval
- Erasure coding for fault tolerance and data availability
- Fully homomorphic encryption for privacy-preserving computation
3.1 Epidemic MPC
The epidemic MPC paradigm partitions nodes into subgroups that independently process disjoint transaction batches, reducing per-node complexity while maintaining fault tolerance. The average per-node computation complexity is O(C/N * (k/N)^2), where C is the total MPC task complexity and k is the number of subgroups. While this complexity has a quadratic dependence on k and N, careful optimization of subgroup sizing and load balancing can help mitigate scalability limitations.
3.2 Efficient Data Structures
Sparse Merkle tries provide compact state representations and efficient proof generation, with a space complexity of O(n * k) for storing n key-value pairs with maximum key length k. Triadic ternary tries enable fast transaction and account data retrieval within each subgroup, accelerating proof generation and overall system performance.
3.3 Advanced Cryptographic Techniques
Erasure coding enhances fault tolerance and data availability by allowing the system to recover from node failures and distribute the workload. Fully homomorphic encryption enables computations on encrypted data, preserving privacy during the MPC process. The proposed hybrid approach combines erasure coding and FHE to achieve a balanced solution for scalability, fault tolerance, and privacy, with strong guarantees provided by the hybrid MPC-zkRollup protocol.
- Formalization and Analysis
We formalize the key concepts and provide detailed algorithms and proofs for the proposed architecture:
4.1 Epidemic MPC Network
An epidemic MPC network is defined as a tuple (N, S, T), where N is the set of nodes, S is a partition of N into k subgroups, and T is the set of MPC tasks. The average per-node computation complexity is O(C/N * (k/N)^2), demonstrating the potential for significant scalability improvements as the number of nodes and subgroups increases.
4.2 Sparse Merkle Trie/Verkle
A sparse Merkle trie storing a set of n key-value pairs with maximum key length k occupies O(n * k) space, highlighting the potential for storage efficiency.
4.3 Triadic Ternary Trie
A triadic ternary trie storing a set of n key-value pairs with maximum key length k trits occupies O(n * k) space, indicating the potential for efficient data storage and retrieval.
4.4 Fault Tolerance and Privacy Analysis
The hybrid MPC-zkRollup protocol with an (n, k)-erasure code and a secure FHE scheme achieves fault tolerance against up to n - k node failures and preserves the privacy of the input data against semi-honest adversaries controlling up to N - 1 MPC nodes.
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Advantages and Trade-offs
The proposed architecture offers high scalability, enhanced privacy, and censorship resistance due to the distributed nature of epidemic MPC and the infeasibility of controlling a majority in each subgroup. Compact proofs enable succinct on-chain verification, reducing the burden on the underlying blockchain. However, there may be trade-offs in terms of increased complexity and potential latency due to the coordination and communication overhead among subgroups. -
Future Directions and Open Questions
Realizing the full potential of this approach requires further research on formal security proofs, optimized smart contract implementations, parameter tuning, and the integration of advanced cryptographic primitives like KZG-based polynomial commitments for greater expressiveness and cross-rollup interoperability. -
Conclusion
The proposed ZK-rollup architecture, which integrates epidemic MPC, sparse Merkle tries, triadic ternary tries, erasure coding, and fully homomorphic encryption, presents a promising avenue for building highly performant, secure, and censorship-resistant ZK-rollup systems. By carefully balancing the trade-offs between scalability, privacy, and efficiency, this approach paves the way for large-scale adoption of layer-2 solutions on public blockchains. Further optimizations and research can help address the scalability limitations imposed by the quadratic complexity term and unlock the full potential of this approach for large-scale, secure, and privacy-preserving blockchain applications.