Prerequisites:
To better understand this blog, you should master the basic concepts of Ethereum first.
What is Arbitrum Nova ?
Due to limitations on transaction throughput on the Ethereum Mainnet (i.e. layer 1), developers proposed layer 2 protocols to handle transactions off layer 1 so as to improve Ethereum’s performance and user experience.
AnyTrust-technology-powered Arbitrum Nova is a new Layer2 network designed by Offchain Labs, the developer of Arbitrum. It is exclusively for DApps with a high TPS. Officially launched on August 10th, 2022, Arbitrum Nova features ultra-low transaction costs with a high speed for general blockchain use cases, games, and social DApps.
This article will focus on Arbitrum Nova, and if you are interested in Arbitrum One, click here to learn more.
How does Arbitrum Nova’s solution work?
AnyTrust-based Arbitrum Nova can make transaction costs down to an ultra-low level through a new security model supported by an external Data Availability Committee (DAC).
- AnyTrust: As a variant of Arbitrum Nitro, AnyTrust is open to a mild trust assumption for lowering costs.
- DAC: Based on AnyTrust, it is assumed that at least two members are honest in the Data Availability Committee (DAC) with a total number of members equaling N. Then, if N-1 members promise the access right to some data, at least one of them is honest to ensure data availability for the normal functioning of a Rollup protocol.
If the committee refuses to sign or a group of members collapses, the network can still be functional by falling back to Rollup. To keep it running, data will be posted on Layer 1 with a withdrawal period like Arbitrum Rollup. After the committee is back on track, the network will be seamlessly switched back to a mode with a faster speed and lower transaction costs. - DACert: Sequencers batch and compress data and submit it to DAC, requiring a data availability certificate (DACert). Then, sequencers will broadcast the received certificate as a data availability promise on Ethereum.
Compared with other networks, those based on AnyTrust technology can support ultra-low transaction costs for users. This is because the data posted by Arbitrum Nova is a DACert proving availability of the data, instead of full data, saving the biggest cost on Arbitrum.
Main features
- Ultra-low transaction costs
- Designed for high-volume DApps
- Tokens are as cryptographically secure, as on the Ethereum mainnet
- Users have full control over their tokens
- EVM compatibility
Arbitrum Nova Wallet
Take imToken for example, first download and install imToken (https://token.im/ ) and create/import an identity wallet.
Note: Check the website security certificate before downloading.
Open your ETH wallet then click “Ethereum” at the top. Choose “Arbitrum Nova” in the pop-up to switch to the Arbitrum Nova wallet for transferring, receiving, and trying out the DApp.
Learn about: How to use Arbitrum Nova with imtoken?
Study
Layer 2
In order to scale Ethereum to accommodate a growing number of users, developers have proposed 2 solutions, namely, layer 2 and sharding (a layer 1 scaling solution).
Layer 1 refers to the Ethereum blockchain itself, and layer 2 is a network or technology that operates on top of Ethereum to improve its scalability and efficiency.
Mainstream layer 2 solutions include ZK Rollup, Optimistic Rollup, Plasma, State Channels, Validium, etc.
Optimistic Rollup
Rollup is a collective term for solutions designed to improve the performance of the Ethereum mainnet by handling transactions off-chain while keeping part of the data of each transaction on-chain.
There are two main types of Rollup solutions: ZK Rollup and Optimistic Rollup.
ZK Rollup is a layer 2 solution that uses zero-knowledge proof, but it is not EVM-compatible and takes a long time to generate zero-knowledge proof. So Optimistic Rollup was proposed in June 2019. In this scheme, zero-knowledge proof is removed, however, a penalty mechanism is added to ensure data security (slightly lower than ZK Rollup) while supporting general smart contracts more easily.
Optimistic Rollup executes smart contracts through OVM (Optimistic Virtual Machine), which is full-featured and EVM-compatible. This means that developers can migrate DApps to layer 2 with just a few lines of code.
Offchain Labs
Offchain Labs, the development team behind Arbitrum Nova, is a blockchain startup focused on enterprise applications and based in New York City.
Its co-founder Ed Felten is a professor of computer science at Princeton University and former Chief Technologist of the Obama Administration. He founded Offchain Labs with three other co-founders in the fall of 2018.
Arbitrum Nova block explorer
Arbitrum Nova block explorer is an open source web tool that stays synchronous with the Arbitrum Nova network and allows you to view information about blocks, transactions, addresses on Arbitrum Nova.
Arbitrum Nova ecosystem
- Aave
- Balancer
- Chainlink
- DeBank
- Curve
- Etherscan
- Infura
- DODO
- Celer Bridge
…...
Learn more
- Arbitrum Nova website：https://nova.arbitrum.io/
- Offchain Labs website：https://offchainlabs.com/