Lightning Network: developments and perspectives

In an article published on bitcoinmagazine.com on Wednesday, Aaron van Wirdum lists all the improvements that are being prepared in Lightning Network: "After years of conceptualization and development, the first implementations of Lightning are now in beta. More nodes appear every time. A growing number of users are opening channels and some companies have even started accepting Lightning payments.

But, of course, we are only in the first days of this network. While major implementations can already be used and some portfolios and applications are available, Bitcoin's "second layer" should improve in the next few years in its architecture, security and usability. "- Aaron van Wirdum.

In summary:

Double financing channels: currently, a Lightning channel is only financed by one of the two users. The dual financing channels proposed by Acinq will allow these funds to be shared by both participants.

Underwater payments: Lightning payments will be sent to an intermediary who will perform a transaction equivalent to an online Bitcoin address. It also works the other way: users can make a transaction "in the chain" to an intermediary that will send an equivalent amount in the Lightning network. [look here ]

The splice: currently a Lightning channel is funded once and for all and the only way to repatriate funds in the Bitcoin block chain is to close the channel. The splice could help replenish a channel in the blockchain, or send bitcoins to blockchain without having to close the channel.

Eltoo is a proposal to modify the Bitcoin protocol, which facilitates updating the status of Lightning contracts and makes the previous states not applicable. Eltoo introduces the concept of an executable state number that allows a later state to rerun any of the previous states. This improvement will require a Bitcoin of "soft bifurcation" and the addition of a new function: SIGHASH_ NOINPUT.

The compact filtering of blocks on the client side is a proposal of Olaoluwa Osuntokun, Alex Akselrod and Jim Posen that would improve the security and privacy of the clients in their communication with complete nodes. Currently, a complete malicious node that serves light clients could omit critical data that is critical to the operation of Lightning clients.

Observation towers will delegate the chain of monitoring blocks. Currently, the Lightning network can be used with a mobile phone to make payments (with Eclair Wallet), but not to receive them. With the watchtowers, Lightning Network can be used in movement, both in the transmission and in the receipt of payments, without having to constantly monitor the chain of blocks. These watchtowers will also protect the connected nodes in case of service interruption.

Milti Atomic Payments: Currently, the amount of lightning pay is limited by the capacity of the smallest channel through which it will pass. "Atomic multipath payments" will reduce large amounts of a series of small transactions. Lightning transactions will no longer be limited in quantity.

Atomic Payments: will allow to connect several blockchains between them and use Lightning Network to exchange, without trusted third parties, bitcoins against litecoins (or any other cryptocurrency compatible with Lightning Network). This will also pay with some altcoins a good sold by a merchant connected to the LN but who only accepts bitcoins.

The channel of factory: Proposal of Christian Decker, Roger Wattenhofer and Conrad Burchert to limit the transactions "in the channel" necessary to create payment channels. Participants in the factory channel (Channel Factory) will open and close a virtually unlimited number of channels between them, without requiring additional transactions in Blockchain Bitcoin.