Scroll: Exploring More Possibilities with L3 and Appchains
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Scroll: Exploring More Possibilities with L3 and Appchains
The rise of Layer 3 and appchain solutions brings new possibilities to the Ethereum ecosystem.
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsAuthor: Chris | Yicheng
Translation: TechFlow
The rise of Layer 3 and appchain solutions brings new possibilities to the Ethereum ecosystem. In this article, Scroll researcher Yicheng dives into the key advantages of L3s and Scroll's development, along with personal directions for future exploration.
The emergence of Layer 3 (L3) and appchain solutions opens up new possibilities for the Ethereum ecosystem.
While achieving exponential scalability through "rollups on rollups" may be infeasible, focusing on L3s for customization, tailored scaling, and trust-minimized scaling (e.g., Validiums) presents a promising path forward.
Having an EVM-equivalent L2 like Scroll as a base layer offers developers and users a powerful option—providing the familiar EVM execution environment, low gas fees, and flexibility to build any desired execution environment on top.
The future landscape of the Ethereum ecosystem will likely consist of a simple L1, scalable L2s, and specialized L3 solutions.
Key benefits of L3s include:
High Customizability: L3 solutions enable the creation of any desired execution environment and data availability (DA) setup. Developers can deploy Cairo atop Scroll for a more ZK-friendly execution environment, build privacy chains, gaming engines, or even migrate other L1s onto Ethereum as L3s to share its benefits. They can also choose any preferred DA solution—such as committee-based or DA chains—which is especially advantageous for enterprise-grade blockchains.
Efficient Cross-Chain Interoperability: Ideally, all cross-chain interactions occur at the L2 level, eliminating long withdrawal confirmation periods and high gas fees associated with L1 transactions.
Cost Reduction: L3 solutions reduce not only the cost of cross-chain interoperability but also the average per-transaction cost. While stacking data layers may not achieve quadratic scaling from a computational standpoint, batching many SNARKs into a single SNARK keeps L3 batch publication costs low.
Compared to current zk-Rollups, L3 transactions do not require large volumes of transactions to justify batch publishing—shortening confirmation times, improving user experience, and lowering costs. This feature further enhances the adaptability and customizability of L3s.
As a native zkEVM, our core principles are built around security and decentralization. At the same time, we are exploring innovative "Beyond Scroll" solutions that allow users and developers to build without constraints on top of our base layer.
As an infrastructure provider, our top priority is ensuring robustness and stability. Yet, as an L2 solution, we aim to grow stronger. Our philosophy differs from that of L1s—we're actively exploring a broader design space to support more specialized functionalities.
I am personally excited to explore the following directions:
- Shared decentralized proving networks;
- Light-governance "aggregated proof protocols";
- Trustless cross-chain interoperability solutions;
- More secure L3 consensus protocols.
The multi-rollup paradigm is still evolving, and the final architecture remains uncertain. However, our philosophy and focus as an infrastructure provider are clear: we will concentrate on building a strong protocol layer design, leaving more room for innovation by developers and users, and letting the community lead Scroll toward a decentralized future.
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Chris | Yicheng
