An Introduction to Sidechains with the Use of ZK-Rollups
Sidechains are seen as one of the leading mechanisms that are trying all possible means to sharpen the blockchain network by making it more efficient and scalable. Here I will be explaining the "Sidechains" with the use of "ZK-Rollups" in this post. Sidechains are blockchains that are not connected to Ethereum but run in parallel to it. It has its own consensus algorithm, miners, i.e., operators and validators, and its own mechanism that allows tokens and other digital assets to be transferred from one chain to another, depending on where the assets are needed, and also be transferred back to the main chain when they are needed.
In order to withdraw the transfer asset back to Ethereum, users will need to intimate an exit on the sidechain and provide proof of their exit for it to be added to the history of the chain. Although side chains, like other blockchains, often relax the security and decentralization of Ethereum, so they can get a scale that is good enough, When looking at sidechain with the use of ZK-Rollups, we can easily say ZK-Rollups is an L2 scaling solution that holds funds that are used in a smart contract on the original chain.
ZK-Rollups make use of what is known as "validity proofs" to get the transactions that occur in roll-ups. Validity proofs are when a proof has been accepted on the blockchain in such a way that users have to confirm the transaction as quickly as possible to make sure that it is valid and immutable. When we try to explain the ZK-Rollups, you will notice that they have achieved thousands of transactions per second in terms of speed and are capable of greater than what they have achieved.
Although one of the demerits of ZK-Rollups is the calculation, it is more difficult to detect smart contracts that are directly in the roll-up, and the only thing that is available is limited functionality like trades and transfers.