Author: René Pickhardt 2019-12-23 10:21:45
Published on: 2019-12-23T10:21:45+00:00
A research paper titled "Imbalance measure and proactive channel rebalancing algorithm for the Lightning Network" was published on arxiv.org. The paper, co-authored by Rene Pickhardt and Mariusz Nowostawski, details a protocol that increases the success rate of single-unit payments from 11.2% to 98.3% in a balanced network. Additionally, the median possible payment size across all pairs of participants increases from 0 to 0.5 mBTC for initial routing attempts on the cheapest possible path. Pickhardt suggests that this, combined with multi-part/path payments, could be the future of the lightning network.Pickhardt also proposes extending BOLTs with two new gossip queries/replies, "query_want_rebalance_channel_ids"/"reply_want_rebalance_channel_ids," allowing nodes to initiate fee-free rebalancing operations. However, he notes this extension needs some protection against probing attacks to protect the privacy of nodes. He also addresses the potential for circular fee-free payments to be abused and suggests that open and transparent rebalancing cycles could be blocked if nodes feel they are being abused.Pickhardt is open to feedback and discussion on his proposals for BOLT extensions, particularly BOLT 14, which he acknowledges could be controversial.
Updated on: 2023-06-02T22:30:53.328499+00:00