How does Zilliqa work?

Zilliqa is a blockchain platform that uses sharding technology to increase its scalability.

Sharding is a process of dividing the network into smaller components, called shards, that can process transactions in parallel. This allows for higher throughput and faster transaction times. The Zilliqa network consists of two main components: the consensus layer and the sharding layer.

The consensus layer is responsible for verifying transactions and ensuring that all nodes in the network agree on the same state of the ledger. This is done through a process called Proof-of-Work (PoW). In PoW, miners compete to solve complex mathematical puzzles in order to validate transactions and add them to the blockchain.

The sharding layer is responsible for dividing the network into shards and processing transactions in parallel. Each shard contains a subset of nodes that are responsible for processing transactions within their shard. The nodes within each shard communicate with each other using a protocol called pBFT (practical Byzantine Fault Tolerance).

This protocol ensures that all nodes within a shard reach consensus on which transactions should be added to the blockchain. Once all shards have processed their respective transactions, they communicate with each other to ensure that all shards have reached consensus on which transactions should be added to the blockchain. Once this is done, all nodes in the network will update their copies of the ledger with these new blocks of data.

This process allows Zilliqa to achieve high throughput and faster transaction times than traditional blockchains without sacrificing security or decentralization.