Quantum-Resistant Layer 2 Payment Channels for Instant, Low-Cost Transactions
The INTcoin Lightning Network is a Layer 2 scaling solution that enables instant, low-cost payments through off-chain payment channels. Built with quantum-resistant cryptography, it's the first Lightning implementation using CRYSTALS-Kyber1024 for key exchange and CRYSTALS-Dilithium5 for signatures.
Transactions settle in less than 1 second, enabling real-time micropayments and point-of-sale purchases.
Off-chain transactions cost a fraction of on-chain fees, making micropayments economically viable.
Kyber1024 key exchange and Dilithium5 signatures provide 256-bit quantum security level.
Onion routing ensures payment source, destination, and route are hidden from intermediaries.
Payments route through multiple nodes using the Sphinx protocol with up to 20 hops.
Follows Lightning Network specifications (BOLT) with quantum-resistant adaptations.
INTcoin uses unique address formats distinct from Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies:
On-chain addresses use Base58Check encoding with INTcoin-specific prefixes:
INT1... for mainnet P2PKH (Pay to Public Key Hash)INT3... for mainnet P2SH (Pay to Script Hash)TINT... for testnet addressesLightning invoices use Bech32 encoding with amount multipliers:
m = milli (0.001 INT)u = micro (0.000001 INT)n = nano (0.000000001 INT)p = pico (0.000000000001 INT)Payment URIs enable QR code scanning and easy wallet integration.
1. CHANNEL OPENING
Alice ──[funding tx]──> Blockchain ◀──[funding tx]── Bob
Alice ◀────────────────> Lightning Channel ◀────────────────> Bob
2. PAYMENT FLOW
Alice ──[HTLC]──> Hop 1 ──[HTLC]──> Hop 2 ──[HTLC]──> Bob
Alice ◀─[preimage]─ Hop 1 ◀─[preimage]─ Hop 2 ◀─[preimage]─ Bob
3. CHANNEL CLOSING
Alice ──[closing tx]──> Blockchain ◀──[closing tx]── Bob
┌────────────────────────────────┐
│ Onion Packet (1,366 bytes) │
├────────────────────────────────┤
│ Version: 1 byte │
│ Ephemeral Key: 1,568 bytes │ ← Kyber1024 public key
│ Routing Info: 1,300 bytes │ ← Encrypted hop data
│ HMAC: 32 bytes │ ← SHA3-256 integrity check
└────────────────────────────────┘
Privacy Guarantees:
✓ Each node only knows: prev hop, next hop, amount
✗ Nodes cannot determine: source, destination, route length
| Component | Specification |
|---|---|
| Protocol | BOLT-compliant with quantum adaptations |
| Key Exchange | CRYSTALS-Kyber1024 (NIST FIPS 203) |
| Signatures | CRYSTALS-Dilithium5 (NIST FIPS 204) |
| Hashing | SHA3-256 (NIST FIPS 202) |
| Encryption | ChaCha20 stream cipher |
| Max Route Length | 20 hops |
| Onion Packet Size | 1,366 bytes (fixed) |
| Payment Throughput | 1,000+ payments/second per channel |
| Route Finding | <100ms for 10,000-node network |
| Quantum Security | 256-bit security level |
INTcoin Lightning uses quantum-resistant cryptography (Kyber1024 and Dilithium5) instead of classical ECDSA, making it secure against both classical and quantum attacks. The protocol also has larger message sizes due to post-quantum signatures (4,595 bytes for Dilithium vs. 64 bytes for ECDSA).
No, due to the different cryptographic primitives and address formats, INTcoin Lightning operates on a separate network. However, future cross-chain atomic swaps may enable interoperability.
Opening a channel requires an on-chain transaction, which costs the standard network fee (typically 0.0001 INT). Once open, you can make unlimited off-chain payments for minimal fees.
If your channel partner becomes unresponsive, you can force-close the channel by broadcasting the latest commitment transaction. Your funds will be returned after a time-lock period (144 blocks, ~12 hours).
Yes! The onion routing protocol ensures that intermediate nodes cannot determine the payment source, destination, or total route length. Only the sender and receiver know the full payment details.