Since shifting to a layer 2 approach, Ethereum (Ethereum) The ecosystem relied heavily on L2 solutions for expansion. However, these solutions struggle to compete effectively, especially under pressure from alternatives like Solana (Sol). During the recent meme coin craze, Solana attracted a lot of activity due to its advantages: low fees, high transaction speed, and ease of use.

To understand the challenges, it is necessary to examine why L2 solutions have not demonstrated the scalability and cost advantages that were widely expected.

Why do meme projects prefer Solana over Ethereum L2s?

Meme projects have contributed significantly to the recent surge in market activity. These projects righteous Solana for several reasons beyond ease of use:

• Low fees: Solana's low transaction costs make it ideal for fee-sensitive applications like memecoins.
• High speed: Solana's multi-threaded architecture enables high throughput, ensuring seamless user experiences.
• Better developer experience: Solana's tools and ecosystem are optimized for ease of use and appeal to developers and projects.

Why is scalability important?

Scalability is primarily measured by the number of transactions a blockchain can process. Highly scalable blockchain technology can handle a greater number of submissions while offering lower fees, making it essential for widespread adoption and maintaining a seamless user experience.

This is especially important for popular projects like memecoins, many of which are short-lived and very fee sensitive. Without scalability, these projects cannot thrive, and users will migrate to platforms that provide better efficiency and cost-effectiveness.

Why aren't Ethereum L2s up to the challenge?

Architectural limitations of Ethereum. Ethereum has long faced scalability issues, and L2 clusters are the primary solution to these issues. L2s act as independent blockchains that process off-chain transactions while publishing transaction results and proofs back to the Ethereum mainnet. They inherit the security of Ethereum, making them a promising approach to scaling.

However, the original design of Ethereum poses inherent challenges. Ethereum founder, Vitalik Buterin, did just that I confess That “Ethereum was never designed for scalability.” One major limitation is the lack of multithreading in the Ethereum virtual machine. The EVM, which processes transactions, is strictly single-threaded, meaning it can only handle one transaction at a time. In contrast, Solana's multi-threaded architecture allows multiple transactions to be processed simultaneously, dramatically increasing throughput.

L2s inherit Ethereum's limitations. Almost all L2 solutions inherit Ethereum's single-threaded EVM design, which results in lower efficiency. For example, resolution: With a target gas limit of 7 million per second and a cost per currency transfer of 21,000 gas, Arbitrum can handle around 333 simple transactions per second. More complex smart contract calls consume more gas, which reduces capacity significantly. optimism: With a gas limit of 5 million per block and a block time of 2 seconds, Optimism can only handle about 119 simple transfers per second. Gas-intensive processes also reduce this capacity.

Unstable fees. Another major issue with Ethereum and its L2 solutions is unstable fees during periods of high network activity. For applications that rely on low and stable graphics, this is a major drawback. Projects like memecoins are particularly sensitive to fees, which makes Ethereum-based L2s less attractive.

Lack of interoperability between L2s. The scalability argument for having multiple L2s only holds up if contracts on different L2s can interact freely. However, clusters are essentially independent blockchains, and accessing data from one cluster to another is as challenging as cross-chain communication. This lack of interoperability greatly limits the scalability of the second language.

What can L2s do to expand their reach?

Include features to enhance interoperability. Ethereum L1 needs to do more to support interoperability between L2s. For example, the last ERC-7786: An on-chain messaging gateway is a step in the right direction. Although it does not completely solve the interoperability problem, it simplifies communication between L2s and L1s, laying the foundation for further improvements.

Architectural Updates: Different from the current L1 design. To compete with multi-threaded blockchains like Solana, L2s must break away from Ethereum's single-threaded EVM design and adopt parallel execution. This may require an EVM overhaul, but the potential scalability gains make it a worthwhile endeavor.

Future milestones

Ethereum's L2 solutions face significant challenges in providing the scalability and cost-efficiency that applications such as memecoins require. To remain competitive, the ecosystem must address fundamental architectural limitations, promote interoperability, and embrace innovations in blockchain design. Only by doing so can Ethereum L2s achieve the scalability needed to support widespread adoption and fend off competition from emerging blockchains like Solana.