ZmnSCPxj previously introduced the Cyclic Superhub as a group of three or more nodes connected into a cycle. This concept proposes a Lightning network topology where all nodes are connected in a three or more groups called cycles, with some nodes being connected to different cycles, one node connected to two different cycles efficiently connects these cycles as members of the first one can utilize the payment channel between them and the connecting member to pay members of the second cycle.

Joining several cycles is incentivied by getting routing fees from both groups, but cycles require a good amount of coordination to be performed; a single node can not form a cycle by itself so several nodes need to coordinate.

To help with this issue, a new algorithm was proposed on lightning-dev that allows nodes to use node-gossip, a peer discovering algorithm, as explained by its author:

I now present an algorithm, which given a set of nodes extracted from node gossip, returns a peer to try connecting and funding a channel to.

This could make it easier for nodes to perform cycles and help nourish this network structure further.

Links

• The algorithm proposal here
• Cylic Superhubs as Solution Towards Reasonable Lightning Network Topology