Engineering Exquisite Nanoscale Behavior with DNA

Abstract

Self-assembly is a pervasive natural phenomenon that gives rise to complex structures and functions. It describes processes in which a disordered system of components form organized structures as a consequence of specific, local interactions among the components themselves, without any external direction. Biological self-assembled systems, evolved over billions of years, are more intricate, more energy efficient and more functional than anything researchers have currently achieved at the nanoscale. A challenge for human designed physical self-assembled systems is to catch up with mother nature. I argue through examples that DNA is an apt material to meet this challenge. This work presents:1. 3D self-assembled DNA nanostructures.2. Illustrations of the simplicity and power of toehold-mediated strand displacement interactions.3. Algorithmic constructs in the tile assembly model.