The predictable nature of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) interactions enables assembly of DNA into almost any arbitrary shape with programmable features of nanometer precision. The recent progress of DNA nanotechnology has allowed production of an even wider gamut of possible shapes with high-yield and error-free assembly processes. Most of these structures are, however, limited in size to a nanometer scale. To overcome this limitation, a plethora of studies has been carried out to form larger structures using DNA assemblies as building blocks or tiles. Therefore, DNA tiles have become one of the most widely used building blocks for engineering large, intricate structures with nanometer precision. To create even larger assemblies with highly organized patterns, scientists have developed a variety of structural design principles and assembly methods. This review first summarizes currently available DNA tile toolboxes and the basic principles of lattice formation and hierarchical self-assembly using DNA tiles. Special emphasis is given to the forces involved in the assembly process in liquid-liquid and at solid-liquid interfaces, and how to master them to reach the optimum balance between the involved interactions for successful self-assembly. In addition, we focus on the recent approaches that have shown great potential for the controlled immobilization and positioning of DNA nanostructures on different surfaces. The ability to position DNA objects in a controllable manner on technologically relevant surfaces is one step forward towards the integration of DNA-based materials into nanoelectronic and sensor devices.

In recent years, hierarchical nanostructures have found applications in fields like diagnostics, medicine, nano-optics, and nanoelectronics, especially in challenging applications like the creation of metasurfaces with unique optical properties. One of the promising materials to fabricate such nanostructures has been DNA due to its robust self-assembly properties and plethora of different functionalization schemes. Here, we demonstrate the assembly of a two-dimensional fishnet-type lattice on a silicon substrate using cross-shaped DNA origami as the building block, i.e., tile. The effects of different environmental and structural factors are investigated under liquid atomic force microscopy (AFM) to optimize the lattice assembly. Furthermore, the arm-to-arm binding affinity of the tiles is analyzed, revealing preferential orientations. From the liquid AFM results, we develop a methodology to produce closely-spaced DNA origami lattices on silicon substrate, which allows further nanofabrication process steps, such as metallization. This formed polycrystalline lattice has high surface coverage and is extendable to the wafer scale with an average domain size of about a micrometer. Further studies are needed to increase the domain size toward a single-crystalline large-scale lattice.

Hierarchical, self-assembled nanostructures with addressable complexity have been a promising route for realizing novel functional materials. Traditionally, the fabrication of such structures on a large scale is achievable using top-down...