(Phys.org)—For the first time, researchers have simulated particles that can spontaneously self-assemble into networks that form geometrical arrangements called Archimedean tilings. The key to realizing these structures is a strategy called minimal positive design, in which both the geometry and the chemical selectivity of the particles is taken into account. The process has applications in molecular self-assembly, which could one day be used to build a variety of nanoscale technologies.