Orthogonality in discrete self-assembly – survey of current concepts

Over years, mathematicians, biologists and chemists have capitalised on the highly useful concept of orthogonality for developing sophisticated complex systems. The use of orthogonal pairs ensures that any modification made on one pair does not propagate any effect onto the other. While the concept equally pertains to dynamic supramolecular interactions, interference-free self-assembly built on multiple orthogonal interactions is still limited and the underlying notions are not yet firmly established. Herein, we identify, classify and evaluate dynamic interactions in various orthogonal settings in order to distill out general recommendations for reliable dynamic orthogonality. Our classification has to exclude templating, allosteric and/or cooperative effects as the latter are specific for individual cases only.