Assess scalability of the hairpin tile design

Determine whether the hairpin tile design generalizes to larger assemblies, including complex message molecules, while maintaining the intended assembly and sensing behavior.

Background

The proof-of-concept uses a three-tile message assembly, but the authors identify scalability to larger message molecules as an unresolved research issue. Extending the design could introduce additional requirements concerning assembly architecture, stability, and signal activation. The paper specifically calls for comparison with other tile architectures in these respects.

References

An important open research question is whether the hairpin tile design generalizes into larger assemblies like complex message molecules.

— Surveying Experimentally-Validated Components for DNA-Based Molecular Communication  (2610.23361 - Waldner et al., 16 Oct 2026) in Section VI-B, Future Work