US 11,939,213 B2
Programmable structural building blocks
Anthony Serino, Northborough, MA (US); Jacob Beal, Iowa City, IA (US); and Miles T. Rogers, Watertown, MA (US)
Assigned to RAYTHEON COMPANY, Waltham, MA (US)
Filed by RAYTHEON COMPANY, Waltham, MA (US)
Filed on Dec. 21, 2020, as Appl. No. 17/129,197.
Prior Publication US 2022/0194785 A1, Jun. 23, 2022
Int. Cl. C30B 29/58 (2006.01); B81C 1/00 (2006.01); B82Y 5/00 (2011.01); B82Y 40/00 (2011.01)
CPC B81C 1/00031 (2013.01) [B81C 2201/0149 (2013.01); B82Y 5/00 (2013.01); B82Y 40/00 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A structural molecular building block, comprising:
a substrate comprising posts of structural molecules;
first structural molecules arranged in a three-dimensional structure; and
second structural molecules, wherein:
each of the second structural molecules is attached at a first region thereof to one of the first structural molecules to form the three-dimensional structure into a tessellating molecular building block and has a second region thereof for connection to a post or to a corresponding structural molecule of an additional tessellating molecular building block, and
the second structural molecules facilitate tessellation of the tessellating molecular building block with additional tessellating molecular building blocks to encourage growth of a macroscopic crystal.