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A brief introductory review is provided of the theory of tilings of 3-periodic nets and related periodic surfaces. Tilings have a transitivity [p q r s] indicating the vertex, edge, face and tile transitivity. Proper, natural and minimal-transitivity tilings of nets are described. Essential rings are used for finding the minimal-transitivity tiling for a given net. Tiling theory is used to find all edge- and face-transitive tilings (q = r = 1) and to find seven, one, one and 12 examples of tilings with transitivity [1 1 1 1], [1 1 1 2], [2 1 1 1] and [2 1 1 2], respectively. These are all minimal-transitivity tilings. This work identifies the 3-periodic surfaces defined by the nets of the tiling and its dual and indicates how 3-periodic nets arise from tilings of those surfaces.

An nθ graph is an n-valent graph with two vertices. From symmetry considerations, it has vertex–edge transitivity 1 1. Here, they are considered extended with divalent vertices added to the edges to explore the simplest piecewise-linear tangled embeddings with straight, non-intersecting edges (sticks). The simplest tangles found are those with 3n sticks, transitivity 2 2, and with 2⌊(n − 1)/2⌋ ambient-anisotopic tangles. The simplest finite and 1-, 2- and 3-periodic decussate structures (links and tangles) are described. These include finite cubic and icosahedral and 1- and 3-periodic links, all with minimal transitivity. The paper also presents the simplest tangles of extended tetrahedra and their linkages to form periodic polycatenanes. A vertex- and edge-transitive embedding of a tangled srs net with tangled and polycatenated θ graphs and vertex-transitive tangled diamond (dia) nets are described.

This paper describes a nine-component Borromean structure – a Borromean triplet of Borromean triplets – that was missing from an earlier enumeration.

Families of 1- and 2-periodic knots and weavings that have isogonal (vertex-transitive) piecewise-linear embeddings are described. In these structures there is just one thread, or multiple threads with parallel or collinear axes. The principal structures are a large family of 1-periodic knots and related multi-thread infinite links, knitting patterns and chain-link weaving. The relevance to synthetic chemistry is described in terms of targets for designed synthesis such as mechanically interlocked polymers.

A method is described for generating and exploring tangled piecewise-linear embeddings of trivalent graphs under the constraints of point-group symmetry. It is shown that the possible vertex-transitive tangles are either graphs of vertex-transitive polyhedra or bipartite vertex-transitive nonplanar graphs. One tangle is found for 6 vertices, three for 8 vertices (tangled cubes), seven for 10 vertices, and 21 for 12 vertices. Also described are four isogonal embeddings of pairs of cubes and 12 triplets of tangled cubes (16 and 24 vertices, respectively). Vertex 2-transitive embeddings are obtained for tangled trivalent graphs with 6 vertices (two found) and 8 vertices (45 found). Symmetrical tangles of the 10-vertex Petersen graph and the 20-vertex Desargues graph are also described. Extensions to periodic tangles are indicated. These are all interesting and viable targets for molecular synthesis.