Generalizable Metamaterials Design Techniques Inspire Efficient Mycelial Materials Inverse Design

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Mycology
• Materials Science

Background:

• Fungal mycelial materials offer sustainable alternatives to nonrenewable resources, mimicking materials like leather, bricks, and wood.
• Current design methods for mycelial materials are predominantly costly forward techniques.
• There is a critical need for efficient and cost-effective design strategies in mycelial materials development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify critical needs for implementing computational inverse design in mycelial materials.
• To propose a generalizable inverse design paradigm for mycelial materials.
• To bridge the gap between current design limitations and future biomaterial innovation.

Main Methods:

• Review of metamaterials design techniques and their applicability to mycelial materials.
• Analysis of mycelial materials case studies to define design parameters.
• Identification of essential computational tools: heuristic search/optimization algorithms, efficient mathematical modeling, and dimensionality reduction techniques.

Main Results:

• Three critical needs for computational inverse design in mycelial materials were identified: heuristic search/optimization algorithms, efficient mathematical modeling, and dimensionality reduction.
• Mycelium-specific design parameters were suggested, along with methods for their measurement and utilization.
• A generalizable inverse design paradigm adaptable to mycelial materials and related fields was synthesized.

Conclusions:

• Implementing computational inverse design can accelerate and reduce the cost of developing novel mycelial materials.
• Adapting techniques from metamaterials research is crucial for advancing mycelial materials design.
• The proposed inverse design paradigm offers a pathway for more efficient and targeted development of fungal biomaterials.