Recent Advances in Soft Acoustic Metamaterials: A Comprehensive Review of Geometry, Mechanisms, and System Responsiveness

Acoustic metamaterials (AMs) are artificially structured materials composed of subwavelength units that enable acoustic phenomena not achievable with conventional materials and structures. This review defines and presents a distinct category referred to as soft acoustic metamaterials (SAMs), which u...

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Main Authors: Ju-Hee Lee, Haesol Kwak, Eunjik Kim, Min-Woo Han
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-07-01
Series:Applied Sciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/14/7910
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author Ju-Hee Lee
Haesol Kwak
Eunjik Kim
Min-Woo Han
author_facet Ju-Hee Lee
Haesol Kwak
Eunjik Kim
Min-Woo Han
author_sort Ju-Hee Lee
collection DOAJ
description Acoustic metamaterials (AMs) are artificially structured materials composed of subwavelength units that enable acoustic phenomena not achievable with conventional materials and structures. This review defines and presents a distinct category referred to as soft acoustic metamaterials (SAMs), which use soft materials or reconfigurable structures to achieve enhanced acoustic functionality. These systems make use of the inherent flexibility of their materials or the deformability of their geometry to support passive, active, and adaptive functions. To capture this structural and functional diversity, we introduce a three-dimensional classification that considers geometry, acoustic control mechanisms, and functional responsiveness as interrelated aspects. The geometry is classified into two-dimensional metasurfaces and three-dimensional bulk structures. The control mechanisms include local resonance, phase modulation, attenuation, and structural reconfiguration. The response type refers to whether the system behaves passively, actively, or adaptively. Using this approach, we provide an overview of representative implementations and compare different design approaches to highlight their working principles and application areas. This review presents a structured classification for soft acoustic metamaterials and offers a foundation for future research, with broad potential in intelligent sound systems, wearable acoustics, and architectural applications.
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spelling doaj-art-098a5d77d0cb49fb86f66a61efcb1d9a2025-08-20T03:58:30ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172025-07-011514791010.3390/app15147910Recent Advances in Soft Acoustic Metamaterials: A Comprehensive Review of Geometry, Mechanisms, and System ResponsivenessJu-Hee Lee0Haesol Kwak1Eunjik Kim2Min-Woo Han3Advanced Manufacturing & Soft Robotics Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Dongguk University, 30 Pildong-ro 1-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul 04620, Republic of KoreaAdvanced Manufacturing & Soft Robotics Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Dongguk University, 30 Pildong-ro 1-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul 04620, Republic of KoreaDepartment of Mechanical, Robotics and Energy Engineering, Dongguk University, 30 Pildong-ro 1-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul 04620, Republic of KoreaAdvanced Manufacturing & Soft Robotics Laboratory, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Dongguk University, 30 Pildong-ro 1-gil, Jung-gu, Seoul 04620, Republic of KoreaAcoustic metamaterials (AMs) are artificially structured materials composed of subwavelength units that enable acoustic phenomena not achievable with conventional materials and structures. This review defines and presents a distinct category referred to as soft acoustic metamaterials (SAMs), which use soft materials or reconfigurable structures to achieve enhanced acoustic functionality. These systems make use of the inherent flexibility of their materials or the deformability of their geometry to support passive, active, and adaptive functions. To capture this structural and functional diversity, we introduce a three-dimensional classification that considers geometry, acoustic control mechanisms, and functional responsiveness as interrelated aspects. The geometry is classified into two-dimensional metasurfaces and three-dimensional bulk structures. The control mechanisms include local resonance, phase modulation, attenuation, and structural reconfiguration. The response type refers to whether the system behaves passively, actively, or adaptively. Using this approach, we provide an overview of representative implementations and compare different design approaches to highlight their working principles and application areas. This review presents a structured classification for soft acoustic metamaterials and offers a foundation for future research, with broad potential in intelligent sound systems, wearable acoustics, and architectural applications.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/14/7910acoustic metamaterialsoft acoustic metamaterialreconfigurable acoustic metamaterials
spellingShingle Ju-Hee Lee
Haesol Kwak
Eunjik Kim
Min-Woo Han
Recent Advances in Soft Acoustic Metamaterials: A Comprehensive Review of Geometry, Mechanisms, and System Responsiveness
Applied Sciences
acoustic metamaterial
soft acoustic metamaterial
reconfigurable acoustic metamaterials
title Recent Advances in Soft Acoustic Metamaterials: A Comprehensive Review of Geometry, Mechanisms, and System Responsiveness
title_full Recent Advances in Soft Acoustic Metamaterials: A Comprehensive Review of Geometry, Mechanisms, and System Responsiveness
title_fullStr Recent Advances in Soft Acoustic Metamaterials: A Comprehensive Review of Geometry, Mechanisms, and System Responsiveness
title_full_unstemmed Recent Advances in Soft Acoustic Metamaterials: A Comprehensive Review of Geometry, Mechanisms, and System Responsiveness
title_short Recent Advances in Soft Acoustic Metamaterials: A Comprehensive Review of Geometry, Mechanisms, and System Responsiveness
title_sort recent advances in soft acoustic metamaterials a comprehensive review of geometry mechanisms and system responsiveness
topic acoustic metamaterial
soft acoustic metamaterial
reconfigurable acoustic metamaterials
url https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/14/7910
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AT haesolkwak recentadvancesinsoftacousticmetamaterialsacomprehensivereviewofgeometrymechanismsandsystemresponsiveness
AT eunjikkim recentadvancesinsoftacousticmetamaterialsacomprehensivereviewofgeometrymechanismsandsystemresponsiveness
AT minwoohan recentadvancesinsoftacousticmetamaterialsacomprehensivereviewofgeometrymechanismsandsystemresponsiveness