Towards Hybrid Artificial-Slime Mould Devices

TL;DR

This paper explores hybrid devices combining slime mould Physarum polycephalum with artificial circuit components, demonstrating their potential for unconventional computing through electrical integration and biomorphic network formation.

Contribution

It introduces a novel hybrid system where artificial nanoparticles are internalized and distributed by slime mould, enabling new bio-electronic functionalities.

Findings

Hybrid slime mould internalizes and distributes nanoparticles in vivo.

Formation of biomorphic mineralised networks within the plasmodium.

Altered electrical activity suggests modified information processing capabilities.

Abstract

The plasmodium of the slime mould Physarum polycephalum has recently received significant attention for its value as a highly malleable amorphous computing substrate. In laboratory-based experiments, micro- and nanoscale artificial circuit components were introduced into the P. polycephalum plasmdodium to investigate the electrical properties and computational abilities of hybridised slime mould. It was found through a combination of imaging techniques and electrophysiological measurements that P. polycephalum is able to internalise a range of electrically active nanoparticles, assemble them in vivo and distribute them around the plasmodium. Hybridised plasmodium is able to form biomorphic mineralised networks, both inside the living plasmodium and the empty trails left in its wake by taxis, both of which facilitate the transmission of electricity. Hybridisation also alters the bioelectrical activity of the plasmodium and likely influences its information processing capabilities. It was concluded that hybridised slime mould is a suitable substrate for producing functional unconventional computing devices.