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  • Perspective
  • Open Access

Lattice metamaterials as advanced airborne sound insulators

Xinwei Li1,*, Xinxin Wang2, Miao Zhao3, and Zhendong Li2,4

  • *Contact author: xinwei.li@newcastle.ac.uk
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Phys. Rev. Applied 24, 060501 – Published 11 December, 2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/2w5x-vh9f

Abstract

This paper is a contribution to the Physical Review Applied collection titled Phononics and Metamaterials.

Airborne sound insulation is vital for noise reduction across various engineering fields. Traditional mass-based soundproofing methods, while effective, are often hindered by their bulkiness and limited ventilation capability. In contrast, lattice metamaterials provide a lightweight architected alternative with high tunability, enabling the use of periodic geometries to manipulate sound through mechanisms such as Bragg scattering and local resonance. This perspective explores the acoustic capabilities of various lattice morphologies, offers preliminary recommendations on geometry selection for effective sound insulation, and presents a generalized analytical model for predicting sound transmission loss. We also present a forward-looking discussion on the unbounded design potential of lattice topologies, highlighting opportunities for multifunctionality and outlining future directions in smart design, adaptive lattice structures, and data-driven optimization to enable advanced noise control and the development of multifunctional metamaterials.

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This article appears in the following collection:

Phononics and Metamaterials

Physical Review Applied is pleased to present a Collection on Phononics and Metamaterials, in which diverse developments in research on sound waves are gathered to offer a comprehensive view of both the state of the art and the challenges ahead. The Collection is dedicated to the memory of Dr. Sarah Benchabane (1980–2024), honoring her outstanding contributions to phononics and wave physics. Contributions to this Collection will be published beginning in 2025 and continuing into 2026. This Collection is being curated by Guest Editors Muamer Kadic, Daniel Torrent, and Abdelkrim Khelif.

Article Text

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Phys. Rev. Applied 24, 060501– Published 11 December, 2025
  • Received 30 June 2025
  • Revised 21 September 2025
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Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article’s title, journal citation, and DOI.

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