On the Loading of Slime Mold Physarum polycephalum with Microparticles for Unconventional Computing Application

The plasmodium of Physarum polycephalum is alarge single cell visible with the naked eye. The plasmodiumrealizes a pattern of protoplasmic veins which span sites ofsources of nutrients, producing efficient network structures likecycles and Steiner minimum trees. Besides, the plasmodiumcan embed different chemicals; therefore, it should be possibleto program the plasmodium to realize deterministic adaptivenetwork and spatial distribution of nanoscale and microscalematerials. The transported particles can be used for the modificationof the physical properties of the system (electrical,optical, magnetic) facilitating the readout of the information,processed by the slime mold. Experiments with polystyrenemicroparticles and MnCO3 microparticles demonstrate that theplasmodium of Physarum can propagate nanoscale objectsusing a number of distinct mechanisms. The results of ourexperiments could be employed in the field of the unconventionalcomputing and bio-computing application devices, usingPhysarum network as scaffolds for the development of hybridnanocircuits and microcircuits and devices.