Recent Advances and Applications of Machine Learning in Experimental Solid Mechanics: A Review
Not on the map. Why?
Abstract (arXiv)
For many decades, experimental solid mechanics has played a crucial role in characterizing and understanding the mechanical properties of natural and novel materials. Recent advances in machine learning (ML) provide new opportunities for the field, including experimental design, data analysis, uncertainty quantification, and inverse problems. As the number of papers published in recent years in this emerging field is exploding, it is timely to conduct a comprehensive and up-to-date review of recent ML applications in experimental solid mechanics. Here, we first provide an overview of common ML algorithms and terminologies that are pertinent to this review, with emphasis placed on physics-informed and physics-based ML methods. Then, we provide thorough coverage of recent ML applications in traditional and emerging areas of experimental mechanics, including fracture mechanics, biomechanics, nano- and micro-mechanics, architected materials, and 2D material. Finally, we highlight some current challenges of applying ML to multi-modality and multi-fidelity experimental datasets and propose several future research directions. This review aims to provide valuable insights into the use of ML methods as well as a variety of examples for researchers in solid mechanics to integrate into their experiments.
Key facts. Cited by 15 papers in the map (data through 7 Oct 2026). Builds on 55 of its 361 references that are in the map. First posted on arXiv 14 Mar 2023.
Builds on
55 of 361 references.
References · 55
- 2017Attention Is All You Needcited by 59,932
- 2019PyTorch: An Imperative Style, High-Performance Deep Learning Librarycited by 20,160
- 2022Generative Adversarial Networkscited by 5,603
- 2016Image-to-Image Translation with Conditional Adversarial Networkscited by 4,510
- 2015Continuous control with deep reinforcement learningcited by 3,279
- 2016Improved Techniques for Training GANscited by 2,938
- 2020Fourier Neural Operator for Parametric Partial Differential Equationscited by 2,806
- 2014Conditional Generative Adversarial Netscited by 2,152
- 2019DeepONet: Learning nonlinear operators for identifying differential equations based on the universal approximation theorem of operatorscited by 1,965
- 2019Graph Neural Networks for Social Recommendationcited by 711
- 2016TensorFlow: Large-Scale Machine Learning on Heterogeneous Distributed Systemscited by 660
- 2019DeepXDE: A deep learning library for solving differential equationscited by 617
38 more
- 2021Learning the solution operator of parametric partial differential equations with physics-informed DeepOnetscited by 537
- 2021Physics-Informed Neural Operator for Learning Partial Differential Equationscited by 516
- 2020Graph Neural Networks in Recommender Systems: A Surveycited by 493
- 2021Physics-informed neural networks (PINNs) for fluid mechanics: A reviewcited by 470
- 2022Fourier Neural Operator with Learned Deformations for PDEs on General Geometriescited by 416
- 2021Neural Operator: Learning Maps Between Function Spacescited by 413
- 2017Physics Informed Deep Learning (Part I): Data-driven Solutions of Nonlinear Partial Differential Equationscited by 362
- 2017Deep Reinforcement Learning: An Overviewcited by 327
- 2023Multimodal Deep Learningcited by 257
- 2020Machine Learning Force Fieldscited by 204
- 2022Uncertainty Quantification in Scientific Machine Learning: Methods, Metrics, and Comparisonscited by 169
- 2017Deep Reinforcement Learning for De-Novo Drug Designcited by 161
- 2019A review on Deep Reinforcement Learning for Fluid Mechanicscited by 65
- 2020TopologyGAN: Topology Optimization Using Generative Adversarial Networks Based on Physical Fields Over the Initial Domaincited by 65
- 2021Deep Learning in Human Activity Recognition with Wearable Sensors: A Review on Advancescited by 54
- 2020Deep Generative Modeling for Mechanistic-based Learning and Design of Metamaterial Systemscited by 51
- 2022Interfacing Finite Elements with Deep Neural Operators for Fast Multiscale Modeling of Mechanics Problemscited by 47
- 2021Physics informed neural networks for continuum micromechanicscited by 46
- 2020Physics-Informed Neural Networks for Nonhomogeneous Material Identification in Elasticity Imagingcited by 40
- 2021Simulating progressive intramural damage leading to aortic dissection using an operator-regression neural networkcited by 35
- 2018Model-Free Data-Driven Inelasticitycited by 29
- 2021Generating 3D structures from a 2D slice with GAN-based dimensionality expansioncited by 29
- 2016Detecting Unexpected Obstacles for Self-Driving Cars: Fusing Deep Learning and Geometric Modelingcited by 28
- 2020Overview: Computer vision and machine learning for microstructural characterization and analysiscited by 22
- 2018High throughput quantitative metallography for complex microstructures using deep learning: A case study in ultrahigh carbon steelcited by 19
- 2018Meta-modeling game for deriving theoretical-consistent, micro-structural-based traction-separation laws via deep reinforcement learningcited by 19
- 2022A Physics-Guided Neural Operator Learning Approach to Model Biological Tissues from Digital Image Correlation Measurementscited by 19
- 2021Data-driven Modeling of the Mechanical Behavior of Anisotropic Soft Biological Tissuecited by 14
- 2022Neural operator learning of heterogeneous mechanobiological insults contributing to aortic aneurysmscited by 14
- 2022Hybrid thermal modeling of additive manufacturing processes using physics-informed neural networks for temperature prediction and parameter identificationcited by 14
- 2016Microstructure Representation and Reconstruction of Heterogeneous Materials via Deep Belief Network for Computational Material Designcited by 12
- 2020Microstructure Generation via Generative Adversarial Network for Heterogeneous, Topologically Complex 3D Materialscited by 12
- 2022Physics-Informed Neural Networks for Shell Structurescited by 12
- 2017Conditional Adversarial Network for Semantic Segmentation of Brain Tumorcited by 10
- 2021Deep DIC: Deep Learning-Based Digital Image Correlation for End-to-End Displacement and Strain Measurementcited by 8
- 2019Model-Free Data-Driven Methods in Mechanics: Material Data Identification and Solverscited by 7
- 2022Learning the nonlinear dynamics of soft mechanical metamaterials with graph networkscited by 7
- 2023Uncertainty quantification for nonlinear solid mechanics using reduced order models with Gaussian process regressioncited by 7
50 most cited of 55 All 55 (JSON)
Built on by
Citing papers per year: 2023: 4; 2024: 3; 2025: 4; 2026: 4.
15 papers.
Sort:
By area:
- 2023Harnessing the Power of Neural Operators with Automatically Encoded Conservation Lawscited by 22
- 2024Large Language Model Agent as a Mechanical Designercited by 20
- 2023Generative Hyperelasticity with Physics-Informed Probabilistic Diffusion Fieldscited by 7
- 2025Polyconvex Physics-Augmented Neural Network Constitutive Models in Principal Stretchescited by 5
- 2023Identifying Constitutive Parameters for Complex Hyperelastic Materials using Physics-Informed Neural Networkscited by 3
- 2023Mechanical Characterization and Inverse Design of Stochastic Architected Metamaterials Using Neural Operatorscited by 2
- 2024Learning Lagrangian Interaction Dynamics with Sampling-Based Model Order Reductioncited by 2
- 2024Inverse design of Non-parameterized Ventilated Acoustic Resonator via Variational Autoencoder with Acoustic Response-encoded Latent Spacecited by 0
- 2025CNN-powered micro- to macro-scale flow modeling in deformable porous mediacited by 0
- 2025Enhancing material behavior discovery using embedding-oriented Physically-Guided Neural Networks with Internal Variablescited by 0
- 2025A neural network machine-learning approach for characterising hydrogen trapping parameters from TDS experimentscited by 0
- 2026FilDeep: Learning Large Deformations of Elastic-Plastic Solids with Multi-Fidelity Datacited by 0
3 more
- 2026OnlyDense: Reduced-Order Modeling for Lagrangian simulationcited by 0
- 2026Harnessing disorder to decouple extension and shear in kirigami metamaterialscited by 0
- 2026pyALDIC: A Python Implementation of Augmented Lagrangian Digital Image Correlation with a GUI, Adaptive Meshing, and Mask-Aware Subset Splittingcited by 0
- 2026pyALDIC: A Python Implementation of Augmented Lagrangian Digital Image Correlation with a GUI, Adaptive Meshing, and Mask-Aware Subset Splitting23 Jul 2026
- 2026Harnessing disorder to decouple extension and shear in kirigami metamaterials18 Jul 2026
- 2026OnlyDense: Reduced-Order Modeling for Lagrangian simulation8 Jun 2026
- 2026FilDeep: Learning Large Deformations of Elastic-Plastic Solids with Multi-Fidelity Data15 Jan 2026
- 2025A neural network machine-learning approach for characterising hydrogen trapping parameters from TDS experiments5 Aug 2025
- 2025Enhancing material behavior discovery using embedding-oriented Physically-Guided Neural Networks with Internal Variables1 Aug 2025
- 2025Polyconvex Physics-Augmented Neural Network Constitutive Models in Principal Stretches1 Mar 2025
- 2025CNN-powered micro- to macro-scale flow modeling in deformable porous media11 Jan 2025
- 2024Inverse design of Non-parameterized Ventilated Acoustic Resonator via Variational Autoencoder with Acoustic Response-encoded Latent Space12 Aug 2024
- 2024Learning Lagrangian Interaction Dynamics with Sampling-Based Model Order Reduction4 Jul 2024
- 2024Large Language Model Agent as a Mechanical Designer26 Apr 2024
- 2023Harnessing the Power of Neural Operators with Automatically Encoded Conservation Laws18 Dec 2023
3 more
- 2023Mechanical Characterization and Inverse Design of Stochastic Architected Metamaterials Using Neural Operators23 Nov 2023
- 2023Generative Hyperelasticity with Physics-Informed Probabilistic Diffusion Fields11 Sep 2023
- 2023Identifying Constitutive Parameters for Complex Hyperelastic Materials using Physics-Informed Neural Networks29 Aug 2023
- 2024Large Language Model Agent as a Mechanical Designercited by 20
- 2024Large Language Model Agent as a Mechanical Designer26 Apr 2024
- 2023Harnessing the Power of Neural Operators with Automatically Encoded Conservation Lawscited by 22
- 2023Generative Hyperelasticity with Physics-Informed Probabilistic Diffusion Fieldscited by 7
- 2025Polyconvex Physics-Augmented Neural Network Constitutive Models in Principal Stretchescited by 5
- 2023Identifying Constitutive Parameters for Complex Hyperelastic Materials using Physics-Informed Neural Networkscited by 3
- 2023Mechanical Characterization and Inverse Design of Stochastic Architected Metamaterials Using Neural Operatorscited by 2
- 2024Learning Lagrangian Interaction Dynamics with Sampling-Based Model Order Reductioncited by 2
- 2024Inverse design of Non-parameterized Ventilated Acoustic Resonator via Variational Autoencoder with Acoustic Response-encoded Latent Spacecited by 0
- 2025CNN-powered micro- to macro-scale flow modeling in deformable porous mediacited by 0
- 2025Enhancing material behavior discovery using embedding-oriented Physically-Guided Neural Networks with Internal Variablescited by 0
- 2025A neural network machine-learning approach for characterising hydrogen trapping parameters from TDS experimentscited by 0
- 2026FilDeep: Learning Large Deformations of Elastic-Plastic Solids with Multi-Fidelity Datacited by 0
- 2026OnlyDense: Reduced-Order Modeling for Lagrangian simulationcited by 0
12 most cited of 14 All 14 (JSON)
- 2026pyALDIC: A Python Implementation of Augmented Lagrangian Digital Image Correlation with a GUI, Adaptive Meshing, and Mask-Aware Subset Splitting23 Jul 2026
- 2026Harnessing disorder to decouple extension and shear in kirigami metamaterials18 Jul 2026
- 2026OnlyDense: Reduced-Order Modeling for Lagrangian simulation8 Jun 2026
- 2026FilDeep: Learning Large Deformations of Elastic-Plastic Solids with Multi-Fidelity Data15 Jan 2026
- 2025A neural network machine-learning approach for characterising hydrogen trapping parameters from TDS experiments5 Aug 2025
- 2025Enhancing material behavior discovery using embedding-oriented Physically-Guided Neural Networks with Internal Variables1 Aug 2025
- 2025Polyconvex Physics-Augmented Neural Network Constitutive Models in Principal Stretches1 Mar 2025
- 2025CNN-powered micro- to macro-scale flow modeling in deformable porous media11 Jan 2025
- 2024Inverse design of Non-parameterized Ventilated Acoustic Resonator via Variational Autoencoder with Acoustic Response-encoded Latent Space12 Aug 2024
- 2024Learning Lagrangian Interaction Dynamics with Sampling-Based Model Order Reduction4 Jul 2024
- 2023Harnessing the Power of Neural Operators with Automatically Encoded Conservation Laws18 Dec 2023
- 2023Mechanical Characterization and Inverse Design of Stochastic Architected Metamaterials Using Neural Operators23 Nov 2023
12 newest of 14 All 14 (JSON)