Researchers at The Ohio State University have successfully cultivated and conditioned ordinary edible fungi, including shiitake and button mushrooms, to function as organic memristors. Operating as biological memory cells, these dehydrated fungal networks can switch between electrical states at rates up to 5,850 signals per second, presenting an eco-friendly foundation for low-power, brain-inspired computing architectures.
The Shift from Silicon to Mycelium
Traditional computing hardware relies heavily on rare minerals, complex semiconductor manufacturing, and high-energy data centers. As electronic waste mounts, materials science is increasingly looking toward bioelectronics. By blending biology and technology, engineers are attempting to design sustainable components that mimic the efficiency of biological systems.
Fungi are uniquely suited for this transition due to their inherent toughness and unusual biological properties. Mycelium networks can process and retain electrical information much like traditional metal components, offering a radically different approach to data storage and processing.
Engineering Mushroom Memory Devices
To evaluate these biological substrates, researchers at Ohio State grew cultures of shiitake and button mushrooms. Once the fungi reached maturity, the samples were dehydrated to ensure long-term stability before being integrated into custom electronic circuits.
The testing phase involved applying controlled electrical currents across varying voltages and frequencies. Because distinct parts of a mushroom possess unique electrical properties, the team attached wires and probes to multiple points across the samples.
“We would connect electrical wires and probes at different points on the mushrooms because distinct parts of it have different electrical properties,” explained John LaRocco, lead author of the study and a research scientist in psychiatry at Ohio State’s College of Medicine.
When evaluated for memory performance, the mushroom-based memristors demonstrated the ability to switch between electrical states up to 5,850 times per second with roughly 90% accuracy over a two-month testing window.
Addressing Signal Degradation Through Network Scaling
Physics presents hurdles even in biological computing. The Ohio State team observed that device performance declined as the frequency of the electrical voltages increased.
However, the researchers discovered a biological workaround reminiscent of neural architecture. Connecting multiple mushrooms together into an expanded circuit helped restore system stability, mirroring how human neurons operate in biological brains.
“Being able to develop microchips that mimic actual neural activity means you don’t need a lot of power for standby or when the machine isn’t being used,” stated John LaRocco, highlighting the potential computational and economic advantages of the technology.
Co-author Qudsia Tahmina, an associate professor of electrical and computer engineering at Ohio State, noted that the experiments underscore the ease with which fungi can be adapted for technological applications.
“Society has become increasingly aware of the need to protect our environment and ensure that we preserve it for future generations,” Tahmina remarked regarding the environmental motivations driving the research.
The Road Ahead for Fungal Bioelectronics
While organic memristors remain in the early stages of development, the research team aims to refine cultivation protocols and shrink device footprints. Scaled-down, efficient fungal components could eventually find utility in edge computing, aerospace exploration, autonomous systems, and wearable technology.
By reducing reliance on energy-intensive manufacturing processes, computers powered by ordinary shiitake mushrooms point toward a more sustainable paradigm for future hardware development.
