Current Progress of Acoustic Metastructures: Design Strategy and Prospective Application

Acoustic metastructures (AMs) are a type of artificial engineering materials composed of various micro–meso structure subwavelength units. They can exhibit distinct and exotic performances such as low mass, low volume, low frequency, and broadband through appropriate structural designs, which provide novel means for the exploration of physical interpretation in terms of individual case. Thus, the design strategies of AMs for unprecedented properties are of growing interest and attention. Beginning with the recent advances in structural design, a comprehensive review of the physical mechanisms and structural characteristics of four typical AMs, i.e., Helmholtz resonators, membrane‐type AMs, coiling‐up space structures, and lattice structures, is performed. Meanwhile, various engineering application potentials associated with regard to performance evolutions including sound absorption and noise reduction, acoustic cloaking, and acoustic lenses are introduced, as well as the corresponding design optimization strategies. Finally, the current scientific and technical challenges and the developmental trends of AMs are summarized. This review work aims to provide a design roadmap for next‐generation AMs and a trigger on unsuspected physical mechanisms.