Self-organization, Memory and Learning: From Driven Disordered Systems to Living Matter

Abstract

Disordered systems subject to a fluctuating environment can self-organize into a complex history-dependent response, retaining a memory of the driving. In sheared amorphous solids, self-organization is established by the emergence of a persistent system of mechanical instabilities that can repeatedly be triggered by the driving, leading to a state of high mechanical reversibility. As a result of self-organization, the response of the system becomes correlated with the dynamics of its environment, which can be viewed as a sensing mechanism of the system's environment. Such phenomena emerge across a wide variety of soft matter systems, suggesting that they are generic and hence may depend very little on the underlying specifics. We review self-organization in driven amorphous solids, concluding with a discussion of what self-organization in driven disordered systems can teach us about how simple organisms sense and adapt to their changing environments.

review article, minor corrections, addition of references and a change in bibliography style so that titles of the works cited appear as well. 31 pages and 5 figures, to appear in the 2026 issue of Annual Reviews of Condensed Matter Physics