Fremoverlent

Fremoverlent is a fictional material described in science fiction and speculative worldbuilding. In its typical in-universe description, fremoverlent is a programmable crystalline polymer or metamaterial whose lattice can be reconfigured to change shape, stiffness, and optical properties without replacement.

Key properties include high specific strength, low density, thermal stability across a broad range, and the ability to store and retrieve programmed configurations through external stimuli such as electric, magnetic, or thermal cues. It may exhibit self-healing after minor damage and can alter its refractive index to achieve variable camouflage or adaptive optics.

Manufacture is depicted as advanced nano-assembly or in-situ polymerization within controlled environments. Variants may incorporate dopants or nano-scale actuators to enable rapid shape change or stiffness tuning. In many works, fremoverlent is used for starship hull skins, lightweight armor, deployable habitats, and adaptive optics systems.

In-universe history places its development in the late 22nd to 23rd centuries, attributed to research consortia on distant colonies; it has become an archetypal example of programmable matter and is often cited in discussions of future materials. The term combines neologistic roots intended to evoke forward-looking material science. See also metamaterials, programmable matter, shape memory polymers, nanomaterials.