feature[frontend]: improve printing of materials and material library

Author: Gregory Roberts

CHANGELOG.md

@@ -11,6 +11,10 @@ and this project adheres to [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0
 - `fill` and `fill_structures` argument in `td.Simulation.plot_structures()` and `td.Simulation.plot()` respectively to disable fill and plot outlines of structures only.
 - New subpixel averaging option `ContourPathAveraging` applied to dielectric material boundaries.
 - A property `interior_angle` in `PolySlab` that stores angles formed inside polygon by two adjacent edges.
+- Methods for pretty printing the `material_library` and well as different materials and their variants.
+
+### Changed
+- Updated represenetation for `AbstractMedium` instances that have a specified name field to use that name instead of the full string representation of the medium to reduce clutter when printing models that have these mediums.
 
 ### Fixed
 - Compatibility with `xarray>=2025.03`.

tests/test_material_library/__init__.py

@@ -0,0 +1,48 @@
+"""Tests material library functions and pretty printing"""
+
+import tidy3d as td
+
+
+def test_material_library_summary():
+    """Test to make sure we can print the material library without error."""
+    print(td.material_library)
+
+
+def test_material_summary():
+    """Test the string method for each material in the material library."""
+
+    for _, material in td.material_library.items():
+        print(material)
+
+
+def test_variant_summary():
+    """Test the string method for each variant in the material library."""
+
+    for _, material in td.material_library.items():
+        # graphene in the material library is run differently than the other materials and
+        # doesn't have the variant structure so we exclude any materials that are in this
+        # format
+        if hasattr(material, "variants"):
+            for variant in material.variants:
+                print(variant)
+
+
+def test_material_library_medium_repr():
+    """Test the new repr method does not error for material library variants."""
+
+    for material_key, material in td.material_library.items():
+        if hasattr(material, "variants"):
+            for variant_key in material.variants:
+                mat = td.material_library[material_key][variant_key]
+                print(mat)
+                print(repr(mat))
+
+
+def test_medium_repr():
+    """Test the new repr method does not error for regular media with and without names."""
+
+    test_media = [
+        td.Medium(permittivity=1.5**2),
+        td.Medium(permittivity=1.5**2, name="material"),
+        td.material_library["SiO2"]["Horiba"].updated_copy(name=None),
+    ]

tests/test_material_library/test_material_library.py

@@ -1378,6 +1378,12 @@ def derivative_eps_complex_volume(
 
         return vjp_value.sum("f")
 
+    def __repr__(self):
+        if self.name:
+            return self.name
+        else:
+            return super().__repr__()
+
 
 class AbstractCustomMedium(AbstractMedium, ABC):
     """A spatially varying medium."""