What is the significance of using utf8mb4 encoding in MySQL when dealing with multi-byte characters in PHP?

When dealing with multi-byte characters in PHP, it is important to use utf8mb4 encoding in MySQL to properly store and retrieve these characters without any data loss or corruption. This encoding supports the full range of Unicode characters, including emojis and special symbols, ensuring that all text data is accurately represented in the database.

// Connect to MySQL database using utf8mb4 encoding
$servername = "localhost";
$username = "username";
$password = "password";
$dbname = "database";

$conn = new mysqli($servername, $username, $password, $dbname);
$conn->set_charset("utf8mb4");