From left: Professor Choi WooYoung, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Seoul National University; Jinwook Lee, Geuntae Park, and Minjeong Ryu Ph.D. candidates. From left: Covers of the December 2024 and February 2025 issues of IEEE Electron Device Letters Two papers by the research team from the Three-Dimensional Integration & Device Lab (TIDL), led by Professor Wooyoung Choi, and authored by “Jinwook Lee, Geuntae Park, Myoungsoo Shin”, and “Minjeong Ryu, and Jaeseung Woo”, have been selected as the cover articles for the December 2024 and February 2025 issues of IEEE Electron Device Letters (EDL). Founded in 1980, EDL is one of the most influential academic journals worldwide, covering innovative and significant contributions to semiconductor devices, covering domains on theories, modeling, design, performance, and reliability. The specific contents of the two papers selected for the cover of the respective EDL issues are as follows: December 2024 issue [Jinwook Lee/Geuntae Park, co-first authors]: Proposes and implements a new torsional via structure for a nanoelectromechanical memory switch integrated onto a CMOS interconnect layer in a three dimensional fashion, achieving the world's highest reliability (funded by the Ministry of Science and ICT’s Next-Generation Intelligent Semiconductor Foundation). February 2025 issue [Minjeong Ryu, first author]: By leveraging local ferroelectric polarization transitions, a single transistor is utilized to implement the world’s first ternary-content-addressable memory that achieves high search accuracy and large-scale arrays (funded by the Samsung Science &Technology Foundation Program). Source: https://ece.snu.ac.kr/ece/news?md=v&bbsidx=56018 Translated by: Dohyung Kim, English Editor of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, kimdohyung@snu.ac.kr ...

On Monday, November 11, 2024, Halmaehwae, a gathering for female students in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, took place. A total of 36 participants attended, including 23 female undergraduate students and 13 professors. The event provided an opportunity to discuss various concerns related to career paths and life as female engineers. Source: https://ece.snu.ac.kr/ece/news?md=v&bbsidx=56012 Translated by: Dohyung Kim, English Editor of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, kimdohyung@snu.ac.kr ...

Seoul National University Applied Superconductivity Center Participates in the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) STEP Nuclear Fusion Project Based on the progress of the Ministry of Science and ICT-supported PRISM program, Seoul National University has signed a joint research agreement with UKAEA valued at 1 million pound. The collaboration will begin with the development of high-current, high-temperature superconducting cables and expand into research on high-temperature superconductor magnet systems for commercial fusion power plants. The College of Engineering at Seoul National University announced that the Applied Superconductivity Center, led by Professor Seungyong Hahn from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, has officially joined the STEP (Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production) nuclear fusion project led by the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA). STEP is a major British national project led by UKIFS (UK Industrial Fusion Solutions), a subsidiary of the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA), aiming to construct the world’s first commercial fusion power plant by 2040 (Figure 1). During Phase 1 (2019–2024) of the three-phase program, £220 million (approximately 390 billion KRW) has been allocated to develop the conceptual design of a fusion prototype power plant based on high-temperature superconducting magnets, to be built in Nottinghamshire West Burton. Seoul National University's Applied Superconductivity Center and UKAEA have signed a joint research agreement worth £1 million (approximately 1.7 billion KRW) running until March 2025. The collaboration will start with research on high-current, high-temperature superconducting cables and later expand to magnet system research (Figure 2). Fusion power, often described as harnessing an "artificial sun," is being researched globally for its potential as a sustainable and clean energy source for the future. The magnetic confinement method, which uses the strong magnetic fields of superconducting magnets to control plasma, has been adopted in projects such as South Korea’s KSTAR and the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), currently under construction by a coalition of 35 countries. However, the large size of magnets, exceeding 20 meters, and the immense construction costs, reaching tens of trillions of won, have delayed commercialization to beyond 2050. Recently, a breakthrough in no-insulation,high-temperature superconductor technology, first proposed by Professor Seungyong Han of Seoul National University's Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, has opened the door to the possibility of "compact fusion." This innovation reduces the size of superconducting magnets to less than one-fifth of their original size, dramatically cutting construction and operational costs. Over the past few years, this concept has attracted over 10 trillion KRW in private investment globally, leading to the creation of numerous startups and government-industrial partnerships.In July 2024, the South Korean government announced the "Fusion Energy Realization Acceleration Strategy," a 1.2 trillion KRW initiative to develop fusion technologies, including high-temperature superconducting magnet technology. STEP is anticipated to be a game-changer in this acceleration strategy, aiming to commercialize fusion power plants with capacities exceeding 100 MW—enough to supply electricity to over 200,000 4-people households—by the 2040s, significantly advancing the progress towards commercial fusion power deployment. The high-current, high-temperature superconducting cable under development in this joint research serves as a critical component for superconducting magnets, which are expected to account for approximately 30% of fusion reactor construction costs. This technology represents a crucial innovation for the miniaturization of fusion systems (Figure 3). The joint research builds on the progress made by the PRISM (Project for Research and Innovation in Superconducing Magnet, director: Sangjin Lee, Visiting Professor at SNU ECE) project, funded by the National Research Foundation of Korea under the Ministry of Science and ICT, and led by Seoul National University’s Applied Superconductivity Center. The effort is spearheaded by the Applied Superconductivity Center, with contributions from participating companies Powernix and Standard Magnet. Launched in 2022, the PRISM research group operates under the motto, "The nation as one laboratory, one university." Over five years, it is supported by a total budget of 46.4 billion KRW over 5 years, involving 27 industry-academia-research institutions and over 220 researchers. PRISM has systematically categorized the widely applicable high-temperature superconducting magnets into four forms and seven key technologies—the first such effort globally— and is actively developing diverse core foundational technologies with the goal of mass production and commercialization. Powernix (CEO Kwanghee Yoon), a small-medium-sized enterprise in the power systems sector, has collaborated with Seoul National University’s Applied Superconductivity Center through PRISM and have acquired a high-temperature superconducting cable manufacturing technology. Within just two years of the project’s inception, the company was designated as an official partner to supply test high-temperature superconducting cables for the high-temperature superconducting magnets, a crucial component of the STEP system. Standard Magnet (CEO Jaemin Kim) is a Seoul National University startup founded in June 2024, based on the outcomes of the PRISM research project. The company is actively participating in the development and application of various high-temperature superconducting magnets, with the goal of becoming a global corporation in the field of high-temperature superconducting magnet technology. Figure 1. Conceptual illustration of the STEP (Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production) fusion reactor under development by the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) (Source: https://step.ukaea.uk/) Figure 2. Components of the high-temperature superconducting magnet system for nuclear fusion: (1) Wires, (2) Cables, (3) Magnets, (4) Systems The UKAEA-Seoul National University joint research agreement will begin with cable development and expand to magnets and systems. (Sources: Wires – https://sunam2004.tradekorea.com/main.do; Cables – Provided by SNU; Magnets – K. J. Chung et al., Design and Fabrication of VEST at SNU, presented at 16th International Workshop on Spherical Torus, Sep. 27-30, 2011.; Systems – https://actu.epfl.ch/news/welcome-mast-upgrade-a-new-fusion-device/) Figure 3. High-temperature superconducting cable under development by the research team at Seoul National University's Applied Superconductivity Center for the STEP TF (Toroidal Field) magnet. [Broadcast Coverage] - SBS: "The UK Embarks on 'Fusion Acceleration,' Korea Provides Superconductor Technologies" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHP1mmeoJ0w) - YTN: "Will the UK’s 'Nuclear Fusion Dream' be realized with Seoul National University?" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBjb1rPbO8A) [Inquiries] Professor Seungyong Hahn Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Seoul National University Phone: +82-2-880-1495 Email: hahnsy@snu.ac.kr Source: https://ece.snu.ac.kr/ece/news?md=v&bbsidx=56008 Translated by: Dohyung Kim, English Editor of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, kimdohyung@snu.ac.kr ...

Professor Yongtaek Hong received the IEC 1906 Award at the 2024 World Standards Day ceremony held on October 15 at the International Conference Hall of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) annually presents the IEC 1906 Award to standardization experts worldwide who have made significant contributions to international standardization, commemorating its founding in 1906. This year, 12 Korean standardization experts were honored with the award. Press release date: October 14, 2024 Source: https://ece.snu.ac.kr/ece/news?md=v&bbsidx=56001 Translated by: Dohyung Kim, English Editor of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, kimdohyung@snu.ac.kr...

• Professor Jaesang Lee’s research team, in collaboration with Samsung Electronics SAIT, announced that they have identified the key mechanism behind the performance degradation of organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). • The team proposed the theoretical possibility of a crucial factor in severely reducing OLED performance, interfacial exciton-polaron quenching, and experimentally validated its existence. • The findings of this study were published on October 10 in the prestigious physics journal Physical Review X. Press release date: October 11, 2024 Source: https://ece.snu.ac.kr/ece/news?md=v&bbsidx=56000 Translated by: Dohyung Kim, English Editor of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, kimdohyung@snu.ac.kr...

Professors Youngmin Kim and Chulho Lee from our department have been selected to receive funding from the Samsung Science &Technology Foundation during the second half selection of 2024. The program is a science and technology research support initiative launched by Samsung Electronics in 2013 with a pure public interest focus, backed by a 1.5 trillion KRW endowment. It aims to advance basic science in South Korea, drive innovation in industrial technologies, tackle societal challenges through science and technology, and nurture globally recognized scientists and engineers. The program supports pioneering research in foundational areas such as basic science, areas on materials technology, which are essential to manufacturing, and ICT and inter-displinary fields, crucial for industrial advancement and creation of new markets. Professors Kim and Lee will conduct reseach over the next three years on the topics: “Development of Spatial and Physical Intelligence for 3D Robotic Foundation Models” and “ ‘On-MOS-Stack’All-Around Strain Engineering for High-Mobility 2D Transistors,” respectively. Source: https://ece.snu.ac.kr/ece/news?md=v&bbsidx=55996 Translated by: Dohyung Kim, English Editor of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, kimdohyung@snu.ac.kr...

The research teams led by Professor Jaehyouk Choi at the Integrated Circuits and Systems Lab (ICSL), namely the team consisting of Seheon Jang, Munjae Chae, Hankee Park, and Chanwoong Hwang, as well as the team consisting of Yoohwan Shin, Yongwoo Cho, and Junseok Lee, were awarded the Minister of Trade, Industry, and Energy Award and the Industry Special Award (LX Semicon) respectively, at the 25th Korea Semiconductor Design Competition. Research Work 1: Low-Noise, Compact Clock Generator for Ultra-High-Speed Wired and Wireless Data Communication Using Recursive Least Squares (RLS)-Based Multivariable Calibrator Research Work 2: Ultra-Low-Noise Fractional-N High-Frequency Signal Generator for Next-Generation High-Speed Wired and Wireless Communication, Utilizing Nonlinearity Replication Technique Source: https://ece.snu.ac.kr/ece/news?md=v&bbsidx=55961 Translated by: Dohyung Kim, English Editor of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, kimdohyung@snu.ac.kr...

Seoul National University College of Engineering held an award ceremony on the 16th at Engineering Building 38 to honor six professors selected as recipients of the 2024 Sinyang Outstanding Researcher Award. The Sinyang Outstanding Researcher Award was established to encourage educational and research activities among faculty at the College of Engineering. It was funded by the late Seok-Gyu Jung, an alumnus and founder of Taesung Rubber Co., and the former Chairman of the Sinyang Cultural Foundation, through a donation to the Sinyang Cultural Foundation. This award is granted to professors under the age of 49 who have recently been promoted to associate or full professor within the last two years and have achieved excellence in education and research. First held in 2005, this year marks the 20th anniversary of the awards. The 2024 recipients include Professors Yongrae Park (Department of Mechanical Engineering), Jungyun Seon (Department of Materials Science and Engineering), and Kyunghan Lee (Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering) in the academic category, along with Professors Yongjoo Choi (Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering), Seongjoo Lee (Department of Industrial Engineering), and Takuji Oda (Department of Nuclear Engineering) in the educational category. Professor Kyunghan Lee of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering published various world-class research works under the vison of integrating mobile communication systems with computing systems to enable mobile and wearable devices achieving near-infinite computational capacity. In 2021, he became the first researcher from an Asian university to win the Best Paper Award as the lead author at the ACM MobiSys, the most prestigious international conference in mobile computing. This year, he won the Best Paper Award from the Journal of Communications and Networks (JCN), a prominent SCI journal in telecommunications, highlighting his international impact. In particular, Professor Lee is credited with advancing Korea’s global leadership in next-generation mobile communication systems through successfully incorporating his own connected computing architecture into the design of 6G mobile communication systems. “I am deeply grateful to the NXC Lab members for their trust in our shared goal of advancing human augmentation through the fusion of network and computing technologies,” Professor Lee remarked. “I also extend my heartfelt thanks to my fellow professors for silently making world-class research and to the dean’s office for their efforts in elevating the prestige of Seoul National University’s College of Engineering.” Source: https://ece.snu.ac.kr/ece/news?md=v&bbsidx=55942 Translated by: Dohyung Kim, English Editor of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, kimdohyung@snu.ac.kr...