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대학뉴스 > 전체(영문) 게시판목록 | UNIST NEWS CENTER Discover not only Research Findings and event news, but also the diverse facets of UNIST presented by reporters and writers. News Center UNIST News All News Community Research Column UNIST in the Media Press Room Press Room Press Releases News Center Admissions Academics Research/Industry Campus Life News Center About UNIST etc UNIST News UNIST News UNIST in the Media Press Room All All News Community Research Column UNIST News All News Community Research Column All 3350 건의 게시물이 있습니다. There are a total of 3350 posts. UNIST Explores the Evolution of K-Indie Music in New Lecture Series A five-session lecture series examines independent music in its social and cultural context. The UNIST Leadership Center will host a lecture series, titled 'The Emergence and Evolution of K-Indie' from April 28 to June 2, 2026. Spanning five sessions, the series traces the evolution of indie music from the roots of blues and rock in the United States and the United Kingdom to the development of Korea's indie scene. It explores how independent music—defined by artistic autonomy outside mainstream commercial systems—has evolved alongside broader cultural shifts. Organized as part of the course 'Understanding Popular Music,' the program will take place in Room 206 of the Business Administration Building and is open to all members of the UNIST community, including students, faculty, and staff. The lectures will be led by music critic Byungwook Chung, Head of the Global Contemporary Division of the Korean Music Awards Selection Committee and Director at NAVER VIBE. The series will cover the foundations of indie music, the history of Korean band music, the emergence of first-generation indie artists, and developments from the 2000s to the present. A representative from the UNIST Leadership Center said the program is intended to broaden students' perspectives on contemporary culture and global trends through the study of popular music. 2026-04-23 JooHyeon Heo 66 UNIST Unveils Smart Contact Lens with Meniscus Pixel Printing for Vision-Based Robotic Control The findings of this research have been published in Advanced Functional Materials on March 11, 2026. Abstract Contact lenses are emerging as strong candidates for next-generation extended reality (XR) interfaces due to their lightweight and ergonomic form factor. However, integrating photodetector arrays onto the limited area of a lens remains challenging with conventional micropatterning approaches, which rely on masks, multistep processes, and specialized equipment that inherently limit throughput and scalability. To address these constraints, we introduce a Meniscus Pixel Printing (MPP) strategy that enables rapid, mask-free patterning of MAPbI3 perovskite photodetectors without costly or complex fabrication tools. MPP uses a self-confined meniscus at a pipette tip to deterministically transfer perovskite ink, enabling 200 µm pixels to be printed within 1 s per pixel. In addition to planar substrates, MPP demonstrates stable pixel patterning on curved surfaces, highlighting its geometric adaptability and process versatility. Using this approach, we fabricate a 10 × 10 perovskite photodetector array and demonstrate stable photoresponse, retaining 92% of its initial performance after two months of storage. To overcome limited pixel density, a deep-learning-based super-resolution (SR) model reconstructs 10 × 10 inputs into 80 × 80 optical information with 97.2% accuracy and 0.03 s latency. Additionally, an AI-based eye-tracking system recognizes nine eye gestures with 99.3% accuracy, enabling smooth hands-free robotic arm control. A research team, led by Professor Im Doo Jung from the Department of Mechanical Engineering at UNIST, has developed a groundbreaking smart contact lens that enables users to control robots through eye movements. This innovative device combines embedded optical sensors with AI-based signal processing, offering a lightweight, intuitive human-machine interface with vast potential across industries. The lens incorporates a 10×10 array of light sensors capable of detecting subtle changes in light distribution caused by eye movements, including gaze direction and blinks. These signals are transmitted to control external robotic systems, as demonstrated with a robotic arm. Notably, the team employed a novel Meniscus Pixel Printing (MPP) technique to directly print sensors onto the curved lens surface without masks or complex fabrication steps, ensuring high precision and customizability. In addition to robotic control, the system demonstrates vision sensing capabilities by reconstructing optical information. To address the limited signal resolution inherent to micro-scale devices, the researchers applied deep-learning-based super-resolution algorithms, reconstructing high-fidelity signals equivalent to an 80x80 sensor array in just 0.03 seconds. This enables real-time, accurate control based solely on eye movements, achieving recognition accuracies of up to 99.3% under experimental conditions. This technology marks a significant advancement in ultra-compact human-machine interfaces, enabling precise, hands-free control of electronic devices. Potential applications include remote robotic operation, medical assistive devices, exploration in hazardous environments, defense systems, and smart mobility. Published in the March 2026 issue of Advanced Functional Materials (Impact Factor: 19.0, JCR Top 5%)—a top-tier journal in materials science—the research was selected as the Front Cover of the latest issue. The study received support from the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF), the Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT), the Institute of Information & Communications Technology Planning & Evaluation (IITP), and the Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy (MOTIE). Journal Reference Byung-Hoon Gong, Dohyean Kim, Jiyun Jeong, et al., "Meniscus Pixel Printing for Contact-Lens Vision Sensing and Robotic Control," Adv. Funct. Mater., (2026). 2026-04-23 JooHyeon Heo 68 [기고] 생명체에게 파업은 곧 죽음이다 세포로 만드는 바이오의약품, 티끌만한 실수로도 변질 우려 파업으로 생산공정 멈추는 순간 글로벌 고객사들 등돌릴 것 생명체는 수만 개의 반도체가 정밀하게 결합된 슈퍼컴퓨터로도 아직 작동원리를 100% 규명하지 못한 최첨단의 물질이다. 자그마한 변수만으로도 어떻게 변화할 지를 전혀 알 수 없다. 대표적인 사례가 알츠하이머성 치매의 주요 원인물질로 지목받고 있는 ‘아밀로이드 베타’다. 뇌 속에서 단백질의 미세한 접힘(folding) 오류가 뇌세포의 손상·사멸을 유도하는 독성물질을 만들어내게 된다. 이 사소한 변화를 아직도 우리는 풀지 못해 근원적 치매 치료제를 개발하지 못하고 있다. 그렇기에 살아있는 세포를 기반으로 만들어지는 바이오의약품 생산 공정은 세포 해동부터 배양-정제-충전이라는 일련의 연속공정이 한치의 오차도 없이 치밀하게 진행돼야만 하는 일종의 생명활동이다. 일반적인 공산품 제조 공정과는 결이 다른만큼 공정을 임의로 중단했다가 다시 시작하기 어려워 세포를 모두 죽여야 할 수도 있고, 자칫 최종 제품이 생명을 살리는 약이 아닌 ‘독약’이 되어버릴 수도 있다. 바이오의약품이 세계 유수의 주요 규제기관에서 직접 공정을 확인하고, 최종 산물을 검증하는 절차를 수없이 밟는 이유다. 사람의 몸에 직접 투약되는만큼 작은 결함만으로도 같은 공정을 밟았던 의약품 전체가 모두 폐기의 위기에 처한다. 미국 식품의약국(FDA) 등 주요 규제기관은 생산 과정에서 현행 우수의약품 제조·관리기준(cGMP)을 준수하지 않았다면 실제 제품에서는 아무런 이상이 발견되지 않더라도 해당 제품을 ‘변질’된 것으로 규정한다. 즉, 공정의 연속성이 단 한순간만 단절되더라도 해당 제품의 가치는 모두 사멸돼버릴 수 있는 것이다. 이는 제품의 ‘변질’이 바이오 산업에서 보다 포괄적으로 해석되는 이유다. 제조에 쓰이는 세포주, 항체 등은 매우 민감한 생명체이기 때문에 항상성이 조금만 훼손되더라도 사멸 또는 변이가 발생해 가치가 즉각적으로 상실될 수도 있다. 이러한 이유로 특히 바이오의약품 제조업체에서는 공정의 연속성을 한순간이라도 단절하는 사태는 필히 방지해야 한다. 현재 한 바이오의약품 제조업체에서 벌어지고 있는 노사갈등이 바이오 산업의 본질적 가치와 전혀 맞지 않는 이유다. 노조법 조항에도 나와있는 것처럼 ‘원료·제품의 변질 또는 부패를 방지하기 위한 작업은 유지돼야 한다’는 기본 철칙을 바탕으로 최소한의 의약품 생산 유지는 지켜내야 한다. 회사는 ’원료·제품의 변질 또는 부패를 방지하기 위한 작업’은 유지돼야 한다는 노조법 조항을 근거로 최소한의 의약품 생산 유지는 할 수 있게 해달라고 법에 호소하고 나섰다. 원료나 제품에 대한 보전작업이 이뤄지지 못한다면 생산되고 있던 바이오의약품은 모두 폐기될 수밖에 없다. 자신이 맡긴 약을 모두 폐기해버린 업체에 다시 의약품 생산을 맡기고 싶은 제약사가 어디 있을까? 자신 또는 가족이 당장 맞아야 하는 약을 노사 갈등 문제로 인해 생산하지 않은 바이오의약품 제조업체에게 어떤 제약사나 소비자가 다시 신뢰를 가질 수 있을까? 그렇기에 바이오 산업의 노사 갈등은 기존 다른 산업 분야와 같은 해법으로 풀 수 없다는 특수성을 명확하게 인식해야 한다. 세포가 배지를 먹고 쑥쑥 커나가듯이 바이오산업 기업 임직원 모두 성장의 과실을 공유하는 상생의 큰 틀 안에서 그 해결책을 찾아야 한다. 이러한 틀을 무시한 채, 기존의 노사 갈등 해법을 도모하는 것은 바이오 산업 생태계에 악영향을 끼치는 결과를 초래할 것이다. 바이오 산업에서 만약 파업이라는 극단적 방식이 채택된다면 어떠한 문제도 해결되지 않고 결국 공멸이라는 파국으로 치달을 수 밖에 없다. 바이오산업 기업에서 가장 중요한 가치인 상생을 유지하고자 한다면 노사 문제를 새로운 시각에서 바라보고 창의적인 해결책을 도모하는 책임있는 자세가 필요해 보인다. 김성필 UNIST 바이오메디컬공학과 교수 <본 칼럼은 2026년 4월 23일 매일경제 “[기고] 생명체에게 파업은 곧 죽음이다”라는 제목으로 실린 것입니다.> 2026-04-23 김성필 47 Innovative Scalable Electrochemical Approach for Transforming Waste Glycerol into Hydrogen and High-Value Chemicals The findings of this research were published online in Joule (IF: 35.4) on March 18, 2026. Abstract Interest in electrochemical glycerol oxidation reactions (GORs) continues to grow as a promising strategy for hydrogen production. By replacing the oxygen evolution reaction (OER), GOR reduces energy consumption while generating hydrogen at the cathode and value-added formate at the anode, offering techno-economic advantages over conventional water electrolysis. However, its practical implementation is still hindered by reliance on precious metal catalysts and performance losses in scaled-up systems. Here, we synthesized a non-precious CuCo oxide (CCO) electrocatalyst at a tens-of-grams scale through co-precipitation and simple surface treatment. When applied to an anion exchange membrane (AEM) electrolyzer, the modified CuCo oxide achieved 110 mA cm−2 at 1.31 Vcell using a 7 cm2 non-precious GOR anode with 96% formate selectivity. The system was further scaled to a 79 cm2 anode, delivering 3.2 A at 1.31 Vcell. This study demonstrates a practical and economically favorable pathway for scalable hydrogen production via glycerol valorization in AEM electrolyzers. A joint research team, led by Professors Ji-Wook Jang, Hankwon Lim, and Hosik Lee from the School of Energy and Chemical Engineering at UNIST, in collaboration with Dr. Juchan Yang from the Energy & Environment Materials Research Division at Korea Institute of Materials Science (KIMS), has announced the development of a high-performance, scalable electrochemical system that transforms waste glycerol—an industrial byproduct of biodiesel production—into hydrogen and value-added chemicals, such as formate. This innovative system replaces the conventional oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in water electrolysis with glycerol oxidation, resulting in reduced energy consumption and enhanced efficiency. Using a copper-cobalt oxide catalyst, the system a current density of 110 mA/cm² at just 1.31 V, with 96% selectivity for formate. The technology was successfully scaled to a 79 cm² electrode, demonstrating its potential for industrial applications. This advancement provides a sustainable, cost-effective pathway for large-scale hydrogen production through glycerol valorization. By simultaneously generating hydrogen and valuable chemicals from waste biomass, the approach promises significant reductions in green hydrogen costs and improved resource efficiency. Additionally, integrating energy and chemical manufacturing processes supports global efforts toward carbon neutrality and a sustainable hydrogen economy. Moreover, its scalability and compatibility with continuous operation suggest promising prospects for industrial deployment and further scale-up to megawatt-level systems. Juchan Yang, Principal Researcher at KIMS, emphasizes, “This study demonstrates the large-scale synthesis of low-cost, non-precious catalysts and their successful integration into a practical electrolyzer system, marking a significant step toward commercial viability.” Professor Ji-Wook Jang of UNIST adds, “Transforming biomass waste like glycerol into high-value chemicals and hydrogen not only accelerates carbon neutrality but also offers strategic advantages in building a sustainable hydrogen economy.” The findings of this research were published online in Joule (IF: 35.4) on March 18, 2026. The study was supported by the National Research Council of Science & Technology (NST), the Korea Institute of Energy Technology Evaluation and Planning (KETEP), the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF), and the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology (KEIT). Core analyzes and computational modeling were conducted using supercomputing resources provided by the Korea Institute of Science and Technology Information (KISTI), with technical support, as well as the synchrotron radiation source at the 6D beamline of the Pohang Accelerator Laboratory. Journal Reference Ki-Yong Yoon, Seon Woo Hwang, Hee Yoon Roh et al. , “Commercial-scale glycerol valorization using surface-modified copper cobalt oxide catalyst in high-capacity anion exchange membrane electrolyzer,” Joule , (2026). 2026-04-23 JooHyeon Heo 45 UNIST and University of Ulsan Launch InnoCORE-Linked Research Internship Program The signing ceremony of MOU between UNIST and the University of Ulsan took place on April 20, 2026. UNIST and the University of Ulsan (U of U) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to jointly operate the InnoCORE-linked Research Internship Program on April 20, 2026. The partnership aims to establish a collaborative research and education framework aligned with Korea's Regional Innovation System & Education (RISE) initiative, combining UNIST's research capabilities with the University of Ulsan's educational infrastructure to cultivate talent responsive to regional industry needs. Under the agreement, the institutions will co-develop and operate research internship programs and curricula in artificial intelligence (AI) and digital transformation (DX), while also promoting global exchange and international collaboration. The program provides undergraduate students with early exposure to research and strengthens pathways to advanced study. It also incorporates international engagement through partnerships with overseas research institutions and visits to major technology exhibitions, including IFA in Germany and CES in the United States. "This initiative brings together our respective strengths to advance both education and research," said President Chong Rae Park of UNIST. "By integrating research internships with academic programs, we aim to cultivate talent equipped with practical capabilities and responsive to industry needs." President Yeon-Cheon Oh of the University of Ulsan, added, "This collaboration will expand early research opportunities for students and contribute to developing talent aligned with regional industry demand." 2026-04-22 JooHyeon Heo 104 New Study Uncovers Shift in Climate Drivers Intensifying Wildfires in Australia The findings of this research were published in Agricultural and Forest Meteorology on April 11, 2026. Abstract Wildfire variability in Southeastern Australia (SEA) has intensified in recent decades, posing increasing risks to ecosystems and agriculture under a changing climate. However, the mechanisms driving the recent amplification of extreme fire weather remain unclear. Using austral-summer data from 1981–2022, we quantify interannual links between the Forest Fire Danger Index (FFDI) and land–atmosphere variables. Fire Weather Days (FWD) are defined as days exceeding an extreme FFDI threshold each fire season and are validated against satellite-based burned area and fire intensity across SEA. We show that recent fire risk in SEA is characterized not by a gradual increase but by a regime shift in extreme fire weather conditions. An early-2000s transition is marked by enhanced interannual variability and an approximately fivefold increase in FWD, linked to increased positive skewness in daily FFDI. Among FFDI components, the drought factor (DF), representing hydrological stress, exhibits the largest increase in extreme occurrences, especially when co-occurring with high temperature (T) and low relative humidity (RH). The contribution of compound DF & RH & T events to total FWD more than doubles between 1981–2001 (P1) and 2002–2022 (P2). Segmented regression further reveals strengthened interannual FWD sensitivity to DF in P2. In P1, variability reflected atmospheric warming and drying, whereas P2 is characterized by intensified land–atmosphere coupling that amplifies hydrological stress and compound extremes. This transition coincides with changes in large-scale circulation, with the Southern Annular Mode (SAM) emerging as the dominant driver of FWD variability in the recent period, while ENSO exerted a stronger influence earlier. Increased FWD variability is also closely linked to interannual maize yield fluctuations across SEA. These findings highlight a hydrologically-driven regime shift in extreme fire weather and underscore the need for integrated climate-fire-agriculture risk assessment. An international team of researchers, affiliated with UNIST, has identified a dramatic transformation in wildfire patterns across Southeastern Australia (SEA). Analyzing data from 1981 to 2022, the research shows that since the early 2000s, the region has experienced a fivefold increase in extreme fire weather days, driven increasingly by the Southern Annular Mode (SAM) rather than the traditionally dominant El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO). This shift highlights new challenges in predicting and managing wildfires under a changing climate. Led by Professor Myong-In Lee from the Department of Civil, Urban, Earth and Environmental Engineering at UNIST, this study was conducted in collaboration with experts from the University of Hawaii and POSTECH. In this study, the team identified a regime shift beginning in the early 2000s, characterized by emphasized interannual variability and a sharp rise in extreme fire weather days. Over the past two decades, wildfire risk volatility has more than doubled. This change is primarily attributed to the strengthening of land-atmosphere coupling, where drought conditions intensify surface heating, creating a feedback loop that fuels more frequent and severe wildfires. beginning in the early 2000s, marked by heightened interannual variability and a sharp rise in extreme fire weather days. Over the past two decades, wildfire risk volatility has more than doubled. This change is primarily driven by strengthened land–atmosphere coupling: drought conditions dry out surface soils, creating a feedback loop that amplifies surface heating and fosters more frequent and severe wildfires. While ENSO has traditionally been the main climate driver influencing Australian wildfires, recent evidence indicates that the SAM’s influence has grown, now serving as the dominant factor regulating wildfire variability. Kiwook Kim, the main author of the study, comments, “Our findings emphasize the need for enhanced monitoring of atmospheric circulation patterns and soil moisture levels. This knowledge is vital for improving fire risk predictions and informing climate adaptation strategies to safeguard communities and ecosystems.” “Understanding how climate factors influence wildfires is more critical than ever,” says Professor Lee. “Recognizing the increasing role of the Southern Annular Mode and the complex land-atmosphere interactions enables us to develop more accurate prediction models and better prepare for future wildfire seasons.” The findings of this research were published in Agricultural and Forest Meteorology on April 11, 2026. This research was supported by the Korea Environment Industry & Technology Institute (KEITI) under the Climate Change R&D Project for New Climate Regime project, funded by the Ministry of Environment (MOE) of Korea. Journal Reference Kiwook Kim, Myong-In Lee, Seungseok Lee, et al. , “Local and remote drivers of increased variability in extreme wildfire conditions in Southeastern Australia,” Agric. For. Meteorol., (2026). 2026-04-22 JooHyeon Heo 97 UNIST Appoints Parent Ambassadors for Social Media Outreach Jaewan Kim (KRISS) and Heeseok Choi (KISTI) have been appointed as the inaugural participants in UNIST’s Parent Ambassador initiative. UNIST has introduced a new initiative aimed at extending the reach of its institutional communications by engaging members of its parent community as ambassadors. On April 17, UNIST appointed the inaugural participants to its SNS Parent Ambassador initiative, inviting two parents to take part in the program. The appointees are Jaewan Kim, father of UNIST graduate Seulgi Kim, and Heeseok Choi, father of current student Seo-Hyun Choi. The appointments were formally presented at their respective institutions—the Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science (KRISS) and the Korea Institute of Science & Technology Information (KISTI)—where both are currently affiliated. Each was also presented with a commemorative UNIST gift box. As part of this initiative, the ambassadors will contribute to extending the visibility of content published through UNIST's official communication channels—including YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook—by engaging their personal and professional networks. Both individuals are active members of Korea's science and technology community. Jaewan Kim serves as Director of the Center for Hyper-Connected Scalable Super-Quantum Computing at KRISS, while Heeseok Choi is a principal researcher at KISTI. UNIST anticipates that their professional networks will support broader engagement with the university's research and academic initiatives. “This initiative reflects our belief that the university's work can reach wider audiences through the engagement of its extended community,” said Dean Young-Bin Park of the Office of Public Relations and International Affairs at UNIST. "We look forward to working with parents as partners in sharing UNIST's research and academic activities." UNIST plans to expand the initiative in the coming months as part of its broader efforts to strengthen institutional engagement. 2026-04-22 JooHyeon Heo 97 Bright Quantum Light Emission Achieved at Room Temperature in 2D Semiconductors The findings of this study have been published in Science Advances on March 13, 2026. A joint research team, led by Professor Yung Doug Suh of UNIST, who also serves as Associate Director of the Center for Multidimensional Carbon Materials within the Institute for Basic Science (IBS) and Professor Kyoung-Duck Park from POSTECH, has succeeded in realizing a high-efficiency quantum light source that emits bright lights even at room temperature. The achievement overcomes a longstanding limitation of two-dimensional semiconductors—atomically thin materials typically about 100,000 times thinner than a human hair—which previously required either cryogenic temperatures or complex electrical gating structures to produce efficient light emission. At the heart of the study are excitons, the light-emitting quasiparticles that form when electrons bind with “holes”—the absence of an electron that behaves like a positive charge—in a semiconductor. In two-dimensional semiconductors, excitons are especially important because they can enable ultrathin and highly efficient optical devices. However, there has been a major problem: at room temperature, excitons tend to spread out too easily, making it difficult to generate bright light from a precise location. Recently, researchers have become increasingly interested in localized excitons—excitons that are trapped in a confined nanoscale region. A useful analogy is a ball rolling on a flat floor versus a ball sitting in a bowl. On a flat surface, the ball moves around freely, but in a small hollow, it remains trapped in one place. Localized excitons behave similarly: once confined, they can emit light more stably and with better control over wavelength, making them attractive candidates for ideal quantum light sources. But room temperature makes this difficult. As thermal energy rises, excitons can escape from the trapping region, just as a ball may bounce out of a shallow bowl. At the same time, excess charges remaining in the material can interact with excitons or drain away their energy, causing the system to lose energy as heat instead of light. For this reason, the light-emission efficiency of localized excitons in two-dimensional semiconductors has typically remained below 1% under ambient conditions. To overcome this challenge, the team designed a 500-nanometer nanohole structure beneath a monolayer of MoS2, a representative two-dimensional semiconductor. This nanohole acts like a nanoscale bowl, naturally funneling excitons toward its center and confining them to a tiny region. According to the researchers’ simulations, about 98% of excitons in the nanohole region were funneled into the center and formed localized exciton states, indicating highly efficient confinement within the nanoscale region. At the same time, the researchers addressed another major source of loss: excess electrons in the material. During the transfer process used to place the MoS2 layer onto the gold substrate, a thin residual water layer forms naturally at the interface. This layer acts as a dielectric barrier that prevents efficient charge transfer, allowing excess electrons to remain in the semiconductor and degrade emission. By applying thermal annealing, the team removed this water layer and enabled electrons to flow from the MoS₂ into the gold substrate. This effectively neutralized the material and greatly suppressed nonradiative loss pathways. As a result, the system produced bright localized exciton emission under ambient conditions, with the photoluminescence quantum yield increasing by about 130 times compared with the pre-annealed state. The researchers report that the quantum yield in the nanohole region increased from 0.076% (basically unusable) to about 10% (clearly visible bright light), far above the typical value for pristine monolayer MoS₂ at room temperature. By using the quantum confinement effect to trap light-emitting excitonic states within an extremely small region, the researchers demonstrated a practical route toward bright and stable quantum emission over large areas. This result is significant because it shows that quantum emitters made from two-dimensional semiconductors can achieve brightness and stability approaching that of quantum dots used in QLED displays, while retaining the additional advantages of atomically thin materials. The work also suggests a path toward even more advanced devices. By making the nanostructures smaller and further optimizing the optical excitation conditions, the researchers believe it may become possible to achieve high-efficiency single-photon emission at room temperature, something that has remained extremely challenging until now. Professor Kyoung-Duck Park said, “The key achievement of this study is that we realized a quantum light source that emits brightly even at room temperature by gathering and confining light-emitting particles into a single nanoscale point. This structure can serve as a foundation for a wide range of future photonic and quantum devices.” The team also demonstrated that the localized exciton emission could be dynamically and reversibly controlled. By applying gigapascal-scale pressure using the tip of an atomic force microscope, they were able to modulate the strain at the nanohole and thereby tune the behavior of the localized excitons. In annealed samples, this led to an approximately 120% increase in localized exciton emission intensity, and the effect disappeared when the pressure was released, showing that the process is fully reversible. Associate Director Yung Doug Suh of IBS said, “An important aspect of this work is that we were able to dramatically improve performance by precisely controlling how light is generated and lost in a two-dimensional semiconductor. This technology could become an important turning point toward future room-temperature single-photon sources.” Another important aspect of the study is its practical scalability. Many previous strategies for realizing efficient localized exciton emission relied on complex electrical device architectures or cryogenic environments, both of which make real-world implementation difficult. In contrast, the present method uses a relatively simple combination of nanostructuring and thermal processing. Because the approach is compatible with established semiconductor wafer-scale fabrication processes, the work opens the door to scalable, integrated quantum light-source technologies for applications, such as quantum communication, quantum computing, and next-generation nano-LEDs. Beyond quantum communication and quantum computing, the researchers say the platform may also be useful for high-efficiency nanoscale light sources, tunable optoelectronic devices, and future nanophotonic technologies. More broadly, the work provides a new design strategy for controlling excitons in low-dimensional materials: by simultaneously confining excitons spatially and neutralizing unwanted charges, it becomes possible to stabilize bright quantum emission even under ordinary room-temperature conditions. The findings of this research were published in Science Advances on March 13, 2026. Yung Doug Suh Professor, Department of Chemistry, UNIST Associate Director, IBS Center for Multidimensional Carbon Materials (CMCM) E: ydougsuh@gmail.com William I. Suh Public Information Officer IBS Public Relations Team T: +82-42-878-8137 E:willisuh@ibs.re.kr Story Source Materials provided by theInstitute of Basic Science. Notes for Editors The online version of the original article can be foundHERE. Journal Reference Taeyoung Moon, Hyeongwoo Lee, Jihae Lee, et al ., “Highly radiative emission of room temperature–localized excitons enabled by charge-neutralized 0D quantum wells in 2D semiconductors,” Sci. Adv. , (2026). DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.ady2186 2026-04-20 JooHyeon Heo 126 [UNISTar Success Stories] UNIST Graduate Selected as Damon Runyon Fellow at Penn [UNISTar Success Stories—Turning Imagination into Reality] ② Dr. Sangin Kim (Department of Biological Sciences) 《Editor’s Note: Transformative ideas often begin with simple yet fundamental questions. At UNIST, those questions are explored through rigorous research and collaboration, leading to advances that extend beyond the laboratory. Through [UNISTar Success Stories—Turning Imagination into Reality], we present alumni contributing to global scientific progress.》 Sangin Kim, Ph.D., a graduate of UNIST, has been awarded a Damon Runyon Postdoctoral Fellowship, one of the most competitive fellowships in cancer research. He is currently a postdoctoral researcher at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania (Penn), working with Professor Roger Greenberg. His research focuses on the intersection of DNA damage response and anti-cancer immunity, an area central to the development of next-generation cancer therapies. This year's cohort includes 13 fellows from institutions such as Harvard University, Stanford University, Cornell University, UC Berkeley, and Penn. Only two fellows, including Kim, earned their doctoral degrees outside the United States, reflecting the program's international scope and selectivity. The Damon Runyon Fellowship provides $300,000 over four years to support early-career scientists pursuing innovative cancer research. The program places particular emphasis on a researcher's ability to define significant scientific questions and pursue them with independence. Its alumni include numerous Nobel and Lasker Award recipients. Kim completed both his undergraduate and doctoral training at UNIST. During his doctoral studies, he investigated the role of DNA replication-associated proteins in maintaining genomic stability, contributing to a deeper understanding of the mechanisms underlying cancer development. His work has been published in leading journals, including Nucleic Acids Research and PNAS. He has been received several honors recognizing his research potential, including the Early-Career Researcher Award from the Genetics Society of Korea and the Young Investor Research Award from the Korean Society for Molecular and Cellular Biology (KSMCB), and was also selected as the recipient of the Asan Foundation Biomedical Science Scholarship in 2021. Continuous scholarship support throughout his academic training enabled him to pursue sustained, in-depth research on a single scientific question. Reflecting on his journey, Dr. Kim said, "It is a privilege to be selected for the Damon Runyon Postdoctoral Fellowship. I see this as recognition of the research foundation I developed at UNIST, and I intend to build on it through continued work." The recognition also carries personal significance. His doctoral advisor, Professor Kyungjae Myung, was also selected as a Damon Runyon Fellow in 1999, establishing a connection across generations of researchers. Kim attributes his development to UNIST's academic environment, including a discussion-based curriculum, an English-language research setting, and a globally connected alumni network. These experiences enabled him to engage effectively in international research contexts early in his career. His current work examines how disruptions in DNA damage response pathways lead to the formation of abnormal double-stranded RNA, which in turn activates immune responses and reveals vulnerabilities in cancer cells. He is also investigating how defects in DNA replication quality control may contribute to rare neurodegenerative diseases. In parallel with his research, Kim contributes to mentoring students while maintaining collaborative ties with UNIST, extending the impact of his training beyond his own work. Looking ahead, he aims to further investigate the biological mechanisms underlying cancer and rare diseases, with a focus on identifying fundamental vulnerabilities that can inform future therapeutic strategies. "Throughout my journey—from undergraduate studies at UNIST to my current postdoctoral research—the most valuable lesson I gained at UNIST was how to think through scientific problems," he said. "I hope to carry that forward and contribute to the next generation of research." 2026-04-17 JooHyeon Heo 333 10 다음 페이지로 이동하기 마지막 페이지로 이동하기