There are a myriad of materials to research and develop in the field of materials science. The materials developed in AMSE are applied in semiconductors, displays, and AI technologies, enabling the production, storage, and transmission of energy. Furthermore, we contribute to various fields, such as the pharmaceutical and automobile industries, which are major industries in Korea, by developing metallic materials and biomaterials.

The term "new materials" refers to "new (advanced) substances." Although advanced materials science and engineering mainly deal with everyday commodities, the ultimate objective is to explore and develop unique materials holding novel properties and functions. We believe creating brand new industries on novel materials will contribute to the scientific community's advancement.

Without a doubt, the development of materials technology has contributed considerably to the improvement of human quality of life. For instance, the recent emergence of well-known silicon semiconductors has had a significant impact on the development of smartphones and IoT devices, as well as the miniaturization and commercialization of computers. Consequently, our daily life has been simplified thanks to these advanced materials.  Human advancement will continue making progress as new materials such as nanomaterials and convergence materials are in active development.

What we do at AMSE is to study and develop brand-new materials that can complement or replace conventional materials. Through developing new materials, we are committed to making a brighter tomorrow and a more sustainable, healthier future.

What we do

Materials engineering requires creativity in processing various tasks. The typical jobs that researchers of AMSE work on are classified into the following three categories.

• First Development of materials with new and outstanding physical properties. In particular, we develop novel semiconductors and insulators for artificial intelligence (AI) devices. Additionally, there are numerous novel materials such as semiconductors which are either transparent or flexible, materials that reshape depending on voltage, self-assembly and self-healing materials, and materials for energy production and storage, and so on.

• Second Improvement of the materials property and fabrication process. We converge multiple materials in order to improve the performance of existing materials. For example, conventional aluminum can be developed into lightweight yet harder metals through alloy and heat treatment. Also, we process thin film surfaces or manufacture semiconductors using the same method as plasma.

• Third Exploration on the material characteristics and their basic principles. In order to develop new materials, the researcher should master the properties of the existing materials. Besides, it is necessary to fully grasp the principles in which how the material properties feature on devices. By doing so, researchers may play a pivotal role in researching and developing materials holding whole-new properties.

  Another research area we cover is the electronic/ microstructure of materials. Since material properties vary under the electronic structure and microstructures of materials, it is essential to analyze the structure using various equipment.
  
  Furthermore, understanding the relationship between material properties through various computer simulations, machine learning, and AI technologies is another significant duty of the AMSE.

Educational Objectives