Ultrahigh density arrays of conducting polymer nanorods have been fabricated through a joint research project by Professors Jin Kon Kim and Su-Moon Park of Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), Dr. Jae-Woong Yu of Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), and Professor Thomas P. Russell of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, U.S.A., as reported in Nano Letters, vol. 8, 2315-2320 (2008). Nanoporous templates, for instance, track-etched polymer membrane and anodized aluminum oxide (AAO) membrane, have been widely used to prepare conducting polymer nanotubes, nano..

Ultra-fast flash light revealing mystery of atoms, into the world of attoseconds (10-18 second) Beyond the femtosecond (10-15 second) barrierFerroelectric RAM (FeRAM) is a type of non-volatile computer memory, similar to dynamic random access memory (DRAM) which can be found in majority of our computers. FeRAM uses a ferroelectric layer to achieve non-volatility and offers a number of advantages from lower power usage to faster writing speeds.Ferroelectrics such as PbTiO3 have usually two stable oppositely-polarized states without external electric fields, and the negatively-polarized state ca..

Practical recombinant hybrid mussel bioadhesiveWhat man-made good exists that provides us both life’s necessity and luxury? A popular seafood cuisine, mussels are enjoyed all around the world. They can be smoked, boiled, or steamed to be served alone or as an ingredient of a larger dish. It can also produce beautiful pearls and jewelry. Now scientists have discovered another use for this nature’s gift. Professor Hyung Joon Cha and his team at the Department of Chemical Engineering have developed a novel type of practical recombinant hybrid bioadhesive material that originates from ..

Direct printing of functional electronic materials may provide a promising route to low-cost fabrication of integrated circuits. From this point of view, ink-jet printing has received special attention as a direct patterning technique for the cost-effective fabrication of organic electronic devices such as organic thin-film transistors (OTFTs) (Figure 1) and organic photovoltaic cells. Professor Kilwon Cho and Ms. Jung Ah Lim of the Department of Chemical Engineering have succeeded in fabricating high-performance OTFTs by inkjet printing of organic semiconductor. This result entitled “Se..

30-nano class Gallium Arsenide (GaAs) nano-transistor: comparative advantages in its performanceEasy manufacturing process: less than half the cost of commercializationIt is possible to receive and enjoy various multimedia contents such as music, movies, and other data, at speeds of several tens of Mbps using high-speed internet widely available in households. Studies on the improvement of communication speeds have been continuously conducted over the recent years.Professor Yoon-Ha Jeong and research team have successfully succeeded in developing 35-nano GaAs nano-transistors (metamorphic HEMT..

Nobel Laureate conferred first POSTECH Honorary DoctorateDr. Roderick MacKinnonPOSTECH, in celebrating 20th Anniversary on December, awarded the first honorary doctorate to Dr. Roderick MacKinnon of the Rockefeller University. Dr. MacKinnon received a Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2003 for his work on the structure and operation of ion channels. He is currently the head of Laboratory of Molecular Neurobiology and Biophysics which studies the structure and function of ion channels and associated regulatory proteins. International Affairs Office (IAO): First, congratulations on your honorary docto..

Many clinically important drugs are natural products produced by bacteria and fungi. In particular, polyketide antibiotics have been found to be an extremely rich source of biologically active compounds with a broad range of pharmaceutical activities. Aromatic nitro groups are relatively rare functional groups in natural products including polyketide antibiotics but are found in diverse types of important antibiotics, such as chloramphenicol, pyrrolnitrin, aureothin, azomycin, and rufomycin. Surprisingly, the biosynthesis of aromatic nitro groups is poorly understood. To date, only two enzymes..

The invention of the scanning tunnel microscope (STM) opened the door to nanoworld, enabling humankind to actually touch and feel the individual atoms at the surface of a material. It has inspired a series of inventions such as the atomic force microscope (AFM), the lateral force microscope (LFM), the magnetic force microscope (MFM), etc. Recently, the scanning probe microscope (SPM), which encompasses all these inventions, has evolved into the millipede technology which has a potential to make competing data storage technologies obsolete. A common denominator of these exciting developments is..

Improvements in performance and reductions in cost of silicon-based nonvolatile memories, such as flash random access memory (flash-RAM), have rendered floppy discs and many other forms of portable storage obsolete. But for many uses that require data to be written only once, such as archiving and security applications, their cost effectiveness is limited. So-called write-onceread- many (WORM) memories made from low-cost polymer materials could provide a solution. The devices, developed by Professors Moonhor Ree, Ohyun Kim, Su-Moon Park and their research teams, are based on hyperbranched copp..

As technology continues to get smaller, and as memory needs become more demanding, the microelectronics industry requires devices that are more cost-efficient and lightweight. And, while organic memory materials have shown some promise on improvement in performance and reductions in cost, they still lack some of the essential qualities, such as durable performance even in a harsh condition, needed for application in a wide variety of fields. So-called Non-Volatile Memories (NVM) from thermally and dimensionally stable polymer materials could provide a solution.The devices, developed by Profess..