Materials engineering is a core discipline that revolutionizes our lives. It studies the properties of various materials, applies them to technology, and leads the development of future industries.
What objects are around you right now? You likely have a variety of items—pencil cases, notebooks, clothes, computers, watches, and more—each made from different materials that are an integral part of our daily lives. Materials are thus closely intertwined with human life, and the Department of Materials Engineering is where this field is studied. The various devices and tools that make our lives more convenient and comfortable are all the result of maximizing the properties of diverse materials. In this way, the development of materials has progressed hand in hand with the advancement of human civilization, and its importance continues to grow day by day in modern society.
In the 20th century, departments specializing in metallurgical engineering, inorganic materials engineering, and textile and polymer engineering merged to form the Department of Materials Science and Engineering in the 21st century, which covers the comprehensive field of materials science, including advanced materials. While most universities list this department as the “Department of Advanced Materials Engineering,” the difference lies only in the name; all cover similar academic disciplines within the same field. The official name of the department is Materials Science & Engineering, combining both science and engineering. In this department, students study the properties of various materials and explore ways to apply them to real-life situations.
The three-year curriculum covers a wide range of disciplines. As a result, the depth of knowledge in specific fields may be limited, which is why about half of the undergraduates go on to graduate school. Among the department’s required major courses, Physical Chemistry serves as the foundation of materials engineering, covering topics such as Gibbs free energy and phase equilibrium. Gibbs free energy is an indicator of whether a reaction can proceed under conditions of constant pressure and temperature, while phase equilibrium is a general diagram showing which state—gas, liquid, or solid—a substance assumes at a specific pressure and temperature. In Introduction to Mechanics, which is studied alongside Physical Chemistry, students learn the theoretical conditions necessary for the stable design of structures such as bridge piers and cables. For example, when constructing a suspension bridge, if the average wind speed is given, this knowledge enables the calculation of the required cable length and the bridge’s weight to withstand the wind. In this context, since the materials used for the bridge can vary, by determining the unique properties of each material—such as the coefficient of thermal expansion and elastic constants—from the provided appendix, one can calculate how much the bridge will deform due to temperature or external pressure. While students learn the mechanics of such large structures, they also study microscopic phenomena such as the movement of electrons within semiconductors; this is the subject of modern physics. By introducing the concept of the electron’s wave function, denoted by Ψ, we determine the electron’s position in space and time and study the electron’s potential path through this function. Using these concepts, we analyze the movement of electrons within semiconductors and learn theories for increasing their efficiency.
The scope of study in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering is extremely broad. Starting with an understanding of the basic properties of materials, we explore methods for developing and applying new materials based on this foundation. For example, new materials such as carbon nanotubes have high potential for application in various fields due to their unique strength and electrical properties. Additionally, self-healing materials and shape-memory alloys—collectively known as “smart materials”—possess the ability to spontaneously deform or repair damage under specific conditions, and are expected to play a crucial role in future innovative technologies.
Within the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, students study various fields through a range of elective courses; the inorganic semiconductor field is particularly popular. Within the semiconductor field, there are inorganic and organic semiconductors; since the 2000s, the inorganic semiconductor sector has traditionally been dominant. In this field, students research semiconductors used in electronic devices and learn methods to increase their efficiency. Approximately 77% of graduate students who passed through this lab have obtained their PhDs and joined electronics companies, and the Department of Materials Science and Engineering’s lab publishes the highest number of papers in Korea every year.
In the 21st century, trends change rapidly every year; specific fields may enjoy explosive popularity only to be abandoned, while others, previously little-known, suddenly emerge as core areas. Consequently, even undergraduate students often struggle to decide which major to pursue. If we were to select fields that have recently surged in prominence, they would be biomaterials and organic semiconductors. In the field of biomaterials, students learn about everything from biomedical materials such as artificial joints and implants to functional biotechnologies responsible for detecting and eliminating cancer cells within the body. As human life expectancy increases, so does the demand for these materials, making it a field with excellent prospects. The organic semiconductor sector is used across the entire spectrum of displays, from AMOLED—which currently powers liquid crystal displays—to other applications. Furthermore, since future devices are also focusing on enhancing clarity by utilizing organic light-emitting materials for liquid crystal displays, many graduate students are pursuing studies in this area.
As the times are changing rapidly, the Department of Materials Science and Engineering is expanding the range of elective courses to align with new trends and adapt to these changes. I believe the ability to respond flexibly to these changes and explore diverse fields is a unique appeal of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering. Students in the department are taking on new challenges within a constantly evolving technological environment, pushing the boundaries of materials science and engineering. In this way, the Department of Materials Science and Engineering plays a crucial role in driving future technological innovation, and students have the opportunity to continuously learn and conduct research in step with these changes.
