Kim Dae-sik, Distinguished Professor at UNIST, Receives Germany's 'Humboldt Research Award'

Recognized for 30 Years of Contributions to Nano-Optics

61 Nobel Laureates Among Humboldt-Supported Scholars

Professor Kim Dae-sik, Distinguished Professor of Physics at UNIST (President Yong-Hoon Lee), has been selected as the recipient of the Humboldt Research Award.

Professor Kim Dae-sik, recipient of the Humboldt Research Award.

The Humboldt Research Award is given annually by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation in Germany to researchers who have achieved world-class research accomplishments in the fields of humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, and engineering. Among the scholars supported by the Humboldt Foundation, 61 have been awarded the Nobel Prize.

The Humboldt Foundation recognized Professor Kim's contributions to the field of nano-optics over the past 30 years. Additionally, the foundation noted that Professor Kim has trained many female scientists, including Dr. Min-A Seo of KIST, Professor Young-Mi Park of Incheon National University, and Dr. Jin-Eun Kim of Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology.

During his doctoral studies, Professor Kim was the first in the world to measure 'femtosecond Raman scattering,' observable in the femtosecond (one quadrillionth of a second) range.

Over the past 15 years, he has researched terahertz wave nano-optics, combining plasmonics?which involves interactions between electrons in metals and light?with polymer nanotechnology to develop flexible wafer-sized nanogaps controllable at the atomic level.

Known as an eccentric physicist, Professor Kim's interests have extended beyond physics research. He has led the anti-circumcision movement in South Korea, which had rapidly increased, and published several books on the subject. For these efforts, he received an international human rights award from the International Circumcision Education Center, a non-governmental organization under the United Nations.

Professor Kim said, “I am very pleased that receiving the Humboldt Research Award feels like recognition of my 30 years as a researcher,” and added, “I will continue to devote myself to various studies for the advancement of the nano-optics field.”

The Humboldt Foundation awards the Humboldt Research Award to up to 100 recipients annually. Awardees receive a total prize of 60,000 euros and have the opportunity to stay in Germany for six months to one year to conduct research in their fields of interest.

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