Pukyong National University Student Wins Grand Prize at 2024 X-corps+ Festival

‘UnibuGyeong’ Team... Research on Development of Near-Infrared Detectors Based on Organic Semiconductors

The ‘UniPukyong’ team from the Practical Problem Research Group at Pukyong National University (Director Younghwan Park) recently won the grand prize at the ‘2024 X-corps+ Festival’ held at the Millennium Memorial Hall of Chung-Ang University Seoul Campus.

Jung Minju, the representative student of the Unibukyeong team at National Pukyong University (right), is receiving an award and posing for a commemorative photo. Photo by National Pukyong University

Hosted by the Ministry of Science and ICT and organized by the National Research Foundation of Korea and the Xcore Plus Council, this competition featured 36 teams from 9 universities nationwide, including Pukyong National University, Pusan National University, Mokpo National University, Kunsan National University, Seoul National University, Chung-Ang University, Sookmyung Women’s University, Inha University, and Hanyang University.

The UniPukyong team from Pukyong National University’s Practical Problem Research Group (advised by Professor Eunkwang Lee), led by junior student Minju Jeong, along with students Changmin Lee, Gahyun Seok, Hyewon Lee, and Bongseok Kim, jointly conducted research with Buhyun Moon, head of Unis, a semiconductor process chemical company, on ‘Development of Organic-based NIR (Near-Infrared) Photodetectors for Solution Processes.’ They presented their research results and were recognized as the most outstanding among the participating teams, receiving the grand prize awarded by the Minister of Science and ICT.

Their research centers on biosignal detection technology using high-sensitivity near-infrared detectors. They fabricated a solution-processable NIR detector based on organic semiconductors and demonstrated excellent performance capable of reliably monitoring biosignals such as heart rate. Notably, this detector was evaluated for its potential to develop next-generation healthcare devices that mimic human body functions, based on its fast response speed and stable long-term operation characteristics.

Along with the grand prize, the Practical Problem Research Group at Pukyong National University achieved remarkable results with all four participating teams winning awards: the Pure Team (majoring in Industrial Chemistry and Polymer Engineering, advised by Professor Minyoung Son), the VanGogh Team (majoring in Industrial Management Engineering, advised by Professor Seongcheol Choi), and the BaekgyeongLOVER Team (majoring in Information and Communication Engineering, advised by Professor Sangseok Yoon) all received the excellence award.

This event was a future-leading talent development research achievement competition where students from the Practical Problem Research Group, supported by the Ministry of Science and ICT, the National Research Foundation of Korea, and the Xcore Plus Council’s on-site linked future talent development support project, competed by conducting practical problem-solving research in collaboration with industry experts.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.