South Korea, a global leader in memory semiconductors, is facing a critical challenge as its top scientific minds are being lured away by China's ambitious research and development (R&D) initiatives. In a concerning trend highlighting South Korea's apparent lack of strategy and will to retain its talent, two of the nation's esteemed "National Scientists" have recently accepted positions at Chinese universities. These scholars are world-renowned figures in cutting-edge fields like semiconductors, batteries, and quantum technology – areas at the forefront of global competition. China, locked in a fierce technological rivalry with the United States, is aggressively recruiting such international experts to accelerate its R&D capabilities.
Industry and academic sources revealed on April 23rd that Lee Young-hee, a HCR Distinguished Professor at Sungkyunkwan University and a global authority on carbon nanotubes (CNTs) – a promising material for next-generation semiconductors and batteries – has been appointed to Hubei University of Technology in China. There, she will lead a semiconductor and quantum research institute. Professor Lee, who previously headed the Center for Nanostructured Physics at the Institute for Basic Science (IBS), opted for the move to China after failing to secure a stable research position in South Korea following her retirement.
Prior to this, in the previous year, renowned theoretical physicist Lee Ki-myung, former Vice President of the Korea Institute for Advanced Study (KIAS), joined the Beijing Institute of Mathematical Sciences and Applications (BIMSA) as a professor after his retirement. Both Professor Lee Young-hee (awarded in 2005) and Professor Lee Ki-myung (awarded in 2006) were among the first recipients of the "National Scientist" title by the Ministry of Education and the Korea Research Foundation. Despite their prestigious recognition, they encountered difficulties finding suitable positions within South Korea. Conversely, Chinese universities, backed by provincial governments, are actively headhunting leading international science and engineering scholars to spearhead their "R&D surge."
Professor Lee Young-hee's research group at IBS, which she led since 2012, achieved significant breakthroughs in CNTs, graphene, water splitting catalysts, and 2D structured semiconductor research. Notably, she consistently ranked among the top 1% of most cited researchers globally since 2018. However, with her mandatory retirement at the end of 2023, the IBS research center was dissolved. IBS regulations stipulate that a center director must be a full-time faculty member at a domestic university, leading to the termination of the research center upon the director's retirement. The approximately 20 researchers under her dispersed to various universities and research institutions both domestically and internationally. Subsequently, Professor Lee continued her research as a non-tenured 석좌교수 (Seokjwa Professor, a distinguished chair professor) at Sungkyunkwan University, but her contract is set to expire in August.
It has been reported that Professor Lee attempted to find research avenues within South Korea, including submitting research proposals to the Ministry of Science and ICT, but these efforts were unsuccessful. Professor Lee declined to comment on inquiries from the JoongAng Ilbo.
Following the recruitment of Professor Lee, Hubei University of Technology in Wuhan established the Low-Dimensional Quantum Materials (LQM) Research Institute, spanning 16,000 square meters (approximately 4,850 pyeong). The university is actively recruiting researchers, boasting "Professor Lee Young-hee's world-class team, cutting-edge research equipment, an annual salary of 260,000 yuan (approximately 50 million KRW) plus separate living and start-up expenses." The research areas focus on 2D semiconductors and solar cells.
China's fervent pursuit of R&D, exemplified by establishing research institutes to attract top Korean scientists, is not a recent phenomenon. In 2021, the U.S. Congressional Research Service (CRS) analyzed China's 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025), noting that "while most countries control the outflow of applied technology, China has prioritized attracting basic science talent from overseas."
In January, a research paper by Chinese scientists detailing an algorithm that purportedly increased the speed of Nvidia's older-generation graphics processing units (GPUs) by 800 times garnered significant attention. Theoretically, this suggested the potential to utilize gaming GPUs for complex aerospace and defense applications. What further surprised the academic community was that this breakthrough originated from the nascent Shenzhen MSU-BIT University.
Shenzhen MSU-BIT University, established in 2017 in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, is the first Sino-Russian cooperative university, founded by Moscow State University and Beijing Institute of Technology. Moscow State University professors deliver lectures, and students learn Russian alongside their major studies. The university benefits from generous scholarships funded by the Shenzhen government and offers faculty salaries 2-3 times the average in China. Professor Kim Jeong-geun, a Moscow State University alumnus and faculty member at MSU-BIT, told JoongAng Ilbo that this represents "a method for China to rapidly absorb Russia's excellent basic science education."
Over the past decade, Shenzhen, often dubbed "China's Silicon Valley," has aggressively attracted branch campuses and research institutes from prestigious institutions, including the Chinese University of Hong Kong (Shenzhen) (2014), Harbin Institute of Technology (Shenzhen) (2016), Sun Yat-sen University (Shenzhen) (2020), Tsinghua-UC Berkeley Shenzhen Institute (2014), and the Georgia Tech Tianjin University Shenzhen Institute (2020). Graduates from these institutions often find employment at companies like Huawei.
When the Trump administration restricted the export of Nvidia's lower-end H20 GPUs to China on April 15th, it was Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang who expressed concern. This was due to the growing threat posed by Chinese semiconductor companies like Huawei and Cambricon. Despite U.S. efforts to block access to advanced GPUs and equipment, China's vast pool of engineering talent is making strides in design, materials, and algorithm innovation, circumventing these restrictions.
The aggressive R&D push in China is even posing a threat to South Korea's dominance in memory semiconductors. Last month, Chinese state media reported that Yangtze Memory Technologies Co., Ltd. (YMTC)'s NAND flash bonding technology was being used by Samsung Electronics, sparking considerable discussion.
However, industry and academic circles in South Korea expressed little surprise. A researcher at a domestic memory company stated, "YMTC was the first in the memory industry to apply bonding technology to mass production. With an enormous number of PhD-level employees, their R&D speed is formidable." An engineering professor at Seoul National University, requesting anonymity, commented, "Chinese companies employ a 'human wave tactics R&D' approach, where if one researcher collapses, the next one continues the work. It's an impossible situation to compete against."
Recently, discussions among South Korean engineering professors often revolve around "Chinese recruitment offers." Professors specializing in electrical and electronics engineering, materials science, and design, particularly those holding semiconductor-related patents, are receiving numerous lucrative offers from Chinese universities.
An engineering professor in Seoul told JoongAng Ilbo, "I was surprised to receive package-deal offers like a travel agency brochure, specifying the annual salary and research funding for universities in certain provinces, even detailing how much they would offer if I brought my entire lab. As I am currently involved in national research projects, I ceased further communication, but the enticing research environment was certainly appealing."
South Korea's semiconductor talent development policy largely focuses on increasing the number of graduates from undergraduate contract-based departments. However, a KAIST professor teaching in a semiconductor contract department stated, "Training semiconductor talent at the undergraduate level is nonsensical. Four years of undergraduate studies is barely enough to solidify basic mathematics and engineering skills, and with limited full-time professor positions in contract departments, it's difficult to create a high-quality curriculum." Lee Hee-deok, a professor at Chungnam National University, emphasized the need to "expand semiconductor research personnel in master's programs to provide practical assistance to the industry."
The exodus of top South Korean scientists to China underscores a critical need for South Korea to reassess its strategies for retaining and nurturing its high-caliber talent in strategically important technological domains. Without a concerted effort to provide competitive research environments, funding, and recognition, South Korea risks further erosion of its intellectual capital, potentially jeopardizing its future competitiveness in the global technology landscape.
[Copyright (c) Global Economic Times. All Rights Reserved.]
