Distinguished Professor Cheol Seong Hwang of SNU Receives Korea’s Top Science and Technology Award in 2025
Honored for Pioneering Research on Future Memory Devices to Overcome the Scaling Limits of Semiconductor Memory and for Nurturing Semiconductor Talent


▲ Professor Cheol Seong Hwang, Distinguished Professor, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Seoul National University

The Ministry of Science and ICT (Minister: Sang-Im Yoo) and the Korean Federation of Science and Technology Societies (President: Tae-Sik Lee) announced that Professor Cheol Seong Hwang, Distinguished Professor at Seoul National University, has been selected as the recipient of the 2025 Korea’s Top Science and Technology Award.

he Korea’s Top Science and Technology Award is the nation’s most prestigious science and technology honor, established in 2003 to recognize scientists and engineers who have made groundbreaking research achievements. The award aims to raise public awareness, promote national pride, and elevate the honor of the country’s scientific community.

This year’s recipient was selected through a three-stage evaluation process—expert review, field-specific evaluation, and integrated assessment—based on candidates identified through an open call, active search efforts, and recommendations collected since late last year. The evaluation considered not only research accomplishments but also contributions to Korea’s economic development and improvements in quality of life. To date, a total of 47 individuals have received the award.

Professor Cheol Seong Hwang, selected as the 2025 award winner, was recognized for his significant contributions to the discovery of new materials and devices beyond traditional memory semiconductors such as DRAM and NAND flash. In particular, he was acknowledged for his pioneering achievements in the field of resistive switching materials and devices, which have greatly advanced Korea's semiconductor industry.

In collaboration with fellow researchers, Professor Hwang directly analyzed nanofilaments in a platinum/titanium dioxide/platinum (Pt/TiO₂/Pt) structure and was the first to identify that the switching mechanism of resistive memory devices is due to the formation and rupture of oxygen-deficient Magnéli phase titanium oxide (TiₙO₂ₙ₋₁) filaments. This groundbreaking research was published in Nature Nanotechnology in 2010 and has since been cited over 2,450 times, ranking among the top five most-cited papers in the field of resistive memory semiconductors.

In addition to his academic achievements, Professor Hwang has published 750 papers in SCI-indexed journals, filed 227 domestic and international patents (142 applications and 85 registrations), and completed 16 technology transfers, contributing significantly to the advancement of the semiconductor industry through sustained academia-industry collaboration. More recently, he has been focusing on the development of neuromorphic semiconductors that mimic the function of the human brain, a field expected to drive sustainable innovation in future semiconductor technologies.

After earning his bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in inorganic materials engineering at Seoul National University, Professor Hwang worked as a senior researcher at Samsung Electronics Semiconductor Research Center. Since 1998, he has served as a professor in SNU’s Department of Materials Science and Engineering, producing 65 master’s and 100 doctoral graduates, thereby playing a key role in cultivating experts in next-generation semiconductor technologies.

The Ministry of Science and ICT presented Professor Hwang with the Presidential Citation and a prize of 300 million KRW at the opening ceremony of the 2025 World Korean Scientists and Engineers Convention, held on July 9 at the Korea Science and Technology Center.


[Reference Materials]
- Title/Journal: “Atomic structure of conducting nanofilaments in TiO₂ resistive switching memory”, Nature Nanotechnology
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nnano.2009.456