Invited 3 scholars including the 'Cherry Award' winner, which is the top award in the solar cell sector
Over 100 students participating in Green Energy Education & Research Center, 1 week education, 6 hours a day
Top 10% on tests dispatched to overseas sites
[June 29, 2010]
1 pm on the 29th, lecture hall of the Yeungnam University College of Sciences. In the campus that is a bit quiet because of summer break, only this place is filled with excitement. The eyes and ears of over 100 students are focused on the podium. That's because Dr. Timothy J. Coutts (70), the 'Cherry Award' winner, which is the highest honor in the solar cell sector, and a fellow of the NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) of the US, which is the world's largest renewable energy research center, is giving a lecture. (photo)
Yeungnam University (president Lee, Hyo-soo) will concentrate on fostering next-generation human resources in the green energy sector during summer break. The University will invite globally prominent scholars in the solar cell sector and offer concentrated educational courses that will point out the A to Zs of solar cells every day for 6 hours from the 28th until the 2nd of the following month.
The guest speakers are Dr. Timothy J. Coutts (photo left), Timothy J. Anderson (59, photo center), and Angus Rockett (52). All three are world renowned scholars who have studied solar cells since the early 1970s.
Dr. Coutts and Professor Anderson are known as the 'godfathers' of the solar cell sector. Both served as chairman of the PVSC (Photovoltaic Specialists Conference), which is the world's most prominent specialist conference related to solar cells.
Meanwhile, Professor Anderson, who is a distinguished professor in chemical engineering at the University of Florida, is also the supervisor of the 'Florida Energy Systems Consortium', that is operated with a 60 billion won annual budget, and he also attended the solar ray conference at the Copenhagen Climate Summit Meeting in December as the representative for the US.
Professor Rockett, who is the vice-dean of the materials engineering department at the University of Illinois, is also a key researcher who has studied solar cells and materials sectors for the past 36 years. He is operating a short-term educational course on the principles of thin film solar cells at the IEEE Solar Cell Specialists Society and US Materials Research Conference. He is also actively conducting research and educational activities by offering short-term educational programs on thin film solar cells and solar cell modeling in China, Mexico, Sweden, Israel and Brazil. Next year, he will be appointed to chair the American Vacuum Society.
The lucky students who will receive the teachings from such prominent scholars are the 100 or so students participating in the Yeungnam University Green Energy Education & Research Project. They are students who are majoring in either materials engineering, physics, mechanical engineering, or chemical engineering, and double-majoring in the green energy major, while being on the 3 track course of the solar cell, hydrogen fuel cell, and energy systems. In addition, 15 employees of companies and research institutes that are interested in the new and renewable energy industry such as Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics, Hyosung, LG Innotek, etc will also receive this education with students of Yeungnam University.
Jeon, Hwa-jun (22, female), who is a senior in Department of Physics and participating in this education with the dream of entering the new renewable energy research sector such as the solar energy, stated, "It's not easy to come out to school by 9 in the morning and attending English lectures until 4 pm during break, but I am thrilled to be able to learn from such world renowned scholars in the field I wish to major in, so I am participating in this course." She stated that, "It was an in-depth education that really hit the nail on the head."
Yeungnam University is planning to conduct a 2 hour test on the last day of the short-term concentrated education, and offer the opportunity for overseas on-site training for solar cell manufacturing processes to those who place in the top 10%.
Meanwhile, Yeungnam University is pursuing the 'Global Frontier 10-3-10' strategy of placing in the world's top 10 in the 3 fusion research areas within 10 years. One of it is the 'GIFT (Green Innovation For Tomorrow)' Plan in the 'green technology' sector. It contains the will to 'become a university that gives a gift to the future of mankind through green technology innovation'. As part of the plan, Yeungnam University is aimed at success for the 'GIFT Plan' by procuring 6.6 billion won in national funding for the green energy sectors of 'metropolitan economic belt green energy Education & Research Center', 'LED-IT fusion Technology research center', etc.
