Quantum Energy Research Institute CEO Claims to Create Room-Temperature Superconductor 'LK-99'

Tuesday - January 16 2024, 10:28 UTC - 10 months ago

CEO Seokbae Lee claims to have created room-temperature superconductor, LK-99, at Quantum Energy Research Institute. This material could have a significant impact on various industries due to its ability to operate at normal room temperatures. However, claims are currently under review and skepticism remains.

On January 9, 2024, Seokbae Lee, CEO of Quantum Energy Research Institute, made a highly anticipated appearance at the Quantum Industry Convergence Leaders (QILI) vision declaration ceremony held at Yonsei University in Seoul. Lee, who has been at the center of controversy since July of last year, finally broke his silence and made a bold claim - that his team has successfully created a room-temperature superconductor, dubbed 'LK-99' .

This groundbreaking material, if proven true, could revolutionize the field of superconductors and have a significant impact on various industries such as energy transmission, computing, and transportation. Traditional superconductors require extremely low temperatures to function, making them expensive and impractical for everyday use. However, room temperature superconductors, as the name suggests, can operate at normal room temperatures, making them easier and more cost-effective to implement .

In his statement at the QILI ceremony, Lee mentioned that his team has established a precise theory of superconductors and is currently focusing on commercialization and basic research. He also emphasized the need for objective verification procedures by domestic and foreign experts in accordance with legal procedures.Lee went on to reveal that in addition to LK-99, his team has developed a new material called 'PCPOSOS' by adding sulfur to LK-99 .

He stated that this material has been confirmed to exhibit superconducting characteristics, and that data showing majority of resistances as 0 has been secured through experiments conducted on August 18, 2023. Further validation of these results will be presented by Lee's research partner, Kim Hyun-tak, at an academic conference in March of this year.Lee also shared that the development of LK-99 was a result of 20 years of experiments and adjustments based on the liquid state equation theory of the late Korea University Professor Choi Dong-sik .

However, the controversy surrounding LK-99 erupted when the research results were released on the 'Archive' pre-disclosure site for papers in July of last year. Lee apologized for this confusion and clarified that the paper was uploaded during cross-verification. He also mentioned that the results of the research are currently under review by an academic journal and the Quantum Energy Research Institute .

In December of last year, the Korea Superconducting and Low-Temperature Society's Verification Committee announced that after reproducing the paper on LK-99, no superconducting characteristics were found. This has caused skepticism and raised questions about the validity of Lee's claims. However, Lee stands by his team's research and has stated that they have received all related questions and are currently undergoing review .

The discovery of LK-99 and its potential applications have sparked a renewed interest in the field of superconductors. It has also led to a race among scientists to replicate and improve upon this groundbreaking material. As CEO Lee and his team continue to face scrutiny and push for commercialization, the world eagerly awaits further developments in the field of superconductors.