Seonju Park

Project 1: Azole-based Undercut Inhibitor for Copper Thin-Film

• Designed and synthesised azole-based corrosion inhibitors to suppress over-etching and undercut in copper thin-film etchant formulations
• Conducted patent and literature screening to identify key reactants and analyse reaction mechanisms, enhancing understanding of reaction dynamics
• Established analytical QC protocols and coordinated external testing laboratories, ensuring formulation reproducibility for reliable results
• Collaborated with the host institution on process-integration factors including spray-nozzle design, residue control, yield, and cost etc.

Project 2: Continuous-Flow Reactor Design for Petrochemical Byproduct Valorisation

• Contributed to lab-scale continuous-flow reactor design, facilitating industrial scale-up of batch chemistry processes
• Evaluated key scale-up parameters including residence time, pressure, and temperature uniformity

Project 3: Ru-based Catalyst Development for Toluene Hydrogenation

• Investigated the effect of pH on Ru precursor stability and reductant reducing power, elucidating the chemistry governing nanoparticle synthesis
• Identified the optimal synthesis condition and benchmarked catalytic performance against commercial catalysts

Other Contributions

• Supported international student colleagues with daily communication and presentation material preparation

Technical Skills: GC-MS, TPD, BET, XRD, XPS

Project 1: Plasmonic-Superparamagnetic Nanomaterials for Dynamic Optical Control

Published in Nature Communications (Aug 2025)

• Synthesised anisotropic gold nanoparticles (AuNRs, AuNBPs, AuNSs, AuNTs, Chiral-AuNTs) using diverse synthetic routes and surface ligands
• Engineered Au/FeOOH/SiO₂ core–shell nanostructures, achieving thermal stability and superparamagnetic functionality through controlled FeOOH-to-FeₓOᵧ reduction
• Investigated optical responses under linear/helical magnetic fields, demonstrating selective excitation of T-LSPR and L-LSPR modes via incident light polarisation and validating particle alignment through CD spectroscopy

Project 2: Photo-Responsive Nanoparticle Films for Light-Driven Shape Morphing

Master's Thesis: "DNA-Linked Nanoparticle Films for Shape Morphing by Light Stimulation"

• Fabricated multilayered DNA-AuNP thin films via layer-by-layer (LbL) self-assembly
• Developed free-standing nanocomposite films using 532 nm laser photopatterning (200 μm × 50 μm)
• Achieved millisecond-scale (~67 ms) reversible photo-induced deformation by introducing DNA ligase and hairpin DNA, enabling dynamic shape control via localised laser stimulation