About

Rae Eon Kim

Welcome! I am Rae Eon Kim, a Ph.D. student at POSTECH. Rooted in physical metallurgy, my research develops high-performance heterostructural alloys that go beyond conventional limits by integrating multiple functionalities:

  • High tensile strength for mechanical robustness
  • Mechanical properties in extreme environments, from cryogenic to high temperature
  • High specific strength for lightweight structural applications
  • Resistance to hydrogen embrittlement

My vision is to develop next-generation structural materials that are strong, ductile, and multifunctional through heterostructure engineering.

Selected Publications

  • Dual-gradient structure induced spreadable phase transformation for simultaneously improving strength and ductility
    Acta Materialia · 2024
  • Hierarchical ferrous medium entropy with heterogeneous precipitates embedded in core-shell grain structure for superior mechanical properties
    Acta Materialia · 2024
  • Superior gradient heterostructured alloys fabricated by laser powder bed fusion via annealing and ultrasonic nanocrystal surface modification
    Scripta Materialia · 2023
  • Superior tensile properties and formability synergy of high-entropy alloys through inverse-gradient structures via laser surface treatment
    Scripta Materialia · 2023
  • Mitigating Hydrogen Embrittlement Through Microstructural Shielding: Reverse-Gradient Design in High-Entropy Alloys
    Corrosion Science · 2026

Selected Awards

  • Wonik Next-Generation Engineer Grand Prize
    NAEK · Wonik Foundation · 2026
  • Acta Materialia Student Award
    Acta Materialia, Inc. · 2024
  • Talent Award of Korea (Deputy PM & Minister of Education Award)
    Ministry of Education, Republic of Korea · 2024
  • Next-Generation Engineering Researcher Grand Prize
    Institute for Promotion of Engineering and Science of Korea (IPESK) · 2025
Wonik Next-Generation Engineer Grand Prize (2026)
Wonik Next-Generation Engineer Grand Prize
Talent Award of Korea (2024)
Talent Award of Korea
Acta Materialia Student Award (2024)
Acta Materialia Student Award