Guest Editorial: Electroanalysis and Bioelectroanalysis in South Korea

Abstract

The Republic of Korea, widely called South Korea, started its modern history from the end of World War II. Going through the tragic war between the two Koreas in 1950–1953, South Korea has been growing to be one of the major powers in East Asia and a main figure in world economy. It is leading a variety of manufactures in the world such as cutting-edge electronic goods, ships, automobiles, petrochemicals and steel. Its long-term economic plans are now fuelled by scientific R&D programs, which are generously funded by both the private sectors and the government. They are all about building platforms for core technologies that hold not only scientific novelty but also commercial potential, ranging from biomedicine to next-generation semiconductors and energy storage/conversion. The fruits of the intensive investment over the past decades are already apparent: the volume of scientific publications by South Korean researchers is now progressing faster than in any other industrialized nation except China and India. Electroanalytical chemistry in South Korea has been playing a significant role in establishing the current Korean scientific community and industrial advancement. The electroanalytical chemists of the first generation in Korea were mostly educated abroad about half a century ago and they came back home to lay the foundations of academic and industrial societies. Since then the domestic community of electroanalytical chemistry kept growing, and as passing 1990s the systematic support from the government accelerated high level education as well as advance in fundamental and applied research in this field. Now the higher education system in South Korea is upbringing its own high quality manpower, and some of them are already acting as pivotal figures. In this regard, the topical cluster of articles from South Korea in Electroanalysis delivers a special message to the worldwide electroanalytical community, reminding of where the research in South Korea is. This cluster of articles covers a wide spectrum of research topics in electroanalysis from electrochemical sensors to characterization of energy conversion systems. The authors, who contributed their own invaluable papers, are all talented researchers including new starters as well as mainstays in terms of their research careers. Deeply thanking all of the contributors to this issue, I, on behalf of the Korean electroanalysts, appreciate the Editorial Board members, especially Joe and I-Ming, for their graceful suggestion and care. I believe we will be enjoying the steady steps forward to a better future in the electroanalytical society strongly supported by enthusiastic participation of Korean workers. 1 Taek Dong Chung (Guest Editor)