[Reading Science] "LK-99 Domestic Verification Stalled Due to Material Shortage"

Korean Society of Superconductivity and Cryogenics States
"No Cooperation at All with the Research Institute"
Negative News Continues from Abroad

Verification work by the Korean academic community on the claim of developing a room-temperature and ambient-pressure superconductor (LK-99) by a domestic venture is being delayed due to the inability to obtain materials. While the developer, Quantum Energy Research Institute, remains silent without cooperation, negative verification results are emerging overseas.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Choi Kyung-dal, president of the Korean Society of Superconductivity and Cryogenics, who is verifying the room-temperature superconductivity of LK-99, said in a phone interview with Asia Economy on the morning of the 10th that the demonstration and verification work would take at least 2 to 3 more weeks. First, there has been no cooperation at all between the institute and the society for the verification work. The society requested LK-90 samples from the institute via email at the end of last month, but only received a reply stating, "We can send them 2 to 4 weeks after the peer review for overseas academic journal publication is completed." President Choi said, "We requested the institute to expedite the sample submission for quick verification, but there was no response," adding, "I heard through the media that if we submit a verification plan, they would review it, but there was no official request."

Accordingly, the society is independently conducting verification work through a verification committee chaired by Professor Kim Chang-young of Seoul National University. They plan to reproduce LK-99 according to the manufacturing method described in the institute's paper to confirm superconductivity, but are facing difficulties. The main material, lead sulfate, is not available domestically, so it is being imported from China, which takes time. President Choi said, "We plan to start synthesis after the lead sulfate procured from China arrives in Korea early next week," but added, "The synthesis process alone takes more than 3 to 5 days, and it is still uncertain when the verification work will be completed."

President Choi also urged caution regarding the sensitive reactions in the domestic stock market, such as the emergence of theme stocks, saying, "Since this is an academic issue, please watch carefully until the verification is completed." He pointed out, "On the 31st of last month, a social media (SNS) message from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in the U.S. was interpreted as a message giving 'possibility,' causing stock prices to soar, and on the 9th, a negative SNS from the University of Maryland caused a sharp drop. From an academic perspective, both messages were premature judgments. Due to the nature of the matter, it takes a long time, so a cautious approach is necessary."

President Choi also stated that the society maintains the position announced on the 2nd. According to the paper posted by the institute on the preprint site arXiv on the 22nd of last month, there is insufficient data to consider LK-99 a room-temperature and ambient-pressure superconductor, and additional verification is needed. He argued, "The best way is for the institute to provide raw data for objective cross-verification," but added, "If the paper was written based on accurate data, it cannot be considered a room-temperature superconductor."

When asked if he knew about internal conflicts within the institute, he said, "I have no knowledge as there has been no communication." In this regard, Yonhap News reported on the same day that Korea University is considering investigating the research ethics of Kwon Young-wan, a research professor at Korea University and co-author of the first paper.

The institute did not respond to Asia Economy's question regarding the society's position. However, an institute official said, "We expect to announce an official position at the end of this month or early next month."

Negative verification results are also emerging overseas. The so-called "two major international journals," Nature and Science, published articles on the 4th and 8th (local time), respectively, introducing various verification results and conveying the international scientific community's "seriously skeptical" atmosphere. In particular, Science weighed in with a commentary titled "The short and brilliant life of room-temperature superconductors," effectively leaning toward a negative conclusion.

The U.S. University of Maryland's Center for Materials Theory and Computation (CMTC) also declared via SNS on the 8th and 9th, "LK-99 is not a superconductor. The game is over." CMTC cited verification results of LK-99 superconductivity released by National Taiwan University (NTU), the International Center for Quantum Materials (ICQM) at Peking University in China, and the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) of India as the basis for this statement.

Earlier, the institute posted two papers on the preprint site arXiv on the 22nd of last month, claiming to have developed LK-99, a material exhibiting superconductivity at room temperature and ambient pressure below 127 degrees Celsius, without peer verification. The papers initially received little attention domestically and internationally but have since attracted explosive global interest after being discussed on the U.S. discussion site Reddit starting on the 25th of last month. Superconductors have characteristics such as zero electrical resistance at around minus 200 degrees Celsius, strong diamagnetic effects (Meissner effect), and flux pinning phenomena where the position is fixed after levitation. Currently, these can only be realized at extremely low temperatures around minus 200 degrees Celsius or under ultra-high pressure with existing technology. If usable at room temperature and ambient pressure, it could trigger an energy and materials revolution and is called the Holy Grail of Physics.