[Deep Tech] Why HBM Should Be Viewable at Science Museums

National Gwacheon Science Museum's "Foundation of Modern Electronic Civilization, Semiconductors" Exhibition Hall
Spotlight on Lee Byung-chul and Kang Dae-won, Pioneers of Korea's Semiconductor Industry
Regret Over Absence of High Bandwidth Memory (HBM) Display Due to Budget Constraints

Recently, a notable exhibition appeared at the National Gwacheon Science Museum's 'Future Imagination SF Hall.' It is the exhibition room titled 'The Foundation of Modern Electronic Civilization, Semiconductors,' designed to showcase the history, structure, and future direction of semiconductors, which are the cornerstone of Korea's advanced industries.

Having visited this exhibition room in person, it was clear that it differed from typical science museum exhibits. It presented the origins, present, and future of semiconductors through detailed explanations and meticulously planned displays. Son Seok-jung, head of advanced technology at the Gwacheon Science Museum, explained, "This exhibition hall is designed with the target audience of middle school students and above in mind."

This means it was planned as a stepping stone to guide students toward semiconductor research. To this end, the exhibition was organized with a consistent storyline aimed at allowing visitors to experience the excellence of Korea's semiconductor technology, understand the principles and manufacturing processes of semiconductors, and sense their future.

At the entrance of the 'Foundation of Modern Electronic Civilization, Semiconductors' exhibition hall at Gwacheon Science Museum, a statement by Lee Byung-chul, the former chairman of Samsung who made a reckless level of investment in the semiconductor industry, is displayed. Photo by Baek Jong-min, Tech Specialist

Upon entering the exhibition room, a photo and statement of a prominent figure immediately caught the eye at the entrance. It was Lee Byung-chul, the late founder of Samsung Group, who boldly decided to invest in semiconductors dominated by the United States and Japan.

"There are many ways to make money besides semiconductors. Why endure such hardship and effort? Because it is a national project and the cornerstone of future industries."

Another 'star' of this exhibition is the late Dr. Kang Dae-won. It is no exaggeration to say that the CPU (Central Processing Unit), GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), and memory semiconductors we use today were born because of the 'MOSFET' developed by Dr. Kang. The exhibit about Dr. Kang included the description, 'A new transistor invented by a Korean, opening a new era in the global semiconductor industry.'

While there was also an explanation about William Shockley, who first developed the transistor semiconductor, the presence of two Koreans, Lee Byung-chul and Kang Dae-won, stood out to Korean visitors. The exhibition planner’s intention to lead even a single student toward semiconductor research was evident by highlighting that the entrepreneur who invested boldly and the researcher who led semiconductor innovation were both Korean.

An exhibit introducing the late Dr. Kang Dae-won, who developed the MOSFET. Photo by Baek Jong-min, Tech Specialist

The exhibits also showed clear signs of careful effort. The display explaining the OHT (Overhead Hoist Transport), a specific piece of equipment in semiconductor production lines used for wafer transport, and the exhibits illustrating how semiconductors perform calculations, clearly reflected the exhibition’s goal of nurturing successors to Lee Byung-chul and Kang Dae-won.

The Gwacheon Science Museum did not stop at installing hardware. Since the exhibits are about semiconductors, they also secured the operating system (OS) to support them. Guides were prepared to explain the exhibition hall over about an hour. This was not an exhibition to be glanced at casually. With the guides’ explanations added, the semiconductor exhibition hall took on a perfect form.

A model of the OHT wafer transfer equipment is installed. It felt as if I had entered a semiconductor production line. Photo by Baek Jong-min, Tech Specialist

Han Hyeong-ju, director of the Gwacheon Science Museum, explained, "The museum’s annual exhibition budget is about 4 billion KRW, and 900 million KRW was invested in this exhibition alone." While there are many exhibitions explaining the national industry of semiconductors, the combination of investment and determination gave birth to a 'luxury' exhibition hall that broke away from conventional frameworks.

After spending about an hour touring the exhibition, there was a lingering regret. Among the exhibits, the current 'rock star' of Korea’s semiconductor industry, High Bandwidth Memory (HBM), was missing. Nvidia’s latest GPUs, which create artificial intelligence (AI), cannot be made without HBM. Although Korea’s SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics lead this market, visitors cannot see the actual products.

Visitors can see and hear explanations about the HBM semiconductor structure in this exhibition hall, but they cannot see the actual object. Photo by Baek Jong-min, Tech Specialist

The director said, "Due to tight budgets, we could not secure HBM." The price of HBM reaches tens of millions of KRW. The museum stated that cooperation from companies is necessary. They need companies willing to join efforts to nurture the next Lee Byung-chul and Kang Dae-won. Seeing is believing.