- Fellow
Biography
Dr. Min-Ha Lee is Principal Researcher at the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology (KITECH) and a Professor at the University of Science and Technology (UST) in South Korea. He earned his PhD in Metallurgical Engineering and has developed a comprehensive expertise that bridges the disciplines of engineering and policy development, underpinned by rigorous analytic assessment. Min-Ha also serves as Fellow at the Stanford Center for Responsible Quantum Technology at Stanford University.
In the realm of policy development, Min-Ha has been a Senior Advisor for the Geopolitics, Technology, and Governance (GTG) program at CISAC within the Freeman Spogli Institute (FSI) at Stanford University. His responsibilities included conducting strategic analyses of vulnerabilities in quantum computing materials supply chains. Between 2020 and 2022, he served as the Executive Director of KITECH’s US branch office, where he was pivotal in fostering economic and technological collaboration between Korean small-medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and US entities, focusing on Critical Raw Materials (CRMs) within the supply chain. A pioneer in his field, Min-Ha has been at the forefront of advocating for comprehensive studies and policies regarding the sustainability and accessibility of CRMs and Rare Metals. His tenure as a Senior Researcher at the Korea Materials and Components Industry Agency (KMAC) within South Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy (MOTIE) in Seoul (2008-2009) saw him overseeing policy planning and administration for CRMs and Rare Metals. This role involved addressing industry and technology issues and managing government-funded R&D projects.
Min-Ha was instrumental in the establishment of the Korea Institute for Rare Metals (KIRAM) at KITECH in 2010, under the auspices of MOTIE, aimed at creating a sustained and multidisciplinary approach to address national strategy issues for CRMs within mainstream industry supply chains in South Korea. His involvement with the US federal government extends to national strategic/security concerns related to CRMs. As an invited faculty member, he played a crucial role at the Critical Materials Institute (CMI) at Ames National Laboratory (US Department of Energy), a US national initiative between 2012 and 2014, specializing in identifying materials critical to military and essential needs for the Defense Logistics Agency Strategic Materials. He contributed to the 2015 National Defense Stockpile Requirements Process for the US Department of Defense. Currently, Min-Ha is an advisory member of the International Round Table on Materials Criticality (since 2017), funded by the EU Commission through EIT Raw Materials, and a Member of the EU-US Trade and Technology Council (since 2022), participating in Working Groups focused on Secure Supply Chains and Promoting SME Access to and Use of Digital Technologies.
In the scientific domain, Dr. Lee’s contributions as Principal Researcher at KITECH include leading international R&D projects as Principal Investigator with several countries, yielding 7 international patents, 34 Korean domestic patents, over 100 international scientific articles, and approximately 150 invited presentations at international conferences. Prior to KITECH, Min-Ha was a Senior Scientist & Research Professor at IFW-Dresden, Germany (2006-2008), where he was a core member in establishing a significant EU Research project funded by the DFG (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft). His experience also includes roles at the International Center for Young Scientists and the Interdisciplinary Material Research at the National Institute of Materials Science in Japan, in 2008.
Since 2015, Min-Ha has been imparting his knowledge as a professor at UST, specializing in Phase Transformation of Aperiodic Materials, Composite Materials, and Thermal Treatment and Solidification for advanced processing, including the materialization of rare metals. His accolades include the KMAC Presidential Award for Excellence (2009), R&D 100 awards (2007), and various scientific achievement awards. Dr. Lee is also a distinguished member of organizing committees for major international conferences such as TMS, MRS, and EuroMat. His dedication and contributions to the field of metallurgical engineering and policy development, particularly in the critical areas of rare metals and CRMs, have established him as thought leader in both academic and policy-making circles. Min-Ha’s work not only demonstrates a deep commitment to advancing scientific knowledge but also to shaping policies that address global challenges in technology and resource sustainability. He has been an RQT Fellow since 2024.