Overview

Light is a next generation energy source that will change all fields of future industry including photonics, aerospace, medicine, and new renewable energy. Because of this, the world is competing fiercely to develop cutting-edge technology. Gwangju has leapt forward as an international LED city by nurturing photonics lighting industry since 2000.

Investment Environment and Measure to support

• To nurture attentively the goals to move forward as one of the 5 major international photonics advanced countries by 2010
• To establish the only photonics cluster in Korea combined with the functions of industry, academia, and research
• To develop a co-brand (LUXKO) and host international photonics industry exhibitions and APOC 2006 (Sept. 2006)
• To secure competitiveness equal to the traditional leading industry with the implementation of consistent national financial assistance
• To establish an R&D infrastructure: founding a public research center and building a basic facilities in terms of related industries
• To support technological development: selection of research work in a public offering way (targeted / common task)
• To establish a production base: building commonly usable facilities (including 4 MOCVDs)
• To nurture and attract human resources (nurture technicians with the ability to work in the field and attract good human resources from abroad)
• To create an accumulative complex: Photonics accumulative complexes (lease of land amounting to 55 thousand pyeong(1 pyeong: 3.3 m2) in the first, 60 thousand pyeong in the making) LED valley (93 thousand pyeong)

Infrastructure

• Korea Photonics Technology Institute: establishing sophisticated facilities (clean rooms) and devices, support to test characteristics, reliability and production
• Korea Association for Photonics Industry Development: nurturing and promoting projects including the promotion of photonics in and out of the country, international exchange & cooperation projects, overseas marketing support
• Korea Electronics Telecommunications Research Institute: photonics communication component technology development, FTTH service development test project
• Advanced Photonics Research Institute at Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology: developing and researching source technology related to photonics, nurturing experts

Projects in Progress

• FTTH (Fiber-to-the-Home) building project: from 2005 to 2009 (119.4 billion won)
  • - project to build infrastructures (photonics networks, LAN and device), photonics Internet Field Test-bed N/W building project, basic commercialization support project (contents and service development)

• Cheomdan Industrial Complex Innovative Cluster Project: from 2005 to 2008 (123.9 billion won)
  • - building cluster to become a hub of international production with the LED industry at its center, LED concentration (93 thousand pyeong) and support for business startups, running an LED lighting technological center, industrial and academic cutting-edge campus in Gwangju and a network of industry, academia, research and government

• Photonics Expo 2009: from Sept,. 2009 to October in Kim Daejung Convention Center
  • - Events include exhibitions, conferences, LED design contest and etc.

• Division : Science & Industry Division of the Economy & Industry Bureau
• Contact : +82-62-613-3872