I’ve been working with sPHENIX since February 2023 as a graduate student at Korea University.

What is the focus of your work on the sPHENIX experiment?

Most of my work has focused on INTT. I started with the ladder response test after the INTT installation in the IR, worked on the migration of the standalone DAQ system to rcdaq, and have been involved in several calibration tasks since then. This year, I had a great opportunity to work with the Cold-QCD group, which allowed me to participate in the first phase of local polarimetry development. I presented the results at the 2024 RHIC/AGS meeting.

Where were you born and what is your educational background before your current position?

I was born in Seoul, South Korea, and spent most of my childhood in Goyang City, near Seoul. Before joining sPHENIX for my PhD, I was involved in a brand-new rare isotope accelerator experiment in South Korea, I developed a drift chamber to diagnose beam trajectories. I moved from one brand-new experiment to another, sPHNEIX! You can easily guess I like brand-new!

What is the title of your Ph.D. or tentative title? Awards or biggest talk highlight?

The title isn’t fixed yet, but I’m interested in measuring transverse single spin asymmetry with either di-jet or heavy flavor.

How did you decide to go into heavy ion or spin research?

My initial motivation came from RIKEN. When I was in my third year as an undergrad, I attended the RIKEN summer school in Japan, where I learned the basics of nuclear physics and detector technologies like scintillators and GEM. That experience sparked my interest in nuclear and high energy physics. After building the drift chamber, I started looking for an experiment for my PhD, and sPHENIX seemed like a great fit due to the variety of activities I could get involved in as a student.

What do you like to do in your spare time?

At BNL, I love traveling to different cities. So far, I’ve visited NYC, Boston, Washington DC, Philadelphia, and Niagara Falls. In Korea, I mostly spend time with my adorable dog. I’ve attached a picture!

Fun fact?

Lately, I’ve been learning how to ride a bike! I’m still a beginner, and my personal goal for next year is to ride from the apartment area to 1008. If you see me on a bike next year, please keep a safe distance… otherwise… X(