In 1981, the Institute of Materials Science was founded at National Sun Yat-Sen University (NSYSU), Kaohsiung. Following the demands of professional personnel domestically and internationally, the Department of Materials and Optoelectronic Engineering was established in 2003. It was the first department comprising both materials and optoelectronic fields in Taiwan. In 2008, the original Institute of Materials Science and the Department of Materials and Optoelectronic Engineering were merged and Department of Materials and Optoelectronic Science (MOES) was created. Currently, there are 20 professors, associate professors and assistant professors in MOES. More than one hundred graduate students and about 200 undergraduate students are enrolled in MOES. Also, four staff technicians along with four technicians sponsored by the Precision Instrument Center, Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST), are dedicated exclusively to the operation and maintenance of MOES.

      The fundamental courses are designed to help the undergraduate students understand both materials science and optoelectronics physics. Moreover, the undergraduate students have the opportunities to choose a variety of professional courses to build their own skills and knowledge. The juniors and seniors can join the laboratories organized by different professors to acquire the abilities and expertise needed in professional life. Additionally, NSYSU provides a five-year combined Bachelor-Master program for outstanding students.

MOES is set up uniquely in that all laboratories and research facilities are managed by and open to all the professors and graduate students. The department features a complete range of research facilities, a majority of which are precision instruments. Therefore the department offers graduate students instrument time sufficient to perform in-depth experiments and analysis on campus.

The main research fields in MOES are:

1. Optoelectronic semiconductors and devices
2. Optoelectronic and functional polymers
3. Functional and structural ceramics
4. Light metals
5. Crystal growth
6. Electronic materials
7. Nanomaterials and their applications
8. Optoelectronic data processing
9. Materials characterizations
10. Energy materials
11. Iron and steels

In the past 35 years, all the faculty members, staff and students devoted themselves to building a supportive research environment. However, to follow the global technological progress, it has become a necessity to work closely with industry. In the future, MOES will continue advancing fundamental research and reach out to build research-industry cooperations.