Founded in 2007 by visionary physicist and inventor Dr. Young K. Bae, Y.K. Bae Corporation develops breakthrough technologies to propel humanity’s expansion into deep space. Our mission centers on two transformative goals: rapid, economical mass space transportation and virtually limitless fusion energy—advancing in step with the rapid progress in low-cost launch systems and AI-powered robotics.
We are at the forefront of Photonic Laser Propulsion and its applications, including the Photonic Laser Thruster (PLT) and the visionary Photonic Railway, and we investigate the science and potential applications of exotic quantum states in stellar matter—most notably Metastable Innershell Molecular States (MIMS), discovered by Dr. Bae.
Recognized and supported by NASA and DTRA, our pioneering achievements include the world’s first demonstration of propellantless, laser-driven spacecraft propulsion using PLT, and the generation of the world’s fastest plasma jets in collaboration with Los Alamos National Laboratory. With deep expertise in photonics, plasma physics, and high-energy density science, we are working to make sustainable, high-speed space travel and space-based fusion power a reality—bringing the planets, moons, and stars closer than ever before.
Meet Founder & Chief Scientist
Dr. Young K. Bae is the Chief Scientist of Y.K. Bae Corp, an R&D lab, where he leads pioneering research in advanced space propulsion and nuclear fusion energy. He is the inventor of—and author of the foundational monograph on—Photonic Laser Propulsion (PLP), a groundbreaking beamed-energy technology that employs active optical resonant cavities to amplify photon thrust by several orders of magnitude. Dr. Bae has demonstrated that PLP-based transport systems could, in principle, accelerate spacecraft to 10% of the speed of light while achieving up to 50% energy transfer efficiency from laser power to kinetic energy—performance comparable to conventional chemical rockets. More significantly, PLP enables a spectrum of transformative applications, from low-thrust, propellant-free, nanometer-precision formation flying (e.g., Photon Tether Formation Flight) to ultra-high-thrust, rapid interplanetary transport via Photonic Railways. The PLP developmental roadmap—based on a progressive increase in thrust capabilities—offers a practical and economically viable pathway toward building scalable space transportation infrastructure, laying the foundation for the expansion of human civilization into deep space.
Beyond propulsion, Dr. Bae discovered the Metastable Innershell Molecular State (MIMS)—a novel high-energy form of matter with binding energies up to 1,000 times greater than conventional molecules. MIMS research aims to reveal new, more efficient pathways to practical nuclear fusion power, with transformative potential for clean energy.
Dr. Bae earned his Ph.D. in experimental atomic and plasma physics from UC Berkeley, specializing in optical diagnostics for magnetic confinement fusion. At SRI International, he conducted research on laser spectroscopy of atoms, molecules, and clusters, as well as self-neutralizing negative ions for fusion and Strategic Defense Initiative particle beams—leading to the discovery of a self-neutralizing negative helium molecular ion. In collaboration with the U.S. Air Force and the late Dr. Robert Forward, he also explored antiproton condensation for antimatter propulsion.
Dr. Bae conducted research on stellar matters by impacting clusters at velocities exceeding 100 km/s at Brookhaven National Laboratory and explored advanced propulsion technologies at the Air Force Rocket Propulsion Laboratory.
In recent work with Los Alamos National Laboratory, Dr. Bae’s team achieved hypervelocity helium jets at 90 km/s, enabling the study of stellar-like matter formed under extreme pressures with minimal electron heating—an approach he believes could open new frontiers for fusion power generation.
