2017年CRI Zhao Zhongxian profile: Superconductor breakthrough will speed up changes

 

Semiconductors¹, or microchips, have been changing the way the world works for the past half-century.

The technology has made radios, televisions and mobile devices commonplace.

In advancing the technology, researchers are now focusing on superconductors.

Chinese researcher Zhao Zhongxian is among them.

"He has been researching for more than 40 years," said one of Zhao Zhongxian's colleagues at the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Physics Institute, "I've learnt that he has been on the frontier of superconductivity research for more than 40 years."

He was the first to design and develop a liquid nitrogen temperature superconductor back in 1987.

His work has since helped advance superconductivity research in many different countries.

Superconductivity basically refers to the electrical resistance of a material at absolute zero.

Components² made from superconductors can help to improve the accuracy of atomic clocks on satellites, accelerate central processing units on computers, and increase the precision of gyroscopes on navigational devices.

Doctor Sun Liling says research into superconductivity has already had a profound and far reaching significance on everyday life.

"Actually, superconductivity is of great practical application value to many fields, such as energy, medical, information and transportation. Let's say hospitals, superconducting magnets are widely used in MRI machines. The image is of better resolution compared to a regular magnet. It is very important for doctors when diagnosing their patients. Another area is maglev³ technology for trains. It's also critical for quantum computing⁴."

Despite the wide range of possible applications for superconductors, physicists⁵, however, used to believe that superconducting properties only worked at temperatures no higher than – 233 Celsius⁶.

However, Zhao Zhongxian and his team have discovered an iron-based superconductor that functions at much warmer temperatures.

"In research for iron-based superconductors, Zhao and his team discovered the superconducting critical temperature above 50-degrees Kelvin for the first time. The discovery created a new "family" of iron-based superconducting materials that lift the highest temperature for the free-flow resistance to 55-kelvin."

Beyond research, Sun Liling says Zhao Zhongxian has become a mentor⁷ to many aspiring⁸ Chinese scientists.

"He supervises doctoral candidates here at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He spends a lot of time talking to his students, giving advice for their next steps in researches. So he is always on the frontier of scientific research. Though in his seventies, he still works like a young researcher, putting in extra hours like they do. So he is a good example for all of us."

The work conducted by Zhao Zhongxian and his colleagues have helped turn China into a rising power in condensed matter physics.

1 semiconductors   

n.半导体( semiconductor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Crystals may be insulators, semiconductors, or conductors. 晶体可以是绝缘体，半导体，或导体。 来自辞典例句
• Semiconductors containing such impurities are called p-type semiconductors. 含有这类杂质的半导体叫做P型半导体。 来自辞典例句

2 components   

（机器、设备等的）构成要素，零件，成分； 成分( component的名词复数 )； [物理化学]组分； [数学]分量； （混合物的）组成部分

参考例句：

• the components of a machine 机器部件
• Our chemistry teacher often reduces a compound to its components in lab. 在实验室中化学老师常把化合物分解为各种成分。

3 maglev   

n.磁力悬浮列车；adj.磁力悬浮列车的

参考例句：

• The engine for maglev trains is rather in noticeable.磁悬浮列车的车头是相当值得注意的。
• The high speed maglev railway is a new-style traffic system. 高速磁悬浮铁路是一种新型的交通方式。

4 computing   

n.计算

参考例句：

• to work in computing 从事信息处理
• Back in the dark ages of computing, in about 1980, they started a software company. 早在计算机尚未普及的时代（约1980年），他们就创办了软件公司。

5 physicists   

物理学家( physicist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• For many particle physicists, however, it was a year of frustration. 对于许多粒子物理学家来说，这是受挫折的一年。 来自英汉非文学 - 科技
• Physicists seek rules or patterns to provide a framework. 物理学家寻求用法则或图式来构成一个框架。

6 Celsius   

adj.摄氏温度计的，摄氏的

参考例句：

• The temperature tonight will fall to seven degrees Celsius.今晚气温将下降到七摄氏度。
• The maximum temperature in July may be 36 degrees Celsius.七月份最高温度可能达到36摄氏度。

7 mentor   

n.指导者，良师益友；v.指导

参考例句：

• He fed on the great ideas of his mentor.他以他导师的伟大思想为支撑。
• He had mentored scores of younger doctors.他指导过许多更年轻的医生。

8 aspiring   

adj.有志气的；有抱负的；高耸的v.渴望；追求

参考例句：

• Aspiring musicians need hours of practice every day. 想当音乐家就要每天练许多小时。
• He came from an aspiring working-class background. 他出身于有抱负的工人阶级家庭。 来自辞典例句