News & Events

Olympic medalist Minnie Soo Wai-Yam studies physics at HKUST Minnie Soo Wai-Yam won a bronze medal in table tennis representing Hong Kong at the Tokyo Olympics in August 2021. Following this achievement, she decided to pursue her lifelong interest in physics via the Student Athletes Admission Scheme at HKUST.  In this video, she talks about her passion for physics since childhood, her experiences as a first-year science student after eight years of being an elite athlete, and her college life at HKUST. As she has done in athletics, Minnie is determined to pursue her physics dream. Facebook video Instagram video Further information SCMP article HKUST press release Read more

Congratulations to Prof. Kam Biu Luk for special recognition by the Physical Society of Hong Kong Prof.  Kam Biu Luk was elected Honorary Member by the Physical Society of Hong Kong in recognition of his research achievements and contributions to the scientific community. He was cited “For his ground-breaking discoveries and exploration of neutrino oscillations; and for his dedication to promoting science in Hong Kong.” Prof. Luk joins previously elected Honorary Members from HKUST, Prof. Paul C.W. Chu (1918) and Prof. Ping Sheng (2020). Read more

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The Department of Physics is pleased to announce the inaugural winner of the Luk Kam-Biu Prize and the winners of the 2021 Paul and May Chu Undergraduate Research Awards. The Luk Kam-Biu Prize is awarded to Yan Yan CHAN. The Paul and May Chu Undergraduate Research Award is awarded to Ka Wun LEUNG, and Honorable Mentions are awarded to Yuk Lam KWOK and Wong To Anthony AU. The Prize recognizes and encourages research achievements in areas of experimentation, observation, or the analysis of experimental data. The Research Awards recognize physics undergraduate students for their outstanding achievements in research in any area.   Yan Yan CHAN
Kam-Biu Luk Prize “For the development of a silicon-photomultiplier (SiPM)-based single-photon detector for ultra-fast astronomy”, under the supervision of Prof. George Smoot. Yan Yan CHAN has worked on detector development under the supervision of Prof. George Smoot for two years prior to receiving the Prize. The main goal of this research is to develop a novel astronomical detector that can achieve temporal resolution up to sub-millisecond in order to capture unexplored optical transient astronomical signals, such as the optical counterpart of fast radio bursts. She has contributed to the mechatronic design of a cooling that will reduce the dark count noise of the SiPM sensor.   Ka Wun LEUNG
Paul and May Chu UG Research Award “For the Experimental characterization of a superconducting high-entropy alloy,” under the supervision of Prof. Berthold Jäck. Ka Wun Casey LEUNG has worked on experimental condensed matter physics under the supervision of Prof. Berthold Jäck since August 2021. His research is aimed at characterizing isotropic s-wave superconductivity in high entropy alloys by analyzing the magnetic susceptibility to determine the coherence length and penetration depth. This work is summarized in a preprint arXiv:2111.11013.   Yuk Lam KWOK
Paul and May Chu UG Research Award, Honorable Mention “For the numerical calculation of electronic properties of a typical two-dimensional material graphene without and with spin-orbital coupling”, under the supervision of Prof. Junwei Liu. Yuk Lam KWOK has worked on the study of band structure of materials under the supervision of Prof. Liu Junwei since February 2021. She used a tight-binding model to calculate the Hamiltonian for both two-dimensional and three-dimensional materials. The calculation was implemented on Python with the target develop a package in the future that is applicable to more general cases.   Wang To Anthony AU
Paul and May Chu UG Research Award, Honorable Mention “For the development of a method to measure the neutrino mass using the data of galaxy clusters” under the co-supervision of Prof. Kirill PROKOFIEV and Prof. Thomas BROADHURST (University of the Basque Country). Wang To Anthony AU has worked on neutrino cosmology since Feb 2021 under the supervision of Prof. Kirill Prokofiev at HKUST. He made technical contributions in pioneering a new method to measure neutrino mass by surveying the gravitational effects of neutrinos on the formation of galaxy clusters. This research has the potential to estimate neutrino mass at a higher accuracy. Read more

The Mr. Armin and Mrs. Lillian Kitchell Undergraduate Research Award was established in 2010 to recognize students who demonstrate outstanding performance in the University-wide Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) and to promote research culture among undergraduate students. Mr. Zehan Chen won Champion of the Mr. Armin and Mrs. Lillian Kitchell Undergraduate Research Award competition in 2021. Mr. Chen, a 4th-year Physics student who is enrolled in the International Research Enrichment program. He explored the nonlinear and nonreciprocal skyrmion dynamics driven by the current under the supervision of Prof. Qiming SHAO. In Prof. Shao's group, Mr. Chen developed an analytical formulation of current-driven nonlinear skyrmion dynamics in the presence of deformation, which is verified by micromagnetic simulations. In addition, this formulation has been used to predict and understand the nonreciprocal dynamics of skyrmions. Since joining Prof. Shao’s group in September 2019, Zehan has published 2 research papers [1,2]. The Second Runner-Up of the Mr. Armin and Mrs. Lillian Kitchell Undergraduate Research Award competition was Mr. Yangbo Zhou. Mr. Zhou is a 4th year Biochemistry and Cell Biology student who carried out his award-winning research under the supervision of Prof. Hyokeun Park in the Departments of Physics and Life Science. Mr. Zhou has been working on “Real-time imaging of single motor proteins”. He along with postgraduate students tracked single myosin X molecules along actin filaments and actin bundles with an accuracy of nanometers and found that coiled-coil region of myosin X plays an important role in stepping of myosin X. His results were presented at the 66th Biophysical Society Annual Meeting held in San Francisco in the USA in Feb 2022.   [1]  Zehan Chen, Xichao Zhang, Yan Zhou, and Qiming Shao, Physical Review Applied 17, L011002 (2022). [2] Laichuan Shen, Jing Xia, Zehan Chen, Xiaoguang Li, Xichao Zhang, Oleg A. Tretiakov, Qiming Shao, Guoping Zhao, Xiaoxi Liu, Motohiko Ezawa, and Yan Zhou, Physical Review B 105, 014422 (2022). Read more

Prof. Kam Biu Luk’ homepage Read more

Five outstanding secondary school students representing Hong Kong have achieved excellent results at the 51st International Physics Olympiad (IPhO 2021). IPhO 2021, organised by Vilnius University in Vilnius, Lithuania, was held from 17-24 July 2021 with around 370 student participants from 76 countries or regions competing for medals. Due to the COIVD-19 pandemic, contestants participated remotely under online monitoring. The Hong Kong team, comprised of Chan Tsz-chun (International Christian Quality Music Secondary and Primary School), Cheng Yat-long (Raimondi College), Lau Sze-chun (Diocesan Boys' School), Choi Wai-ching (La Salle College), Leung Chun-fung (GT (Ellen Yeung) College), won three gold medals and two silver medals. With this outstanding result, the Hong Kong team was ranked 6th among all teams at the competition. This is the Hong Kong team’s best result in recent years. The team was trained and mentored by Profs. Michael Wong, Jensen Li and Ting Pong Choy of the HKUST Department of Physics with the support of the Education Bureau and Hong Kong Academy for Gifted Education.
The HKUST Department of Physics has been providing training to about 90 secondary school students to prepare for the International Physics Olympiad every year since 2003 and the Asian Physics Olympiad (APhO) since 2007. The year-long training program offered to these gifted students covers topics from Newtonian mechanics to modern physics, both theory and experiment. The teams that eventually participate in the IPhO and APhO competitions are chosen from among those who receive training on the basis of their performance in a series of selection tests and competitions. The Hong Kong teams under the mentorship of the Department faculty were awarded an aggregate of 125 gold, silver and bronze medals in APhO and IPhO competitions up to 2021. Participation in Physics Olympics training and competition develops students’ potential and serves as a springboard for pursuing interests in physics and many other subjects at top universities and beyond.    Accompanying photo (left to right) back row: Leung Chun-fung, Lau Sze-chun, Choi Wai-ching, Chan Sze-chun, Cheng Yat-long; front row: Dr Kam-yiu Jimmy Wong (Executive Director of the Hong Kong Academy for Gifted Education), Dr Ting-pong Choy, Prof. Jensen Li, Prof. Kwok-yee Michael Wong, Dr. Tat-ho Lander Lam (Chief Curriculum Development Officer of Education Bureau). Read more

Congratulations to Prof. Che Ting Chan, Prof. Jensen Li, and Prof. Bei Zeng of the Department of Physics for important recognition of their research achievements. Prof. Che Ting Chan was elected Member of the Hong Kong Academy of Sciences (ASHK). The ASHK was founded in 2015 with the purpose to promote the development, advancement, and teaching of science and technology in Hong Kong, to educate and inform the public on issues pertaining to science and technology, and to foster Hong Kong as a centre of scientific excellence. Elected Membership in the Academy represents the highest academic honour in the field of science and technology that Hong Kong peers can bestow. Prof. Jensen Li was elected Member of the Hong Kong Young Academy of Sciences (YASHK). Established as a chapter of the ASHK in 2018, the YASHK is comprised of members in their early and mid-career who contribute jointly with the ASHK to the advancement and promotion of science and technology in Hong Kong. Prof. Bei Zeng was elected Fellow of the American Physical Society (APS). Prof. Zeng was nominated for this prestigious Fellowship by the Division of Quantum Information, which cited her “For pioneering work and contributions in quantum information science (QIS), including error correction and fault-tolerance, many-body entanglement, quantum tomography, quantum marginals, and QIS applications in quantum matter, and for her long-term contribution to QIS services and education.” The APS Fellowship Program was established to recognize members who have made exceptional contributions to the physics enterprise through outstanding research, leadership or service, or application of physics to science and technology. Each year, no more than 0.5% of the total APS membership is elected for Fellowship after a rigorous and competitive review process.  Read more

Congratulations to Ho Yi Lydia Mak (l) and Xuzixiang Lou (r) for being awarded 2021 Academic Achievement Medals. The Academic Achievement Medal is the highest academic honor bestowed by the University on outstanding undergraduate students upon graduation. The awarding of the Medal was established in 1994 to recognize graduates whose outstanding academic achievements bring honor and distinction both to themselves and to the University. Only the top 2-3% of graduates are awarded the Academic Achievement Medal annually.  These awards are to be presented at the University Congregation in Shaw Auditorium on 27 November 2021. We are proud of all graduates and are especially delighted in the accomplishments of the Academic Achievement Medal awardees.   Ho Yi Lydia Mak is currently pursuing an M.Sc. degree in Geoscience and Remote Sensing at Delft University of Technology in Delft, The Netherlands. Xuzixiang Lou is pursuing an M.Sc. degree in High Energy Physics at ETH Zürich in Zürich, Switzerland.   Read more