Working at the frontiers of understanding and perception, three professors at City University of Hong Kong (CityU) are set to transform understanding of quotidian devices, such as LEDs or solar panels. As part of the continuing Hong Kong Institute for Advanced Study (HKIAS) Distinguished Lecture Series, the three-part section on physics in April and May 2021 introduced some of the most innovative ideas to tackle real-world problems.

A finding by Professor Ke Lu, HKIAS Senior Fellow and the research team from The Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences was featured in Science.

Professor Jihong Yu, HKIAS Senior Fellow and a Professor at the Jilin University, was elected a Foreign Member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to the Class of Chemistry, and was honoured the Science and Technology Progress Award by the Ho Leung Ho Lee Foundation, in recognition of her contributions to science and chemistry. The presentation ceremony will be held in October 2021.

The field of chemistry brings us unique solutions that enhance our lives in innumerable ways. The Hong Kong Institute for Advanced Study (HKIAS) Rising Star Lecture – Chemistry was held both at the City University of Hong Kong (CityU) and online on 30 September 2021 (Thursday). In the talk, three promising young chemists featured their research results on the development of controlling the nanostructure of perovskite optoelectronic materials, the understanding of ribonucleic acid (RNA) structure, and the structural engineering of layered nanomaterials.

The Hong Kong Institute for Advanced Study (HKIAS) Rising Star Lecture – Physics was held both at the City University of Hong Kong (CityU) and online on 19 October 2021 (Tuesday). This lecture brought three exceptional early-career physicists together to highlight their innovative work on newly discovered nickelate superconductors, high-voltage batteries for future smartphones, and high-performance optical materials for optoelectronics.

A research led by Hong Kong Institute for Advanced Study (HKIAS) Senior Fellows has successfully developed a super-strong, highly ductile and super-light titanium-based alloy using additive manufacturing, commonly known as 3D printing. Their findings open up a new pathway to design alloys with unprecedented structures and properties for various structural applications.

Professor Sir John Ball, HKIAS Senior Fellow and a Professor at Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, UK, was newly elected to the role of President of The Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE). The appointment was announced at the RSE Annual Statutory Meeting in October 2021. Professor Sir John Ball takes office in April 2022

A three-volume set of “Mathematical Elasticity” by Professor Philippe G. Ciarlet, a Senior Fellow of Hong Kong Institute for Advanced Study at City University of Hong Kong (CityU), will be published by the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) in 2022.

Running from September to November, 15 short-listed promising scholars at the City University of Hong Kong (CityU) presented their latest work in five Hong Kong Institute for Advanced Study (HKIAS) Rising Star Lectures, focusing on mathematics, chemistry, physics, materials science, and life sciences.