We will leverage the role of major science and technology infrastructure to bring benefits to mankind

Major scientific and technological infrastructure has become a "reservoir" for training and absorbing outstanding scientific and technological talents.

Independently developed by the Institute of Modern Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (hereinafter referred to as the Institute of Modern Physics), the first domestic special device for heavy ion treatment of cancer has been installed and operated in Wuwei City, Gansu Province, since 2018, more than 20,000 tumor patients have been consulted, and more than 570 patients have completed heavy ion treatment, with significant efficacy and good tolerance.

Today, with the rapid development of science and technology, major scientific and technological infrastructure similar to heavy ion accelerators has become a strategic highland that the world's scientific and technological powers will fight for. Relying on major scientific and technological infrastructure, China has promoted the progress of basic research and applied research, and become the main platform for solving major strategic scientific and technological problems. Such as positron collider, Shanghai Light source, full superconducting Tokamak nuclear fusion experimental device, spallation neutron source, "China Sky Eye" radio telescope, etc., has produced a number of major achievements, cracked a number of "jam neck" scientific and technological problems, playing an important role in China's journey to build a scientific and technological power.

In an interview with "Outlook" news weekly, Zhao Hongwei, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Party secretary of the Modern Physics Institute, deputy director of the Lanzhou Heavy Ion Accelerator National Laboratory, said that the initial intention of science and technology is to benefit mankind. For more than 60 years, the Institute of Modern Physics has always relied on major scientific and technological infrastructure to continuously explore the unknown world, discover the laws of nature, lead scientific and technological changes, and benefit human health.

"Attaching importance to the engine role of the" national instrument ", continuously promoting and improving the important role of the major scientific and technological infrastructure in scientific and technological innovation, so that scientific and technological innovation can better benefit mankind is the direction of modern physics." Zhao Hongwei told "Outlook" news weekly reporter.

The "national instrument" leads the technological change

Outlook: Why build major science and technology infrastructure?

Zhao Hongwei: Major scientific and technological infrastructure plays an irreplaceable role in exploring the laws of nature and the basic structure of matter, promoting technological change, discovering new knowledge, and inventing new technologies. It is a large and complex scientific research system that provides extreme research means. It can transform cutting-edge scientific theories into practical scientific and technological achievements, and solve major issues concerning national security and social development. Therefore, it is also a strategic highland that the world's scientific and technological powers will fight for. Almost all the world powers such as the United States, Germany, and Japan have laid out and built a large number of major scientific and technological infrastructure, which is still under construction, covering many fields from physical structure, energy, information, materials, astronomy and space, earth and environment to oceans, life and health, agriculture and national security.

The fundamental purpose of building and running large scientific installations is to discover the laws of nature and generate new knowledge, which may seem useless for the time being, but which will be used in the future and produce a host of new technologies and other "by-products." History has proved that the results derived from many large accelerators are closely linked to the core technologies of various industries in the country. Major science and technology infrastructure can also help us solve many specific problems in economic and social development. For example, the Earth system numerical simulation device can not only accurately predict the weather situation, but also provide data support for us to deal with the major global issue of energy conservation and emission reduction.

Outlook: What are the characteristics of China's major scientific and technological infrastructure?

Zhao Hongwei: China's major science and technology infrastructure construction started from the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The key layout of the "Ninth Five-Year Plan" to "Twelfth Five-Year Plan" period, this period is also the "blowout period" of China's major scientific and technological infrastructure construction. Up to now, China has about 40 major scientific and technological infrastructure in operation.

The proposal, construction, operation and maintenance of major scientific and technological infrastructure requires a large team to guarantee, and involves a wide range of professional directions. Take Lanzhou National Laboratory of Heavy Ion Accelerator as an example. It is a laboratory focusing on the application of heavy ion physics and related technologies, involving nuclear physics, atomic physics, materials science, life science, advanced nuclear energy, ion accelerator, automatic control, microelectronics, detector, magnet, vacuum, power supply, machinery, radio frequency and microwave, liquid helium cryogenics, etc., which is very comprehensive. The operation efficiency is also high. In addition to the annual shutdown from the end of July to August for maintenance, the Lanzhou heavy ion accelerator runs for about 7,500 hours 24 hours a day, 11 months a year. Overall, most of China's major science and technology infrastructure runs for 5,000 to 7,000 hours per year, and the efficiency is relatively high.