Light People: Professor Che Ting Chan, curiosity drives to create the impossibilities

Abstract

Editorial “When something is said to be impossible, there are two points for researchers to initially clarify: whether it really is forbidden by the laws of nature; or whether it is simply that no material that currently exists in nature can do that.” Metamaterials are such magical beings, which have physical properties like invisibility, negative refraction, super-resolution, and perfect absorption that are absent from natural materials. It has been rated by Science as one of the top ten scientific and technological breakthroughs affecting human beings in the 21st century. In this issue of Light People, we spoke with a “magic” creator, Professor Che Ting Chan, the Associate Vice-President (Research & Development) of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), Member of the Hong Kong Academy of Sciences and Fellow of the American Physical Society. He has researched a number of theoretical problems in material physics, investigated the theory behind what they seek to achieve, and modulated light (electromagnetism) and acoustic waves through metamaterials. In the following, let’s take a closer look at Professor Che Ting Chan’s research life, and appreciate his style and the background of his accomplishment.