 | Professor Chi Ming CHE
Chair Professor of Department of Chemistry
Zhou Guangzhao Professor in Natural Sciences
As an Elected Member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the first Hongkonger to receive a First-class Prize of the State Natural Science Award and recipient of numerous awards in international academic arena including International Member of the US National Academy of Sciences, Professor Che’s pioneering study on synthetic chemistry shapes the culture of local research community. Steering the direction of profound research like Laboratory for Synthetic Chemistry & Chemical Biology and State Key Laboratory of Synthetic Chemistry, his wisdom can definitely inspire one’s heart.
Professor Che's personal webpage
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 | Professor Hongjie DAI
Chair Professor of Department of Chemistry
Spaientia Eminence Professor
Professor Dai’s research spans chemistry, physics, and materials and biomedical sciences, leading to materials with properties useful in electronics, energy storage and biomedicine. Recent developments include near-infrared-II fluorescence imaging, ultra-sensitive diagnostic assays, a fast-charging aluminum battery, alkali metal/Cl2 batteries and inexpensive electrocatalysts that split water into oxygen and hydrogen fuels. Among many awards, Professor Dai has been recognised with the ACS Pure Chemistry Award, APS McGroddy Prize for New Materials, Julius Springer Prize for Applied Physics and Materials Research Society Mid-Career Award. He has been elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, National Academy of Sciences (NAS), National Academy of Medicine (NAM) and Foreign Member of Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Professor Dai's personal webpage
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 | Professor Nicolas DAUPHAS
Professor, Chair of Cosmochemistry, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences Professor Dauphas is the Chair of Cosmochemistry at HKU and a member of the US National Academy of Sciences. He uses high-precision isotope geochemistry on meteorites, lunar samples, and terrestrial rocks, and have contributed to several space sample-return missions. His discoveries include dating the age of the Galaxy; determining when the lunar magma ocean solidified; establishing Mars’s early age and status as a stranded planetary embryo; unraveling the iron biogeochemical cycle in Earth’s early oceans; reconstructing the composition of Earth’s emerged lands through time; showing Earth’s time-invariant accretion; and advancing theories of stable isotopic fractionation and lattice dynamics. Professor Dauphas's personal webpage
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 | Professor Xuhua HE
Chair Professor of Department of Mathematics Professor He is a mathematician working at the intersection of arithmetic geometry and representation theory. His research seeks to uncover the fundamental symmetries that bridge natural elegance and mathematical truth. His contributions have been recognised with several prestigious awards, including the Chevalley Prize in Lie Theory, the Morningside Gold Medal in Mathematics, and the Xplorer Prize. He is a New Cornerstone Investigator, a Fellow of the American Mathematical Society, and was an invited speaker at the International Congress of Mathematicians. Professor He also serves as the President of the Hong Kong Mathematical Society. Professor He's personal webpage
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 | Professor Ferenc KRAUSZ
Professor, Chair of Laser Physics, Department of Physics
2023 Nobel Laureate in Physics Professor Krausz is a trailblazer in attosecond science—the field that captures electron motion in unimaginably small fractions of time. In the early 2000s, he led the team that produced the first isolated attosecond light pulses, a breakthrough that opened a new window into the hidden world of atomic and molecular dynamics. His work has transformed ultrafast physics and is driving advances in materials research, clean energy, and medical diagnostics. At Ludwig Maximilians University Munich and the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics, Krausz established Attoworld, a hub for pushing the boundaries of this frontier science. His pioneering contributions have earned global recognition, including the King Faisal International Prize for Science, the Wolf Prize in Physics, the BBVA Frontiers of Knowledge Award, and the 2023 Nobel Prize in Physics. Professor He's personal webpage
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 | Professor Ngaiming MOK
Chair Professor of Department of Mathematics
Edmund and Peggy Tse Professor of Mathematics
Director of Institute of Mathematical Research
As a top-notch mathematician who has resolved many classic math problems, Professor Mok has been the leading figure and the brain of HKU Institute of Mathematical Research for years. Among his recent professional accolades, Member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, State Natural Science Award, and Member of the Hong Kong Academy of Sciences, Future Science Prize, Tan Kah Kee Science Award and Chern Prize are some of the representative ones. He appreciates the aesthetics of mathematics, which young intellectuals will find his “mathematics-as-life” attitude enlightening.
Professor Mok's personal webpage
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 | Professor Alice Sze Tsai WONG
Chair Professor of School of Biological Sciences
Associate Vice-President (Research) Professor Wong is a knowledgeable biologist who leads a team of scientists studying cell adhesion and signal transduction in cancer. She is a recipient of the RGC Senior Research Fellowship and also the Croucher Foundation Senior Research Fellowship. Using new techniques and innovative methodologies, her recent research endeavour to unravel the precise mechanism of cell adhesion dynamics pertinent to cancer development and metastasis, aiming to provide insights for the development of new therapies for highly malignant and rapidly lethal human cancers. Professor Wong's personal webpage
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 | Professor Vivian Wing Wah YAM
Chair Professor of Department of Chemistry
Philip Wong Wilson Wong Professor in Chemistry and Energy
Vice-President & Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Global Innovation Centre) (Interim)
Not only can we learn from Professor Yam of her innovative and frontier research, her resilience and values also inspire us on how to stay focused and insist on quality and excellence. Despite the many recognitions she has received, such as State Natural Science Award, Elected Member of Chinese Academy of Sciences, International Member of the US National Academy of Sciences, Laureate of L’Oréal-UNESCO Awards For Women in Science, Bailar Medal, and Josef Michl American Chemical Society (ACS) Award in Photochemistry, etc., she remains committed in pursuing and passing on knowledge and does not let go of chances to inculcate values to the young ones. Professor Yam is also the President of The International Organization for Chemical Sciences in Development (IOCD).
Professor Yam's personal webpage
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 | Professor Wang YAO
Chair Professor of Department of Physics
Professor Yao is a condensed matter physicist. His current research interest lies in 2D materials, and has played a decisive role in creating an important new research direction – valley optoelectronics, which aims to exploit valley, a quantum degree of freedom of electron, in future optoelectronic devices. He is a New Cornerstone Investigator, fellow of American Physical Society and Optica. He has also received RGS Senior Research Fellowship, Croucher Senior Research Fellowship, Tencent Xplorer Prize, Huang Kun Prize, Nishina Asia Award, and has been named by Clarivate Analytics as ‘Highly Cited Researchers’ since 2018.
Professor Yao's personal webpage
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 | Professor Bing ZHANG
Chair Professor of Department of Physics
Global STEM Scholar Professor Zhang is Chair Professor of Astrophysics in the Department of Physics and an elected fellow of the American Physical Society. He has published over 600 refereed papers and is one of the ‘highly ranked scholars in astronomy during lifetime’ identified by ScholarGPS. He serves in a leadership role in projects involving China’s FAST radio telescope, the Einstein Probe space mission, and the Chinese-French SVOM mission. Professor Zhang’s research has revolutionised our understanding of black holes, neutron stars, and astrophysical jets. Professor Zhang's personal webpage |
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 | Professor Shuang ZHANG
Chair Professor of Department of Physics
Interim Head of Department of Physics
Professor Zhang specialises in photonics, particularly in the area of metamaterials. His notable contributions include the first demonstration of geometric phase for harmonic generations, the pioneering of optical negative index materials, and the implementation of topological photonics using metamaterials. He has been recognised as a “Highly Cited Researcher” by Clarivate Analytics from 2018 to 2023 and is a Fellow of the American Physical Society and Optica. Professor Zhang has received prestigious awards, including the New Cornerstone Investigator Program, Royal Society Research Merit Awards, and IUPAP Young Scientist in Optics.
Professor Zhang's personal webpage |
 | Professor Guochun ZHAO
Chair Professor of Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences
Mok Sau-King Professor Professor Zhao has a clear mind in the face of challenges on his research of metamorphic petrology, Precambrian geology and supercontinents. His perseverance makes him the holder of many prestigious honours – Member of Chinese Academy of Sciences, National Natural Science Award (First-class, co-winner), State Natural Science Award (Second-class, co-winner), HKU Distinguished Research Achievement Award, and named by Clarivate Analytics as ‘Highly Cited Researcher’ for a decade in a row. Professor Zhao's personal webpage |
