Paul Ching Wu Chu

Paul Ching Wu Chu (Chinese: 朱經武; born December 2, 1941) is a Chinese-American physicist specializing in superconductivity, magnetism, and dielectrics. He is a professor of physics and T.L.L. Temple Chair of Science in the Physics Department at the University of Houston College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics. He was the president of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology from 2001 to 2009. In 1987, he was one of the first scientists to demonstrate high-temperature superconductivity.

Paul Ching Wu Chu
朱經武
2nd President of Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
In office 2001–2009
Chancellor	Tung Chee-hwa Donald Tsang
Preceded by	Woo Chia-wei
Succeeded by	Tony F. Chan
Personal details
Born	(1941-12-02) December 2, 1941 (age 82) Changsha, Hunan, China
Citizenship	Republic of China United States
Nationality	Republic of China United States
Alma mater	National Cheng Kung University Fordham University University of California San Diego
Awards	Comstock Prize in Physics (1988) National Medal of Science (1988) Bernd T. Matthias Prize (1994) John Fritz Medal (2001)
Scientific career
Fields	Physics
Institutions	Bell Laboratories Cleveland State University University of Houston HKUST (2001–2009) Taiwan Comprehensive University System (2012-)
Thesis	High pressure study on the superconductivity of transition metals and alloys (1968)
Doctoral advisor	Bernd T. Matthias
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	朱經武
Simplified Chinese	朱经武
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Zhū Jīng Wǔ Yue: Cantonese Jyutping Zyu^1 Ging^1 Mou^5

Early life

Chu was born in Changsha, Hunan, Republic of China in 1941. Chu's family was from Taishan, Guangdong. Chu spent his childhood in Taiwan.^[1][2]

Education

In 1958, Chu graduated from Taiwan Provincial Cingshuei high school.

In 1962, Chu earned his Bachelor of Science degree from National Cheng Kung University in Taiwan. In 1965, Chu earned his Master of Science degree from Fordham University. In 1968, Chu earned his Ph.D. degree from the University of California, San Diego.^[3]

Career

After two years of performing industrial research with Bell Laboratories at Murray Hill, New Jersey, Chu was appointed assistant professor of physics at Cleveland State University in 1970. He was subsequently promoted to associate professor and professor of physics in 1973 and 1975, respectively.

In 1979, Chu became a professor of physics at the University of Houston, an appointment he still holds. In 1987, he and Maw-Kuen Wu announced the historic discovery of superconductivity above 77 K in YBCO,^[4] touching off a frenzy of scientific excitement exemplified by the Woodstock of physics, at which he was a featured presenter.^[5] He was then appointed the director of the Texas Center for Superconductivity. Chu has served as the T.L.L. Temple Chair of Science at the same university since 1987. He also has served as a consultant and visiting staff member at Bell Laboratories, Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory, the Marshall Space Flight Center, Argonne National Laboratory, and DuPont at various times.^[6]

Chu has received numerous awards and honors for his outstanding work in superconductivity, including the National Medal of Science^[7] and the Comstock Prize in Physics in 1988,^[8] and the American Physical Society's International Prize for New Materials. He was an invited contributor to the White House National Millennium Time Capsule at the National Archives in 2000 and was selected the Best Researcher in the U.S. by U.S. News & World Report in 1990.

In 1989, Chu was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.^[9] He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences (foreign member), Academia Sinica, Russian Academy of Engineering (RAE) and the Third World Academy of Sciences. His research activities extend beyond superconductivity to magnetism and dielectrics. ^{[citation needed]}

On November 17, 2014, an IEEE Milestone in Electrical Engineering and Computing plaque was presented to University of Houston for Chu and his team's 1987 discovery of high temperature superconductors.^[10][11]

On September 1, 2001, Chu succeeded Professor Chia-Wei Woo as the president of The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Chu's tenure as university president ended officially on 1 September 2009.

On November 5, 2011, Chu was appointed as the founding President of the Taiwan Comprehensive University System (TCUS).^[12]

Personal life

He is married to May Chu, the daughter of Shiing-Shen Chern.^[13]

Awards and honors

• Honorary Doctor of Science (Sc.D.) degree from Whittier College. (1991)^[14]
• 2014 IEEE Council on Superconductivity Max Swerdlow Award for Sustained Service to the Applied Superconductivity Community.^[15]

See also

• Committee of 100 (United States)
• yttrium

Lectures

• 1991 - High temperature superconductivity: four years later Lecture sponsored by the Dept. of Electrical and Computer engineering, University of California, San Diego. Electrical and Computer Engineering Distinguished Lecture Series. Digital Object Made Available by Special Collections & Archives, UC San Diego.

References

1. Warren, Rachel. "Paul (Ching-Wu) Chu". nationalscienceandtechnologymedalsfoundation.org. Retrieved August 14, 2019.
2. "Paul Chu" (PDF). ChineseAmericanHeroes.org. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
3. Chu, Ching-wu (1968). High pressure study on the superconductivity of transition metals and alloys (Ph.D.). University of California, San Diego. OCLC 17622858 – via ProQuest.
4. M. K. Wu; J. R. Ashburn; C. J. Torng; P. H. Hor; R. L. Meng; L. Gao; Z. J. Huang; Y. Q. Wang; C. W. Chu (1987). "Superconductivity at 93 K in a new mixed-phase Y-Ba-Cu-O compound system at ambient pressure". Phys. Rev. Lett. 58 (9): 908–910. Bibcode:1987PhRvL..58..908W. doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.58.908. PMID 10035069.
5. Chang, Kenneth (March 6, 2007). "Physicists Remember When Superconductors Were Hot". New York Times. Retrieved 22 August 2013.
6. "Paul C W CHU - Our Members - the Hong Kong Academy of Sciences 香港科學院".
7. National Science Foundation - The President's National Medal of Science
8. . National Academy of Sciences. Archived from the original on 29 December 2010. Retrieved 13 February 2011.
9. "Book of Members, 1780–2010: Chapter C" (PDF). American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Retrieved June 8, 2011.
10. "IEEE Milestone in Electrical Engineering and Computing Presented to University of Houston for Discovery of High Temperature Superconductors". ieeecsc.org. November 2014. Retrieved August 14, 2019.(The IEEE Milestone plaque is mounted in the lobby area of Science Research Building One.)
11. "Milestones: High Temperature Superconductivity, 1987". ethw.org. Retrieved August 14, 2019.
12. "Concept of Establishment - About TCUS - Taiwan Comprehensive University System, TCUS".
13. "Shiing-shen Chern - Biography". Maths History. Retrieved 2023-12-25.
14. "Honorary Degrees | Whittier College". www.whittier.edu. Retrieved 2020-02-19.
15. Kever, Jeannie (2014). "Chu, Selvamanickam Honored Superconductivity Achievements". uh.eduedu. Retrieved August 14, 2019.

Additional sources

• Gleick, James (16 August 1987). "In the trenches of science". The New York Times. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
• Hazen, Robert M. (1988). The breakthrough : the race for the superconductor. New York: Summit Books. ISBN 9780671658298..
• Matricon, Jean; Glashausser, Georges Waysand ; translated by Charles (2003). The cold wars : a history of superconductivity. New Brunswick, N.J.: Rutgers University Press. ISBN 9780813532950.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

External links

• Paul Chu at uh.edu -
• Paul C. W. Chu at ashk.org.hk
• Paul C. W. Chu at committee100.org
• Paul Ching-Wu Chu at encyclopedia.com

 

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Academic offices
Preceded by Woo Chia-wei	President of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology 2001–2009	Succeeded by Tony F. Chan
Preceded by	President of the Taiwan Comprehensive University System 2012–	Succeeded by