Prof. SUN Liangting, a researcher from the Institute of Modern Physics (IMP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, was awarded the Nishikawa Tetsuji Prize at the 16th International Particle Accelerator Conference (IPAC) held in China's Taiwan on June 5.

As the first scholar from the Chinese mainland to win this honor, Prof. SUN was recognized for his significant contributions to the research and development of highly-charged Electron Cyclotron Resonance (ECR) ion sources, particularly the superconducting highly-charged ECR ion sources, a cutting-edge technology for heavy ion accelerators.

Through a series of innovations and key technological breakthroughs, SUN's team has set numerous world records for beam intensity of highly-charged ions generated by ion sources. They also pioneered the application of Nb₃Sn superconducting magnets to ECR ion sources, and successfully developed the world’s first fourth-generation 45 GHz ECR source, known as FECR.

The high-performance superconducting ECR ion sources developed at IMP have not only provided advanced experimental conditions for heavy ion physics and applications in China, but also contributed enormously to the global advancement of ECR ion source technology.

IPAC stands as the world’s largest annual conference dedicated to particle accelerators and their industrial applications. Rotating between Asia, the Americas, and Europe, the event attracts over 1,000 global scholars and serves as a key platform for sharing the latest research advancements and the development of future accelerator facilities in the global accelerator community.

Each year, IPAC honors individuals who have made exceptional contributions to accelerator science and technology in three categories. When the conference is hosted in Asia, three of its prestigious awards are named in memory of pioneering Asian accelerator scientists: the Xie Jialin Prize, the Nishikawa Tetsuji Prize, and the Hogil Kim Prize.

SUN Liangting received the Nishikawa Tetsuji Prize. (Image from IMP)