High Temperature Superconductor and Me: A Scientist's Journey Across Oceans

Ruling Meng, the author, is an exceptional scientist from Texas Center for Superconductivity at University of Houston. This autobiography describes her colorful life in detail, with high-temperature superconductivity research as the through line from beginning to end. The book is divided in two parts. The first illustrates the fierce competition in high-temperature superconducting material research during the 80s and 90s, when many scientists worldwide were racing to find the hottest superconductors. Meng was a famous and important participant in this historic competition. The second part vividly records the author's tireless pursuit of the value of life, recalling her journey from young girl to respected scientist. Rich in content and fascinating detail, this book is well worth reading.


◆Acknowledgement◆


I am most indebted to my dear friend, Jianjun Zeng, who encouraged me to embark on the adventure of writing a book in Chinese and then in English. She always had time to talk through a point, an idea, or the form and content. Without her numerous hours of editing, this book would not be possible.

I am also indebted to my dear friend, Zihong Zhang, who as a copy editor did many iterations of the content and form to make them fit for publication. This book would not be possible without his tremendous contributions.

My thanks also go to Professor David Ross for his meticulous proof reading of the English texts and to Mr. William Nisbett and Professor Wei Li for their translations.

My family has been part of the journey from the beginning. My dedication to research coincided with the formative years of my son and my daughter. I regret that I did not spend enough time with them when I was working long hours at the lab. My life story would be different without their understanding and support. 


Ruling Meng


▲Ruling Meng, the author, was graduated from Zhongnan Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (now Central South University of Technology) in 1958. She engaged in material research and development at the Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and the Institute of Physics from Chinese Academy of Sciences. In 1979, she was invited by Professor C.W. Paul Chu of University of Houston to conduct research on superconducting materials. She was one of the main contributors to the discovery of yttrium-barium-copper-oxygen high-temperature superconductors in 1986. In 2000, she was selected by the American Institute of Scientific Information as one of the 1,000 scientists with the highest citation rate of scientific research papers among 500,000 scientific paper authors.

"1143275250"
High Temperature Superconductor and Me: A Scientist's Journey Across Oceans

Ruling Meng, the author, is an exceptional scientist from Texas Center for Superconductivity at University of Houston. This autobiography describes her colorful life in detail, with high-temperature superconductivity research as the through line from beginning to end. The book is divided in two parts. The first illustrates the fierce competition in high-temperature superconducting material research during the 80s and 90s, when many scientists worldwide were racing to find the hottest superconductors. Meng was a famous and important participant in this historic competition. The second part vividly records the author's tireless pursuit of the value of life, recalling her journey from young girl to respected scientist. Rich in content and fascinating detail, this book is well worth reading.


◆Acknowledgement◆


I am most indebted to my dear friend, Jianjun Zeng, who encouraged me to embark on the adventure of writing a book in Chinese and then in English. She always had time to talk through a point, an idea, or the form and content. Without her numerous hours of editing, this book would not be possible.

I am also indebted to my dear friend, Zihong Zhang, who as a copy editor did many iterations of the content and form to make them fit for publication. This book would not be possible without his tremendous contributions.

My thanks also go to Professor David Ross for his meticulous proof reading of the English texts and to Mr. William Nisbett and Professor Wei Li for their translations.

My family has been part of the journey from the beginning. My dedication to research coincided with the formative years of my son and my daughter. I regret that I did not spend enough time with them when I was working long hours at the lab. My life story would be different without their understanding and support. 


Ruling Meng


▲Ruling Meng, the author, was graduated from Zhongnan Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (now Central South University of Technology) in 1958. She engaged in material research and development at the Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and the Institute of Physics from Chinese Academy of Sciences. In 1979, she was invited by Professor C.W. Paul Chu of University of Houston to conduct research on superconducting materials. She was one of the main contributors to the discovery of yttrium-barium-copper-oxygen high-temperature superconductors in 1986. In 2000, she was selected by the American Institute of Scientific Information as one of the 1,000 scientists with the highest citation rate of scientific research papers among 500,000 scientific paper authors.

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High Temperature Superconductor and Me: A Scientist's Journey Across Oceans

High Temperature Superconductor and Me: A Scientist's Journey Across Oceans

High Temperature Superconductor and Me: A Scientist's Journey Across Oceans

High Temperature Superconductor and Me: A Scientist's Journey Across Oceans

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Overview

Ruling Meng, the author, is an exceptional scientist from Texas Center for Superconductivity at University of Houston. This autobiography describes her colorful life in detail, with high-temperature superconductivity research as the through line from beginning to end. The book is divided in two parts. The first illustrates the fierce competition in high-temperature superconducting material research during the 80s and 90s, when many scientists worldwide were racing to find the hottest superconductors. Meng was a famous and important participant in this historic competition. The second part vividly records the author's tireless pursuit of the value of life, recalling her journey from young girl to respected scientist. Rich in content and fascinating detail, this book is well worth reading.


◆Acknowledgement◆


I am most indebted to my dear friend, Jianjun Zeng, who encouraged me to embark on the adventure of writing a book in Chinese and then in English. She always had time to talk through a point, an idea, or the form and content. Without her numerous hours of editing, this book would not be possible.

I am also indebted to my dear friend, Zihong Zhang, who as a copy editor did many iterations of the content and form to make them fit for publication. This book would not be possible without his tremendous contributions.

My thanks also go to Professor David Ross for his meticulous proof reading of the English texts and to Mr. William Nisbett and Professor Wei Li for their translations.

My family has been part of the journey from the beginning. My dedication to research coincided with the formative years of my son and my daughter. I regret that I did not spend enough time with them when I was working long hours at the lab. My life story would be different without their understanding and support. 


Ruling Meng


▲Ruling Meng, the author, was graduated from Zhongnan Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (now Central South University of Technology) in 1958. She engaged in material research and development at the Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and the Institute of Physics from Chinese Academy of Sciences. In 1979, she was invited by Professor C.W. Paul Chu of University of Houston to conduct research on superconducting materials. She was one of the main contributors to the discovery of yttrium-barium-copper-oxygen high-temperature superconductors in 1986. In 2000, she was selected by the American Institute of Scientific Information as one of the 1,000 scientists with the highest citation rate of scientific research papers among 500,000 scientific paper authors.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781647842499
Publisher: EHGBooks
Publication date: 06/01/2023
Sold by: Barnes & Noble
Format: eBook
Pages: 240
File size: 3 MB

Table of Contents

Contents

Acknowledgement

Editorial Note

List of Figures

List of Tables

▲Part I: High Temperature Superconductors and Me

Prologue

Chapter 1: I Changed my Career Twice

First foray into superconducting materials

Returning to the research "National Team"

Building a thin film lab

A surprise invitation

Chapter 2: My Promise at the Starting Line

Starting from scratch

First victory

No pain no gain

Chapter 3: Days of Challenging 97K

Returning to Houston

Proving the 35K oxide superconductor

Superconducting transition at 52.5K under pressure

Materials Research Society Annual Meeting in Boston

Optimizing process to make superconductors

"Element substitution"

Mystery of yttrium

A news conference

Identifying the structure of the new high temperature superconductor

Cranking on all cylinders: discovering a series of rare earth high Tc superconductors

American Physical Society (APS) Annual Meeting

Notes

Chapter 4: New Frontiers

The emergence of new superconductor series

Finding the synthesis mechanism for Hg-base superconductors

The first defect-free C60 single crystal

Applications of high temperature superconductors

Large dimension bulk and rod superconductors

Fabrication of mercury superconductor tape

Fabrication of bismuth superconducting tape

Notes

Chapter 5 Inside and Outside the Media Halo

"Changing a bird shotgun for a cannon"

"Heroes behind the scenes"

The "Little United Nations" of the Superconductivity Center

"The fame of a general is built upon the ashes of millions of dead soldiers"

Chapter 6 "Our" Patent

He applied for a patent for "Us"

An eighteen-year-old mystery

Requesting internal mediation

Ripple effects?

Lawyer's evidence

Nine years of difficult road of "rights protection"

Who is the co-inventor of the patent?

Thoughts on the "Time limitations of legal action"

Who's to judge?

Photos

▲Part 2: A Life on Two Sides of the Ocean

Prologue

Chapter 1: Growing up and Schooling

My father and mother

A tomboy hiding from the Japanese

A young girl's dreams of becoming a writer

From a young Miss to a country girl

Toward becoming a STEM girl

University life

The great calamity of the Cultural Revolution

Notes

Chapter 2: My Forty-Year American Journey

Flying to the new continent

My Chinese colleagues from the Physics Department of UH

The helping hands of overseas Chinese

American friends

The shadow of the FBI

Chapter 3: Different Worlds

The rigor of the Germans

The tolerance and taste of the French

The pragmatism of the Japanese

Italy's "famous brand"

Chapter 4: The Wide-Open World Outside of the Lab

Serving the community

Giving back to my Alma Mater

Starting an offshore wind power plant

Promoting the application of high-temperature superconductors

Singing, drawing, and fundraising for the scientific research innovation award

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