China News Service, Hefei, September 6th. Title: "Post-90s" He Yu: Using quantum as a ruler, measure the path of youth by "creating rituals for the country"
China News Service reporter Chu Weiwei
"This instrument is related to the accuracy of a country's understanding of the microscopic world." He Yu, co-founder of Guoyi Quantum Technology (Hefei) Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Guoyi Quantum") and a "post-90s", explained quantum precision measurement to a reporter from China News Service on the 5th: relying on quantum technology to detect the tiniest signals of matter is like equipping the world with a pair of "quantum eyes", and any tiny changes will be invisible.
From starting in a small office of 14 square meters, to building the electron paramagnetic resonance spectrometer with the highest signal-to-noise ratio in the world, and then to National Instrument Quantum being listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange's Science and Technology Innovation Board in August this year, He Yu has always kept in mind the original intention of "making instrument for the country".
The picture shows He Yu operating an electron paramagnetic resonance spectrometer. (Data map, courtesy of Guoyi Quantum)
Breakthrough from zero
When he was 18 years old, He Yu, who was still an undergraduate at the University of Science and Technology of China (hereinafter referred to as "USTC"), listened to Academician Du Jiangfeng's talk about the various constraints such as temporary price increases and maintenance difficulties on imported instruments. “It was like a light hit me, and the next day I decided I wanted to get involved,” he recalls.
When the company developed an electron paramagnetic resonance spectrometer in its early days, the core indicator signal-to-noise ratio was far from the world's first-class level, and the bottleneck lay in the core components.
"No one has studied it in China for decades, and it is impossible to buy it," He Yu said. This not only requires solving the performance problems of the device itself, but also rebuilding the entire technology context from scratch. It took the team several years to dig out documents from the library that were decades old, sort out and iterate bit by bit, and then achieve full autonomy of the core components.
In the end, the team developed the world's first commercial AI electron paramagnetic resonance spectrometer with a signal-to-noise ratio exceeding 10,000:1, increasing its signal-to-noise ratio to more than three times the previous optimal level.
Turn around twice
From scientific researcher to engineer, this was He Yu's first key change. "When doing research, if one out of 100 experiments succeeds, it is considered a success; but when the product is delivered to customers, if one out of 100 experiments fails to meet expectations, customers will feel that the quality is not good." He realized that reliability and quality have become crucial.
From technical thinking to customer thinking is the second transformation. "You can't hold a hammer and everything looks like a nail. Instead, you need to prepare a tool kit based on customer needs, even predict what customers will need in the future, and make technical reserves in advance." He said.
In the office of Guoyi Quantum, a special banner hangs - "There are still 200 days until the company collapses." They believe that “if there is no innovation and complacency for more than 200 days, although the company has not collapsed, it has actually collapsed.”
This sense of urgency stems from the pragmatic academic philosophy of USTC. "When I was in school, there would be no one returning to the dormitory before 11 p.m., and everyone would be in the classroom." He Yu said that this spirit of hard work, truth-seeking, and being able to "sit on the bench" has been completely passed down to the company. "Making instruments is slow and hard work, but it doesn't matter, just wait for the flowers to bloom."
The picture shows He Yu at work. (Data map, courtesy of Guoyi Quantum)
About the future
He Yu's team has applied quantum precision measurement technology to many fields such as electric power, medical care, and industrial testing, and is committed to opening up the "last mile" from demonstration applications to large-scale applications.
"In the future, we will live in a world where quantum sensors are ubiquitous." He described that they can ensure the security of the power grid in the electric field, use "magnetocardiographs" to diagnose coronary heart disease in the medical field, and detect lithium battery defects at industrial sites. "The next step is to reduce costs and improve quality and environmental suitability. This can be achieved in the next three to five years."
During the interview, He Yu mentioned "lucky" many times—lucky to be in an era that encourages innovation and to be rooted in Hefei, a "hot land for science and technology innovation." "Now is actually the best time, especially for the technology industry. Be bold and give it a try. You will eventually get good results." He smiled. (over)
