The ubiquitous presence of electromagnetic and acoustic waves means
that their study can be dated back to the antiquities. Their diverse
applications form the very pillars of our modern existence. About two
decades ago, the incipient stage of a revolution began in this classic
field, propelled by both theory and experiments, which demonstrate
the feasibility of realizing man-made materials with wave manipulation
functionalities beyond the defined limits of those found in nature. These
“wave functional materials” include photonic or phononic crystals,
metamaterials and plasmonic structures. In 2013, the Research Grants
Committee of the Hong Kong SAR Government funded an “Areas of
Excellence” project entitled ”Novel Wave Functional Materials for
Manipulating Light and Sound” of which Prof Che Ting Chan, Chair
Professor of Physics at HKUST and Executive Director of IAS is the
Coordinator. This project is the collaboration among 18 faculties from
five local institutions. The AoE Workshop on Wave Functional Materials
was held on 25 March 2015 for the AoE team members to report the
progress of their work in these areas. This workshop is also part of the
IAS Program on Wave Functional Materials.
May 2015
Event Highlights
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