On 21-23 May 2018, NTU Singapore hosted a conference in memory of the Nobel Laureate Prof Ahmed Hassan Zewail.

It was jointly organised by the Institute of Advanced Studies at NTU and the Centre for Ultrafast Science and Technology at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, and was held at the Nanyang Executive Centre.

Prof Ahmed Hassan Zewail was an Egyptian-American scientist, known as the ‘father of femtochemistry’. He was awarded the 1999 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work on femtochemistry, and became the first Egyptian to win a Nobel Prize in a scientific field. He was the Linus Pauling Chair Professor of Chemistry, Professor of Physics, and the director of the Physical Biology Center for Ultrafast Science and Technology at the California Institute of Technology. He died in Californa in 2016.

The organisers commented as follows:

‘Prof Zewail was one of the greatest scientists of our time, contributing not only to science, but also to society. He won the 1999 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his pioneering development of Femtochemistry, leading to revolutionary contributions in chemistry and adjacent sciences.

‘More recently, Prof Zewail made the groundbreaking invention of four-dimensional electron microscopy by integrating photons and electrons, thereby enabling the direct observation of fundamental changes in complex systems of materials and biology. These methods have opened up new frontiers and led to exciting new discoveries in physics, chemistry and biology, thus shaping our understanding of their complexity and dynamics.

‘At this conference, we will bring together world leaders from these fields to celebrate Prof Zewail’s contributions to science, discuss new cutting-edge research, and look into future challenges.’

For further enquiries, contact the Conference secretariat at ahmedzewail2018@ntu.edu.sg