Sharp tools make good work. From interstellar exploration in deep space to atomic exploration in the microscopic world, from precise detection in biomedicine to breakthroughs in the development of new materials, every technological achievement relies on the solid support of scientific instruments. Chinese researchers are writing the "New Heavenly Creation" of this era with the spirit of "seeing things through practical work". Recently, a "achievement show" of Chinese scientific instruments kicked off at the National Science and Technology Communication Center, featuring three innovative achievements recommended by the Chinese Instrumentation Society. Our country's scientific instruments have gone through a difficult journey from zero foundation to tracking and imitation, and now some high-end instruments have reached the level of international competition. ”Gao Hongjun, an academician of the CAS Member and the Academy of Sciences for Developing Countries, said, "In recent years, the gap between China's scientific instruments and the international top level has become smaller and smaller, and the speed of catching up is very encouraging.". As a cutting-edge field in human exploration of life and the mysteries of the universe, space life science focuses on three major directions: exploring the origin of life, verifying the feasibility of Earth's life in space, and searching for extraterrestrial life. Life science experiments have almost stringent requirements for sterility, temperature control, gas environment, etc. However, space is not a friendly laboratory. Extreme environments such as microgravity, strong radiation, high vacuum, and extreme temperature differences, coupled with the extremely limited space and resources inside spacecraft, are all "roadblocks" that are difficult to overcome. How to solve the problem? The "Space Life Science Instrument" built by the Shanghai Institute of Technical Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences takes "closed life support+AI driven in-situ observation+automated precision control" as the core technology chain, and builds a high functional density integrated experimental platform. The system was launched into orbit with the Wentian experimental module on July 24, 2022. So far, it has supported the completion of more than 40 space life science tasks, promoting China's space life science research from "simple single experiment" to "complex system research" stage. The first challenge that "space life science instruments" overcome is the difficulty of "life support". Plants require light and nutrient solutions, cells crave constant temperature and sterility, and insects rely on stable gas ratios. "We should be familiar with the habits of each kind of organism, and ensure that the materials they contact are non-toxic and harmless, and the living environment is clean and up to standard." At the press conference, Zhang Tao, a second level researcher at the Chinese Academy of Sciences Shanghai Institute of Technical Physics, introduced that the team has customized a survival plan for each kind of organism through interdisciplinary collaboration and repeated communication with biologists. In situ observation is the second threshold. On the ground, scientists can take out samples for observation at any time; But in space, all observations must be automatically completed in a sealed container. For this purpose, the project team developed a multimodal microscopy imaging system that integrates functional modalities such as bright field, fluorescence, and laser confocal microscopy, and endows it with the ability to "autonomously search". With the help of intelligent algorithms, microscopes can automatically search and locate cells in suspended liquids with micrometer precision, and transmit images for ground scientists to remotely confirm observation targets. Fine control is the third challenge. Under microgravity conditions, the behavior of gases and liquids differs greatly from that on the ground. Taking cell culture fluid exchange as an example, it can be completed on the ground through centrifugation and pouring, while in space it requires complete reliance on mechanical automation. The team has designed a "slow injection diffusion" liquid exchange system through fluid simulation and structural innovation, which uses new liquid to slowly push old liquid, completing replacement while avoiding sample damage. Every action is precisely controlled by the program to minimize errors, "said Zhang Tao. In response to the limited space and valuable resources of spacecraft, the R&D team adopts a "shared platform+customized unit" design: the microscope, temperature control, gas control and other common equipment are centrally integrated, and the experimental specific requirements are integrated into standardized personalized units. This mode not only avoids resource waste, but also adapts to various experiments, greatly improving resource utilization. Nowadays, researchers from the Wentian experimental module have taken the lead internationally in achieving the full life cycle space cultivation of rice from seed to seed, providing important basis for future space food crop cultivation; Creating a 43 day closed "fish algae" aquatic ecosystem, breaking Germany's world record of 16 days, laying the foundation for building a long-term space ecological cycle; Building the world's first "microgravity sub magnetic" composite environment experimental platform, successfully achieving in orbit propagation experiments of fruit flies. From the early "black box" type single experimental device to the "space laboratory", from single experiments to system platforms, China's space life science instruments have gone through a climbing path from scratch and from weakness to strength. Zhang Tao said, "Looking up at the starry sky, our journey is a sea of stars, but every step must be down-to-earth." The "Chinese solution" for innovative high-end scientific research instruments in the field of nanoscience research is the scanning probe microscope system, which is an indispensable high-end instrument. At the atomic and molecular scale, it is like the eyes and hands of researchers, capable of "seeing" the mysteries of matter and completing detection, as well as achieving single atom manipulation. Therefore, it is widely used in fields such as physics, materials, chemistry, and quantum technology. In the past, China's high-end scanning probe microscope systems have long relied on imports. Moreover, traditional low-temperature scanning probe microscopy systems often require the use of refrigerants such as liquid nitrogen and helium to create an extremely low temperature environment of 4K (4 Kelvin is approximately equivalent to minus 269.15 degrees Celsius) and below that meets the high-performance operation requirements of the system. This requires importing expensive liquid helium and frequent refueling, which not only increases costs and reduces experimental efficiency, but sometimes even leads to experimental failure. In response to this problem, the Huanqing team of the Institute of Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, after more than 10 years of research and development, has developed a 3K cryogenic scanning probe microscope without liquid helium by using the original remote liquefaction refrigeration technology, achieving international leadership in key performance indicators. Helium is a non renewable resource, and liquid helium free refrigeration technology has become an important direction for future development. ”Huan Qing, deputy director of the Nanophysics and Devices Laboratory of the Institute of Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said, however, because the scanning probe microscope system has extremely strict requirements for vibration level, the application of closed cycle liquid helium free refrigeration technology in this field still faces many challenges. In response, the R&D team has taken a different approach and proposed a "separate" remote refrigeration solution. Installing the refrigeration unit at a remote location, using a small amount of helium gas as a sealed cycle refrigerant, cooling and liquefying the helium gas through a compressor, and then cooling the instrument, making it repeatedly used like Freon in refrigerators and air conditioners. It can maintain a stable low-temperature environment below 3K (about -270.15 degrees Celsius) for a long time without consuming liquid helium, providing favorable conditions for scientists to conduct long-term frontier exploration and significantly reducing operating costs. The team's efforts have paid off, and the liquid helium free sub-3K low-temperature scanning probe microscope system has been promoted and applied in many universities in China, producing multiple cutting-edge achievements and becoming an independently controllable cutting-edge research tool in the field of nanoscience and other cutting-edge fields in China. At present, the team is working on developing scanning probe microscope equipment with lower temperatures and more expanded functions. When it comes to advice for young researchers, Xun Qing said, "When doing scientific research, one should sit on the cold bench and not be too eager for quick success. Many things can only produce good results through long-term accumulation." 3-chip ceramic packaging substrate visual inspection technology has refined the "sharp eye" chip as the core of modern electronic devices, driving digital devices from smartphones to supercomputers. Little known is that all chips rely on a key component - the packaging substrate, which not only carries and protects the chip, but also provides heat dissipation and energy supply for the chip, as well as an electrical channel connecting the chip with other electronic devices. If chips are high-rise buildings, then the packaging substrate is the power supply, water supply, heating system, and foundation of the building, "said Yu Ruiyun, director of the Information Construction and Network Security Office at Northeastern University and a professor at the School of Software, metaphorically. Ceramic material packaging substrates are the preferred choice for high-power, high-temperature, and high-frequency device packaging. Their manufacturing process is complex and requires extremely high precision in defect detection - requiring fast and accurate identification of micrometer or even nanometer level defects. For a long time, domestic ceramic packaging substrates have mainly relied on manual testing, which not only has strong subjective dependence and inconsistent testing standards, but also has relatively low efficiency, making it difficult to meet the needs of high-precision and large-scale production. Due to difficulties such as a small number of defect samples and complex types of defects, high-precision and standardized visual inspection is difficult to achieve, posing significant challenges to the accuracy, generalization, and universality of existing algorithms. Previously, the high-end testing equipment technology for packaging substrates had long been monopolized by foreign countries, and the domestic industrial chain was constrained in this critical link, becoming a bottleneck for the upgrading of China's integrated circuit industry. Professor Yu Ruiyun's team at Northeastern University has independently developed the "Chip Ceramic Packaging Substrate Visual Inspection Technology" to address the above difficulties and challenges. Combining cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence, computer vision, industrial software, and intelligent manufacturing, it has achieved intelligent recognition and precise classification of micro - and nano level defects. In response to the data dilemma of "a clever woman cannot cook without rice", Professor Yu Ruiyun led a team to enter the leading enterprises of chip ceramic packaging substrates, go deep into the front line of the industry, and carry out large-scale data collection work. After nearly two years of effort, the team has collected over 140000 data samples and developed two AI models based on the dataset - the "Qingque" industrial product surface defect detection model and the "Yuxia" defect sample generation model, achieving significant breakthroughs in intelligent defect detection and defect sample generation. In addition, the team has independently designed and developed a full range of key process defect detection equipment and production control systems for chip ceramic packaging. At present, the relevant achievements have been implemented and applied in multiple enterprises, significantly improving the yield rate and the level of intelligent production lines. The 'Qing Que' reveals a faint radiance, while the 'Jade Flaws' give birth to a myriad of phenomena, revealing the true essence within a micrometer. These two domestically produced models with poetic names not only provide a "sharp eye" for visual inspection of chip ceramic packaging substrates, but also establish an integrated research system of "data algorithm software equipment system", becoming vivid cases of promoting the development of China's integrated circuit industry with new quality productivity, and opening up new feasible paths for the future research and development of China's intelligent manufacturing independent instruments and equipment. (New Society)