Physicist introduction - Hawking

On January 8, 1942, Hawking was born in Oxford, England. This is the day when the great physicist and astronomer Galileo passed away 300 years ago. Galileo was the first to propose the principle of the law of inertia (all objects will maintain their original state of motion when not acted upon by external forces). Later Newton systematically summarized this law (so later generations also called it "Newton's first law") , making it the cornerstone of all mechanical laws. Einstein proposed the special theory of relativity and the general theory of relativity, which completely changed mankind's concept of time and space. How does Hawking's achievements compare with these predecessors? Does he deserve to be inducted into the Science Hall of Fame? Let's start with his first appearance in academia:

In 1970, the 28-year-old Hawking collaborated with R. Penrose to prove the "Singularity Theorem": Under certain conditions Next, according to the general theory of relativity, the Big Bang must have started from a "singularity". For this, they jointly won the Wolf Prize in Physics in 1988.

Hawking's contribution - research on the properties of black holes and proposing the quantum theory of gravity - is not as important as Newton's law of universal gravitation and Einstein's two theories of relativity, but it is enough to earn him a place in the Science Hall of Fame Leave a place in it. In particular, his theory of quantum gravity integrates the two major fields of modern physics and forms a system of its own, allowing him to be on an equal footing with the scientists who created molecular biology (a successful combination of biology and quantum mechanics).

Before Hawking, all theories of the universe were based on general relativity, but only Hawking discovered and proved that general relativity is only an incomplete theory, and it cannot tell us the details of the origin of the universe. Because according to the conclusion drawn by general relativity, all physical theories (including itself) will fail at the beginning of the universe. Obviously, general relativity is only an incomplete "partial" theory, so what the singularity theorem really shows is that there was a moment in the very early universe when the universe was so small that one had to consider using 20 century's other great "partial" theory—quantum mechanics, which specifically describes the microscopic world—to study it. Hawking and his partners were forced to move from theoretical research on extremely large scales to theoretical research on extremely small scales.

There happens to be such a possible micro-celestial body that can be used as a research object. As Hawking later recalled: "Studying the properties of black holes will help us understand the big bang singularity at the same time, because they are so similar." So he began to concentrate on studying the problem of black holes.

Term explanation Black hole: A massive star that has burned out its interior will continue to collapse and shrink toward the center due to its own gravity, eventually forming a dense black hole. Black holes are physical particles in the universe. Their volumes tend to be zero, and their density (density = mass ÷ volume) is almost infinite. Due to their strong gravity, as long as objects are close to these particles, they will be attracted by the strong gravity, even if they are close to them. Light that travels 300,000 kilometers per second is not immune. In other words, no signal can be transmitted from the scope of the black hole. The limit of this scope is called the "event horizon", and humans cannot see the situation inside - for observers, it is pitch black - This is also the origin of the name black hole.

In 1971, Hawking pointed out that the Big Bang may have produced "primordial black holes" as small as protons (radius 10-13 cm) weighing about one billion tons, and their lifespans are about the same as the age of the universe. .

In 1973, Hawking, B. Carter and others strictly proved the "black hole hairless theorem": "No matter what kind of black hole, its final properties are determined by only a few physical quantities (mass, angular momentum , charge) is uniquely determined”. That is, after the black hole is formed, only these three conserved quantities that cannot be turned into electromagnetic radiation are left, and all other information ("hair") is lost. J.A. Wheeler, the name of "black holes", jokingly called this feature "black holes are hairless".

Introduction to the famous Chinese physicist

Wu Youxun

Mr. Wu Youxun was admitted to the Department of Physics and Chemistry of Nanjing Normal University in 1916 and was taught by Dr. Hu Gangfu who had returned from studying in the United States. . Under the guidance of Mr. Hu, Wu Youxun gained a certain understanding of X-rays in China. In 1921, he got the opportunity to study in the United States with excellent results.

At the end of that year, Wu Youxun went to the United States and entered the University of Chicago in early 1922. At that time, the famous physicist A.H. Compton was engaged in research and teaching at the University of Chicago as a visiting scholar. In 1923, he officially became a professor at the school. In May of that year, Compton published an explanation of the X-ray radiation by graphite. Paper on the phenomenon of frequency change after scattering (hereinafter referred to as the Compton effect). Duane, an important figure in the American physics community who was also studying this phenomenon at that time, already had the theory of the so-called "box effect" and "tertiary radiation", so he strongly opposed Compton's work. Wu Youxun has done a lot of in-depth research on more than a dozen elements as scattering materials. Through carefully designing experimental plans, he has given great support to Compton's theory with irrefutable facts. These achievements have received attention and recognition from the international physics community. Relevant data have been cited in some international works. Mr. Wu received his doctorate in 1926. Some foreign physics textbooks refer to the Compton effect as the Compton-Wu Youxun effect out of respect for Mr. Wu's work.

Yan Jici

Mr. Yan went to France to study in 1923 and received a doctorate in science in 1927. In 1880, the famous physicist Pierre Curie discovered the piezoelectric effect of crystals, but the quantitative data of the piezoelectric effect was obtained through in-depth research and precise measurements by Mr. Yan. Yan Jici's mentor was the physicist Charles Fabry, who was a good friend of the Curies. Marie Curie was very supportive of Mr. Yan’s research and lent the quartz crystal sample used by Curie forty years ago to Yan Jici. The famous physicist Langevin also appreciated Yan Jici very much and gave him a lot of guidance and help. Based on a large number of experiments, Mr. Yan concluded that the piezoelectric effect of quartz crystal and its counter-effect have characteristics such as anisotropy, saturation phenomenon and instantaneity, and expanded and developed Curie's theory. In 1927, Fabbri was elected as an academician of the French Academy of Sciences. At the inauguration ceremony, he read out the doctoral thesis of his favorite disciple, Yan Jici. Mr. Yan returned to China in 1931. In 1935, he was elected as a director of the French Physical Society at the same time as the famous physicist F. Joliot-Curie and Kapitsa.

Zhao Zhongyao

In 1927, Mr. Zhao Zhongyao went to the California Institute of Technology to study under Milligan, the 1923 Nobel Prize winner, and received his doctorate in 1930. In 1979, at the inauguration ceremony of the "Petra" accelerator at the Synchrotron Radiation Center in West Germany, Ting Zhaozhong introduced Zhao Zhongyao to hundreds of scientists from more than ten countries: "This is the earliest discoverer of the generation and annihilation of electrons and positrons. There is no one like him." It was discovered that there is no current electron-positron collider." This refers to Mr. Zhao's study of the second topic given by Milligan (the first topic was rejected by Mr. Zhao) "The absorption coefficient of hard gamma rays passing through matter." At the time, anomalous absorption and special radiation phenomena were measured. The so-called anomaly is that it is very different from the Klein-Nishina formula that was relatively recognized at the time, that is, it is only consistent with the scattering on light elements but has a big difference when passing through heavy elements, such as when hard gamma rays are scattered by lead The absorption coefficient is about 40% larger than the formula result. Because Milligan believed in the results of the Klein-PeopleSoft formula but did not believe in Mr. Zhao's results, he even put the paper on hold for more than 2 months. Later, because Professor Bowen was very familiar with Mr. Zhao's work and assured Milligan, the article was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States in May 1930. In the following experiments, Zhao Zhongyao discovered that when gamma rays are scattered by lead, in addition to Compton scattering, a special optical radiation appears along with anomalous absorption. Since the methods used at that time could not reveal the detailed mechanism, it could only be concluded that these two phenomena were not caused by electrons in the outer shell of the nucleus but by the nucleus. In fact, anomalous absorption is the result of the reduction of positron and negative electron pairs generated by gamma rays around the nucleus, and special radiation is the annihilation radiation of two (or more) photons produced by the collision and annihilation of a positron and a negative electron.

Wang Ganchang

Mr. Ding Zhaozhong once said: "The older generation of Chinese physicists who can leave their names in the history of science include Mr. Zhao Zhongyao and Wang Ganchang."

Wang In 1930, he was admitted as a government-sponsored foreign student and went to the Wilhelm Institute of Chemistry at the University of Berlin, Germany, where he studied under Meitner. He had the honor to listen to Born, Mises, Heitler, and Noetherhai in G?ttingen and Berlin University. Classes by Tom, Frank, Schr?dinger and Debye.

In 1933, at the age of 26, Mr. Wang completed his doctoral thesis "Beta Spectrum of ThB+C+C11". At the end of the year, the defense committee composed of famous physicists von Laue, Bodenstein and Meitner reviewed and approved Wang Ganchang's thesis. doctoral thesis. In January 1934, Wang Ganchang visited the Cavendish Laboratory and met with physicists such as Rutherford and Chadwick. Returned to China in April 1934.

Mr. Wang’s scientific contributions mainly include: proposing an experimental plan to verify the existence of neutrinos; studying the decay characteristics of muons using cosmic rays; discovering anti-sigma negative hyperons for the first time; observing for the first time Antiparticles with strange quarks produced in the interaction of elementary particles won the first prize of the National Invention Award in 1982.

Mr. Wang participated in the experimental research and organizational leadership of my country's two bombs development, and is one of the main founders of my country's nuclear weapons development.

Qian Xuesen

Qian Xuesen (1911—), Chinese scientist and rocket expert, was born in Shanghai on December 1, 1911. He came to Beijing with his father when he was 3 years old. He graduated from Shanghai in 1934 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Jiaotong University. In 1935, he went to the United States to study aeronautical engineering and aerodynamics. In 1938, he received a doctorate from the California Institute of Technology. Later, he stayed in the United States as a lecturer, associate professor, professor, director of the Supersonic Laboratory and director of the Guggenheim Jet Propulsion Research Center. In 1950, he began to strive to return to his motherland. He was persecuted by the US government and lost his freedom. It took him 5 years to return to his motherland in 1955. Since 1958, he has held long-term technical leadership positions in the development of rockets, missiles and spacecraft. In 1959, he joined the Communist Party of China. He currently serves as the Honorary Chairman of China Science and Technology Association.

Qian Xuesen entered the Department of Aeronautical Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1935. At that time, the United States was the only one with an aerodynamics laboratory at the California Institute of Technology, whose director was the famous Hungarian scholar von Kármán (also translated as von Kármán). Von Karman was also an accomplished physicist in his early years and was one of Max Born's good friends and partners. Later, Kamen specialized in fluid dynamics and aerodynamics, becoming a renowned authority in both areas. In the autumn of 1936, Mr. Qian went to California to visit Carmen. Carmen admired Qian Xuesen's quick and intelligent thinking very much and suggested that Qian Xuesen come to him to study for a doctorate. From then on, Qian Xuesen specialized in high-speed aerodynamics under the guidance of Carmen. Chinese students have won Carmen's special affection. In addition to Mr. Qian, he also trained famous Chinese mathematicians and scientists such as Lin Jiaqiao, Qian Weichang and Guo Yonghuai. He often said: "There are two smartest nations in the world, one is Hungary and the other is China."

Under Karman's guidance, Qian Xuesen published 8 papers in magazines such as "Aviation Science" and "Applied Mechanics" from 1933 to 1945, introduced the Karman-Qian Xuesen formula, and proposed the transonic flow similarity Law and many other pioneering works. In 1945, Kamen served as the head of the U.S. Air Force Scientific Advisory Group and was awarded the rank of major general. Qian Xuesen was appointed the leader of the rocket team of the advisory group and was awarded the rank of colonel. After the end of World War II, the U.S. Air Force authorities spoke highly of Qian Xuesen's work and believed that he had made a huge contribution to the victory of the war. Kamen even valued his protégé and called him the most capable expert in rocketry. After many hardships, Qian Xuesen was able to return to China in 1955 and laid the foundation for the development of rockets, missiles and aerospace technology in New China. In 1991, he won the title of "National Scientist with Outstanding Contribution".

Qian Sanqiang

Qian Sanqiang (1913-1992), Chinese experimental physicist, Wuxing County, Zhejiang Province. He was admitted to the preparatory science department of Peking University in 1929, admitted to the Department of Physics of Tsinghua University in 1932, and graduated from the Department of Physics of Tsinghua University in 1936. In 1937, he went to France to study. Under the guidance of Joliot Curie and his wife, he conducted research on nuclear physics in the Curie Laboratory of the Radium Institute of the University of Paris and the Nuclear Chemistry Laboratory of the Collège de France. In 1940, he received a French national doctorate. At the end of 1942, he went to Lyon to wait to return to China by ship. Due to the interruption of the Pacific route, he stayed at the University of Lyon to teach. From 1944 to 1947, he served as a researcher and research tutor at the French National Center for Scientific Research. In 1946, he won the Henri Debauer Prize of the French Academy of Sciences. After returning to China in 1948, he served as professor of the Department of Physics of Tsinghua University and director of the Institute of Atomic Science of the Peking Research Institute.

After the establishment of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, he served as deputy director and director of the Institute of Modern Physics, deputy director and director of the Planning Bureau, and secretary-general of the Academic Secretariat. From 1956 to 1978, he served as deputy secretary-general. From 1958, he served as director of the Institute of Atomic Energy from 1978 to 1984. He served as Vice President for 1955; in 1955, he was appointed as a member of the Department of Mathematical Physics and Chemistry (now the Department of Mathematical Physics), a member of the Presidium of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and a special consultant. From 1956 to 1978, he also served as deputy minister of the Second Ministry of Machinery Industry. He was elected as the Vice Chairman of the Chinese Physical Society in 1951 and as the Chairman in 1982. In 1978, he was selected as a member of the Standing Committee of the Sixth National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference. He died of illness in Beijing at 0:28 on June 28, 1992, at the age of 79.

After Qian Sanqiang returned to China in 1948, he trained a group of talents engaged in nuclear science research and established a base for nuclear science research in China. Since 1955, he has participated in the establishment and organization of the atomic energy undertaking and transformed the Institute of Modern Physics into the Institute of Atomic Energy.

He has led and promoted the development of this undertaking and the development of related scientific and technological work, and has contributed greatly to the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Institute of Atomic Energy. Contributions have been made to the construction, planning and academic leadership of China's atomic energy industry.

In 1937, Qian Sanqiang was admitted to the Sino-French Education Fund Committee to study in France as a publicly funded student. Xia arrived in Paris, and Yan Jici, who was attending a meeting in France at the time, personally introduced him to Hélène Curie. Irene Curie and Joliot Curie are known as the "Little Curies". After Qian Sanqiang entered the Curie Laboratory, he tried to do as much specific work as possible. In addition to my own thesis work, I also help others when I have the opportunity. The purpose is to learn more experimental skills. Someone asked him why he was like this? Qian Sanqiang said: "I can't compare to you. There are so many people here, and everyone does their own thing. When I return to China, I will be alone. I have to be able to do everything." Just ask here and there. More than two years of laboratory work have enabled Qian Sanqiang to add rich knowledge and practical skills.

When Hitler's troops occupied France in 1939, Qian Sanqiang and his colleagues tried to escape, but failed. At this time, his funding for studying abroad at public expense was interrupted, he could not return to his country, and he had no livelihood if he stayed. When Qian Sanqiang was in the most difficult time, Joliot, who was unwilling to leave France, extended a helping hand to him. He said: "In this case, let's keep the idea. As long as we can survive, experiment If the room is still open, we can always try to arrange it for you." In 1943, Qian Sanqiang returned to Paris and continued to do research in the Curie Laboratory until he returned to China. Qian Sanqiang not only completed his studies, but also became a famous physicist due to his outstanding contributions. In 1946, the research team he led used nuclear latex to study uranium fission and discovered the famous phenomenon of three fission and four fission of uranium nuclei, and won the French Academy of Sciences Henri Debard Microphysics Prize. Joliot once said: "The tri-fission and quadruple fission of uranium nuclei have been an important task in the French nuclear physics community since World War II." In 1947, Qian Sanqiang served as a research instructor at the French National Center for Scientific Research.

When Qian Sanqiang returned to China in 1948, the younger Curies and his wife wrote a comment about him: "He is full of enthusiasm for scientific undertakings, and he is intelligent and creative. We can say without exaggeration that in those Among the scientists of the same generation who came to our laboratory and were mentored by us, he was the most outstanding... Our country recognized Mr. Qian's talents and appointed him to the high positions of researcher and research mentor at the National Scientific Research Center. . He has been awarded by the French Academy of Sciences."

"Mr. Qian is also an excellent organizational worker, and he possesses all the qualities required by leaders of research institutions in terms of spirituality, science and technology. "

Peng Huanwu

In the book "My Life and My Views", Born mentioned: "Among my students there are four very talented Chinese people. "One of them is Huang Kun..." and the other three are Peng Huanwu, Cheng Kaijia and Yang Liming.

Peng Huanwu was born in Changchun City, Jilin Province in 1915. In the autumn of 1938, he went to England to study with Born at the University of Edinburgh. He received a doctorate in philosophy in 1940 and a doctorate in science in 1945. He returned to China at the end of 1947. Born recalled in his book "My Life": "My first Chinese student was a short but strong young man named Peng (Huan Wu).

He was extremely talented...I remember once he made a mistake on a theoretical issue. After the mistake was found, he was so frustrated that he decided to give up scientific research and instead write a big "Encyclopedia of Science" for the Chinese people. , including all important Western discoveries and technological methods. When I said that I thought it was too big a task for one man, he replied that one Chinese could do the work of ten Europeans. ... He was appointed professor at the Schr?dinger Institute for Advanced Study in Dublin, Ireland, as successor to W. Heitler, ... I think Peng was the first Chinese to get a professorship in Europe. A few years later he decided to return to China. Before leaving, he came to visit us and went with us (referring to the Born family, author's note) to Ulapool in the northwest highlands of Scotland, where we were on holiday. ...We had a wonderful few days together. Then he left and we never saw him again, nor did he write. Born said: "Peng is very simple except for his mysterious talents. He looks like a strong farmer." "The lines in Born's words reveal his love, appreciation and longing for this stubborn young man from northern China. When Mr. Peng was in the UK, he collaborated with Heitler on meson theory, and in 1945 due to his contribution to theoretical physics He shared with Born the Mechidugal-Brisbane Prize of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. After returning to China, he continued to conduct research on nuclear physics and proposed a calculation method based on the electronic bond wave function in 1956-1957. Under his leadership, Deng Jiaxian collaborated with He Zuoxiu, Xu Jianming, Yu Min and others to publish a series of important papers and did pioneering work for China's nuclear physics research.

Mr. Peng won the first prize of the National Natural Science Award in 1982. Award. In 1985, he won the National Science and Technology Progress Special Award.

Yang Zhenning

Yang Zhenning (1922-), a Chinese-American, theoretical physicist, was born in Anhui Province on October 1, 1922. Hefei County (today's Hefei City).

Completed his bachelor's thesis under the guidance of Wu Dayou in the Department of Physics of Southwest Associated University. After graduation in 1942, he entered the graduate school for further study and studied statistical physics in 1945 under the guidance of Wang Zhuxi. He went to the United States and became a graduate student at the University of Chicago.

He was influenced by E. Fermi and completed his doctoral thesis under the guidance of his mentor E. Teller. He received his doctorate in 1948 and served as a faculty member at the University of Chicago from 1948 to 1949. , worked at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton from 1948 to 1955, and was a professor at the Institute from 1955 to 1966. In 1966, he was appointed as Einstein Physics Professor at the State University of New York

Stony Brook

Chair professor and director of the newly established Institute of Theoretical Physics of the school. The President of the United States awarded him the National Medal of Science and Technology in 1985. On December 27, 1948, Peking University awarded Yang Zhenning an honorary professor certificate.

< p>Yang Zhenning’s contributions to theoretical physics are wide-ranging, including in the fields of elementary particles, statistical mechanics, and condensed matter physics. He has made many contributions to theoretical structures and phenomenological analysis.

Deng Jiaxian.

Deng Jiaxian (1924-1986), a Chinese nuclear physicist, was born on June 25, 1924 in Huaining, Anhui. His grandfather was a famous calligrapher and seal engraver in the Qing Dynasty, and his father was a famous esthetician and seal engraver. Art historian. After the July 7th Incident, his family stayed in Peiping. At the age of 16, he followed his sister to Jiangjin, Sichuan, where he studied in the physics department of Southwest Associated University from 1941 to 1945. After the victory of the Anti-Japanese War in 1945, he studied under famous professors. , moved back to Peiping, and applied to teach in the Department of Physics of Peking University. In 1948, he went to Purdue University in Indiana, USA, to study as a graduate student, and was elected to the general committee of the "Study in the United States". The birth of New China prompted him to return to his motherland as soon as possible. In August 1950, on the ninth day after receiving his degree, he overcame many obstacles and boarded the ship back home. In October 1950, he worked as an assistant researcher at the Institute of Modern Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. In August 1958, he was transferred to New Zealand. He served as the director of the theoretical department of the newly established Nuclear Weapons Research Institute, responsible for leading the theoretical design of nuclear weapons. He later served as deputy director and director of the institute, deputy director and director of the Ninth Research and Design Institute of the Ministry of Nuclear Industry, and deputy director of the Science and Technology Committee of the Ministry of Nuclear Industry. , deputy director of the Science and Technology Committee of the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense, is the main organizer and leader of the research and development of nuclear weapons in our country.

He joined the Communist Party of China in 1956 and served as a member of the 12th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Suffered from rectal cancer in July 1985, and continued to work until the last moment of his life. He died in Beijing on July 29, 1986, at the age of 62.

Li Zhengdao

Li Zhengdao (1926—), a theoretical physicist. Born in Shanghai on November 25, 1926. From 1943 to 1944, he studied in the Physics Department of Zhejiang University (when he was a first-year student in Yongxing, Guizhou). He was inspired by his teacher Shu Xingbei and began his academic career. In 1944, he was suspended from school due to injuries caused by a rollover. In 1945, he transferred to the Department of Physics of Southwest Associated University in Kunming. In 1946, on the recommendation of his teacher Wu Dayou, he received a national scholarship to further his studies in the United States and entered the Graduate School of the University of Chicago. In the spring of 1948, Li Zhengdao passed the graduate qualification examination and began research on his doctoral thesis under the guidance of Fermi.

At the end of 1949, under the guidance of Fermi, Li Zhengdao completed his doctoral thesis on white dwarf stars and received his doctorate. After that, he worked as a lecturer and engaged in research in the Department of Astronomy of the school for half a year and the Department of Physics of the University of California (Berkeley) for one year.

In 1950, Li Zhengdao married Qin Huijun, a college student from Shanghai. They have two children. The eldest son, Li Zhongqing, is currently a history professor at the California Institute of Technology; the second son, Li Zhonghan, is currently an assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Michigan. In 1951, he went to work at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton. He was appointed assistant professor of physics at Columbia University in 1953, associate professor in 1955, and professor in 1956. He won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1957. From 1960 to 1963, he was a professor at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton and a professor at Columbia University. In 1963, he was appointed chair professor of physics at Columbia University. In 1964, he was appointed as Fermi chair professor of physics at the same university. In 1983, he was appointed as full chair professor at the university. He is also a member of the National Academy of Sciences.

Lee Tsung-dao's outstanding contribution to modern physics is: in 1956, he collaborated with Yang Zhenning to conduct in-depth research on the then confusing "θ?γ" mystery, that is, there were two different types of K mesons later called There are two ways of decay: one decays into an even parity state, and the other decays into an odd parity state. Recognize that it is quite possible that parity is not conserved in weak interactions. Several experimental approaches are further proposed to test whether parity is conserved in weak interactions. The following year, this theoretical prediction was confirmed experimentally by Wu Jianxiong's group. Therefore, the work of Tsung-Dao Lee and Chen-Ning Yang was quickly recognized by the academic community and won the 1957 Nobel Prize in Physics.

Ding Zhaozhong

Ding Zhaozhong (1936—), experimental physicist. His ancestral home is Rizhao, Shandong. In 1956, he went to the University of Michigan in the United States and studied in the Department of Physics and Mathematics. He received a master's degree in 1960 and a doctorate in physics in 1962. In 1963, he received a scholarship from the Ford Foundation to work at CERN in Geneva, Switzerland. He has worked at Columbia University in the United States since 1964. In 1965, he became a lecturer at Columbia University in New York. He has been a professor in the Department of Physics at MIT since 1967. His research direction is high-energy experimental particle physics, including research on quantum electrodynamics, electroweak unified theory, and quantum chromodynamics. The Mark Jie experimental group led by him has worked in several international experimental centers.

Due to Ting Zhaozhong’s contribution to physics, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1976 (for the discovery of the J/Ψ particle), the Lorentz Prize by the U.S. government, and the Italian Government in 1988. Casperi Science Prize. He is an academician of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States, an academician of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, a foreign academician of the Academy of Sciences of the former Soviet Union, an academician of the Academia Sinica in Taipei, China, and an academician of the Pakistan Academy of Sciences. He has been awarded honorary doctorates by the University of Michigan (1978), the Chinese University of Hong Kong (1987), the University of Bologna, Italy (1988), and Columbia University (1990). He is an honorary professor at Shanghai Jiao Tong University and Beijing Normal University in China. He has received many medals, such as the Ellin Gold Medal from the American Society of Engineering Sciences in 1977, the Golden Leopard Excellence Award from Taormina, Italy, and the Science Gold Medal from Brescia, Italy in 1988.

He is also an editorial board member of scientific journals such as "Nuclear Physics B", "Nuclear Instruments and Methods" and "Mathematical Modeling".