Speaking of Qian Sanqiang, many people know about it, but when it comes to He Zehui, many people only know that she is Qian Sanqiang’s wife and know very little about her contribution to physics.

In the late 1960s, a cadre school in Heyang, Shaanxi Province. Qian Sanqiang, who had just been sent to this place for labor reform, suddenly found a hunched-over woman cleaning the toilet. She felt that the figure looked so familiar. When he got closer and saw the woman's face clearly, Qian Sanqiang couldn't help but burst into tears: "Why are you here too?"

The woman who made Qian Sanqiang cry bitterly was his wife. She was also the first female Ph.D. in physics in New China, China's first generation female nuclear physicist, and the first female academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. She was the great scientist He Zehui who was known as "China's Marie Curie ".

Speaking of Qian Sanqiang, many people know about it, but when it comes to He Zehui, many people only know that she is Qian Sanqiang’s wife and know very little about her contribution to physics. On the one hand, this is because there is more publicity about Qian Qian, the founder of two bombs and one star. On the other hand, He Zehui is too low-key. In the eyes of others, she is simply a very inconspicuous old lady.

He Zehui was born on March 5, 1914 in the He family of the famous Lingshi He family in Suzhou . He was originally from Liangdu, Shanxi. The He family was one of the big families of the "Fifth Generation Hanlin" in Shanxi. There is a saying in Shanxi that "there is no reason not to open a subject".

He Zehui's father, He Cheng, was a connoisseur of cultural relics. He was the first person to cut braids in Shanxi and the first student studying in Japan in Shanxi. He graduated from the Japanese Army Non-commissioned Officer School. He followed the Sun Yat-sen revolution in his early years and was one of the earliest members of the Alliance.

He Zehui's mother, Wang Jishan, is a physics translator. She graduated from the normal course of Suzhou Zhenhua Girls' School founded by her mother and worked as a teacher.

He Zehui, who was born in a scholarly family, has been very smart and studious since childhood, and has shown extraordinary talent in science. In 1932, He Zehui graduated from the Suzhou Zhenhua Girls' High School founded by her maternal grandmother, Wang Xiedada, and was immediately admitted to the Department of Physics of Tsinghua University with the first place. Before the exam, her father He Cheng joked with her: "If you get into college, go to college; if you don't, then become a maid." Who knew that He Zehui actually got the first place in the exam.

Who knew that when He Zehui came to Tsinghua to register, he was rejected. The teacher in charge of the registration told He Zehui that the department chair Professor Ye Qisun said "no girls are wanted."

As soon as He Zehui heard this, he immediately went crazy and ran directly to the office of Professor Ye Qisun, the head of the department: "We girls have worked hard to get in, why don't we?"

Professor Ye's answer was obviously a bit serious. Boys take precedence over girls: "You girls will have to get married in the future and it will be difficult to achieve anything in your studies." He Zehui still refused to accept it and argued: "But there is no such clause in the admissions brochure!"

suddenly stopped Professor Ye. There was no way, the admissions brochure was there, and He Zehui and 9 other girls were able to enroll. It is a pity that among these 10 girls, only He Zehui persisted in the end, and the others changed their majors.

Similarly, He Zehui also met his life partner Qian Sanqiang here, who was He Zehui's deskmate at the time.

After graduating from university in 1936, He Zehui was admitted to the Department of Technical Physics of the Technical University of Berlin in Germany to pursue a doctorate, while Qian Sanqiang went to the Institute of Physics of the Peking Academy to do research.

At that time, China was in a period of internal and external difficulties. In order to serve the motherland with what he had learned, the young He Zehui resolutely chose experimental ballistics in the Department of Technical Physics of the Technical University of Berlin in Germany as his professional direction in order to improve the shortcomings of the motherland in weapons development.

It is said that Kranz, the head of the department at the time, once rejected He Zehui: "The Department of Technical Physics is a confidential department and it is impossible to absorb foreigners, let alone female students."

But the stubborn He Zehui did not give up. She said to Kranz very sincerely: "You also went to China to serve as the director of the Department of Military Industry to help us fight the Japanese.Now I am studying this major in order to fight the Japanese devils. Why don't you accept me? "

He Zehui's words also moved the department chair Kranz, who had a certain sympathy for China. He also admired that as a girl, He Zehui still had such a strong desire to serve the country, and for the first time he agreed to enroll her.

After enrolling, He Zehui devoted all his body and mind to He entered into study and devoted himself to the study of weapon design theory. In 1940, He Zehui obtained a doctorate in engineering with the thesis "A New Accurate and Simple Method for Measuring Bullet Flight Speed". It is said that He Zehui chose this topic to solve the problem of low accuracy of domestically produced weapons. ml3

After Dr. He Zehui graduated, the outbreak of World War II also blocked her return to China, so she had to stay in Germany. In 1940, she participated in the research of magnetic materials in the Weak Current Laboratory of the Siemens Factory in Berlin.

In September 1937, Qian Sanqiang came to Paris on the recommendation of Yan Jici and studied for a doctorate with Madame Curie's daughter.

In 1943, He Zehui came to the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Royal Wilhelm Institute in Heidelberg and worked on atomic nuclei under the guidance of Professor Botter. Physics research. Here, He Zehui was so talented that he was the first in the world to observe the collision phenomenon in which positrons and negative electrons almost completely exchange energy. This research result was called "scientific news" by the British " nature ".

Due to the inconvenience of domestic communication, communication between Germany and France was not restored until 1943. After learning that Qian Sanqiang had come to France, He Zehui entrusted Qian Sanqiang to write a letter on her behalf to inform her parents that she was safe.

Since it was during the war, letters sent to foreign countries could not be sealed and were limited to 25 words. He Zehui wrote to ask Qian San She also reported to her parents at home that she was safe.

Because they both study physics, and the two had a good impression of each other during college, the connections between He Zehui and Qian Sanqiang gradually grew.

After two years of swan geese coming and going, the seeds of love took root and sprouted between He Zehui and Qian Sanqiang, just waiting to break out of the ground. In 1945, Qian Sanqiang, who was already 32 years old, finally plucked up the courage and wrote a 25-word proposal letter to He Zehui, who was still in Germany: "After a long period of correspondence, I propose to you a request for marriage. If you agree, please reply and I will wait for you to return to China." "

At this time, Germany was under the fire of the Allied forces. Worries about He Zehui's safety and whether he could receive a reply from He Zehui made Qian Sanqiang restless.

Fortunately, soon, a letter came to Qian Sanqiang to put his mind at ease: "Thank you for your love, I will always be loyal to you. We will return home together after we meet. "

He Zehui agreed to Qian Sanqiang's proposal. In an instant, Qian Sanqiang felt that he was the happiest man in the world.

After the end of World War II, He Zehui resigned from his job in Germany and came to France in April 1946. He held a wedding with Qian Sanqiang in Paris.

After the marriage, He Zehui also joined He joined the Curie Laboratory of the University of Paris and became colleagues with her husband Qian Sanqiang. In early 1947, they officially published a paper confirming the existence of the tri-fission and quadruple fission phenomena of uranium nuclei. He Zehui and Qian Sanqiang were known as the "China's Curie couple". Since it was He Zehui who first discovered the trichotomy, she was called "China's Madame Curie." "

This discovery by He Zehui and Qian Sanqiang was enough to win the Nobel Prize in Physics. However, because China was in a state of civil war at the time, they could only miss the Nobel Prize.

In the summer of 1948, in order to realize their wish to serve the motherland, He Zehui and Qian Sanqiang overcame many difficulties and returned to their long-lost motherland together to participate in the organization of the Institute of Atomic Science of the Peking Research Institute. Build.

Soon after Peiping was peacefully liberated , the Institute of Atomic Science of the Peking Academy was taken over by the Chinese Academy of Sciences and reorganized into the Institute of Modern Physics in May 1950. The heavy responsibility of preparation fell on the shoulders of He Zehui and Qian Sanqiang.

At that time, the People's Republic of China had just been founded. It was really poor and had nothing to offer. Compared with the conditions abroad, it was a world of difference.what to do? He Zehui and Qian Sanqiang were not discouraged. Instead, they ran around, even going to junkyards and flea markets to collect all usable components. They sketched out equipment drawings bit by bit and made equipment by themselves.

Under their leadership, the scale of the Institute of Physics has rapidly expanded from only 5 people at the beginning to 150 people. With the scientific research team, the scientific research of the Institute of Physics is finally on the right track.

At the beginning of 1955, He Zehui actively led the experimental preparations for neutron physics and fission physics.

Nuclear physics research is inseparable from nuclear latex photography technology. At that time, photographic latex was still a confidential technology. China was still blank in this area and could only introduce foreign nuclear latex. However, the sensitivity of latex purchased from abroad often decreases due to time. Without its own nuclear latex, nuclear physics research will be seriously affected.

For this reason, He Zehui was determined to develop his own nuclear latex and get rid of his dependence on foreign products.

Just do it. He Zehui led the team and felt that he knew the nuclear latex knowledge. After hundreds of experiments, he finally made the atomic latex core-2 and nuclear-3 latex that are sensitive to protons, α particles and fission fragments in 1956. The main performance reached the internationally advanced level, laying the foundation for the maturity and improvement of my country's nuclear test technology. This achievement won the 1956 Natural Science Prize of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, which was posthumously recognized as the first National Natural Science Award .

After that, He Zehui led the development of core-2 loaded boron and core-2 loaded lithium latex, using their reaction with neutron to produce charged particles for detection.

The two kinds of latex studied by He Zehui have higher boron and lithium content than foreign ones, and their storage period is also longer. These results played a key role in neutron physics experiments, especially in measuring the ignition neutron source of the atomic bomb .

In 1957, He Zehui's team produced nuclear 5 latex with a more obvious electron track. It was an excellent nuclear latex that was not inferior to the British Ilford G5 latex, which was praised as the world's best. It made a great success in the field of particle research.

Later, the state organized the two bombs and one satellite plan, and both Qian Sanqiang and He Zehui were on the list. But because He Zehui and Qian Sanqiang are members of the same family, and they are women, fate finally included He Zehui in their names.

But during the development process of the first hydrogen bomb , Deng Jiaxian found that one of the important parameters was unreliable. If these parameters were followed, China's hydrogen bomb development might have taken another path, that is, a detour. This parameter must be processed and verified. Deng Jiaxian handed over this task to He Zehui. After receiving the task, He Zehui led researchers at the 401 Research Institute and spent several months testing and verifying it. Similar research abroad basically takes two or three years to complete.

Just when He Zehui and Qian Sanqiang were preparing to continue their efforts in the field of physics, they were sent to Shaanxi Heyang Cadre School for labor reform in 1969. During this period, He Zehui was assigned to clean toilets, feed pigs, hoe the fields and ring bells.

He Zehui was a meticulous person. The clock she struck was exactly the same as the time on the radio, which became a signal for everyone to check the clock at that time.

When Qian Sanqiang came to the cadre school that day, he saw his wife hunched over cleaning the house. He couldn't help crying and was heartbroken.

After the establishment of the Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, in 1973, He Zehui returned as deputy director and was in charge of cosmic ray research, promoting the development of cosmic ray ultra-high energy physics and high-energy astrophysics research in my country.

In 1980, He Zehui was elected as an academician. She was also the first female academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

When the National Science Press published the "Biography Dictionary of Modern Chinese Scientists" in 1994, He Zehui was included in the original plan, but she firmly disagreed to have her biography written. Therefore, after the book was published, He Zehui’s name did not appear in the “Physics” section. Finally, at the insistence of the editorial department, He Zehui's name was added to the last section of the book.

He Zehui, who has made great contributions to the cause of physics in the motherland, is indeed a very low-key person who is indifferent to fame and fortune. This is not only reflected in self-promotion, but also in life.

Even though she is over 90 years old, she still squeezes into the bus to buy groceries by herself. Because she was very unwilling to take up public resources, He Zehui not only refused the arrangement to live in the Academician Building, but she even donated her private residence in Suzhou to the country without hesitation.

Qian Sanqiang passed away on June 28, 1992, but He Zehui never changed the layout of her family. It was still the same as when Qian Sanqiang was alive. This is the best way for her to commemorate Qian Sanqiang.

In September 1999, Qian Sanqiang was posthumously awarded the Two Bombs and One Star Meritorious Service Medal. Someone once asked He Zehui why she was not included in the two bombs and one star meritorious service. She said: The country is such a thing. No matter whether I deserve it or not, I will do whatever is good for the country."

These are our great scientists. They only have love and dedication to the country, and they never have any selfish thoughts of their own. He Zehui's outstanding contributions in the field of physics are in no way inferior to many outstanding scientists of his generation. Even her husband Qian Sanqiang's name is often ranked in front of He Zehui. Many people only know her as Mrs. Qian and know little about the huge contributions she has made. Her name is not on the two bombs and one star merit list, but we all know that behind these successes, there is He Zehui's hard work and sweat!

At 7:39 on June 20, 2011, Academician He Zehui passed away at Peking Union Medical College Hospital at the age of 97.

He Zehui's life can not be more aptly described in the words of a painter: "She is a piece of pure white jade, very simple."