A full quantum effect in condensed matter physics is introduced by taking water as an example. Despite water being a ubiquitous substance, it is surprising that some basic questions are still debated. Here using a combination of experimental (cryogenic STM/AFM) and theoretical (first-principle path integral molecular dynamics) methods, we systematically studied the nuclear quantum effect on a single hydrogen-bonding, cooperative proton transfer and hydration number of water on salt. An imaging mechanism based on a subtle control over the tip-molecule coupling is proposed, which allows an atom level resolution for a water and water clusters. A theory beyond Born-Oppenheimer approximation presents the full quantum effects play a key role in our understanding of water nature on surface.

About the speaker: Enge Wang is the Professor of Physics, Peking University. He is also the Chairman of Advisor Board of Institute of Physics and the Honorary Director of Kavli Institute of Theoretical Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences. He was the Director of the Institute of Physics, the President of Peking University, and the Vice President of Chinese Academy of Sciences from 1999 to 2017.  He was selected as the Vice President of the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP) in 2017, the International Councilor of American Physical Society (APS) in 2018, and the Chairman of Global Cooperation Alliance of Science Centers (GCASC) in 2019. He researches condensed matter physics; the approach is a combination of theoretical and experimental study of full quantum effects on light-element materials.

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