UEC Grad From Ipoh Joins China’s Top University As Principal Investigator After Landmark Superconductor Breakthrough
A Malaysian physicist from an Ipoh Chinese independent school — whose UEC qualification is not recognised by Malaysian public universities — has become a principal investigator at one of China’s most elite universities after publishing a landmark superconductor paper at 27.
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Stephen Chow Lin Er grew up in Ipoh, Perak, attended Shen Jai, a Chinese independent school, and scored 7 As in his SPM.
Malaysian public universities do not recognise the Unified Examination Certificate (UEC), the qualification awarded by Chinese independent schools like the one Lin attended.
He went to the National University of Singapore (NUS) instead.
Chow completed his Bachelor’s degree in Physics at NUS in 2020, graduating with First Class Honours, a GPA of 4.8 out of 5.0, and a place on the Dean’s List.
A Paper Two Decades in the Making
He went on to complete his PhD in Physics at NUS in 2024.
Chow was invited to present his research on international stages — the MRS Spring Meeting, the APS March Meeting, and the IEEE Magnetics Symposium.
These are not student showcases.
They are the flagship gatherings of the global physics and materials science community, with an audience of the world’s leading researchers. Being invited to present at all three, as a doctoral student, is uncommon.
Being invited to present at all three, as a doctoral student, is uncommon.
It was during his doctoral research that he published his breakthrough paper in Nature — the first top-tier publication from his NUS laboratory in two decades.
826 Citations, Then He Left
Titled Bulk superconductivity near 40 K in hole-doped SmNiO₂ at ambient pressure, the paper documented the design of a copper-free superconducting oxide — a finding with long-term implications for materials science.
He showed that a nickel-based material could carry electricity with zero resistance — without needing to be crushed under extreme pressure.
That matters because it means nickel might be able to do what copper has done for the past 40 years, and nickel is cheaper, more abundant, and easier to work with.
If he’s right — and 71 citations in under a year suggests the field thinks he is — the search for better superconductors just got a lot wider.
His work sits at the frontier of nickelate superconductivity, a field racing to find alternatives to copper-based superconductors that have dominated physics for four decades.
Since 2021, his papers have accumulated over 800 citations — a figure that places him among the most impactful early-career physicists in his specialisation.
He has since left Singapore.
China Came Calling
Chow has joined Zhejiang University in Hangzhou as a professor, doctoral supervisor and principal investigator (PI) through the university’s “100 Young Professors” programme — a global talent recruitment initiative targeting exceptional young scholars.
“I really like Hangzhou’s living environment and the scenery around West Lake,” he said, confirming the move.
He cited personal ties to China, noting his grandfather was of Chinese descent, and his wife is Chinese.
Zhejiang University is consistently ranked among China’s top three research universities.
It is ranked #49 in the QS World University Rankings 2026, a significant position among global institutions, but the headline isn’t where he landed — it’s what he was offered.
A principal investigator at 27 means he runs his own lab, sets the research agenda, applies for grants in his own name and recruits his own students.
Most physicists don’t reach that position until their mid-to-late thirties, after years of postdoctoral work under someone else.
A Debate That Won’t Go Away
The debate over UEC recognition is not new — and it is getting louder.
On the same day Chow’s move was reported, the Dewan Ulamak PAS — the religious scholars’ wing of the Islamist party PAS — warned that recognising the UEC would “open the doors to disaster.”
The reaction drew sharp pushback online.
One widely-shared comment pointed out that Malaysian public universities already accept secondary school certificates from China, Kenya, Brazil, Greece, Nigeria, Italy, Croatia, and Mongolia — among others.
World boleh, cuma UEC rakyat Malaysia sendiri tak boleh.
The commenter also noted that a PAS college in Kelantan had previously accepted UEC students.
For Chow, the debate is academic — in every sense; he is already in Hangzhou.
READ MORE: UEC Results Will Count For Admissions at UPM, UM And UPSI — But Only For These Four Courses
READ MORE: UEC Gets A Foot In The Door — But Not A Free Pass, As Loke Asks: If Tahfiz Can, Why Not UEC?
Parts of this story have been sourced from the South China Morning Post.
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