Prof. Xu Zhizhan, a physicist, academician of Chinese Academy of Sciences, and academician of the Third World Academy of Sciences, served as the director of Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics. Since 2001, he has been appointed as a professor at the School of Physics and Engineering of Sun Yat-sen University and served as the director of the Academic Committee of the State Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Materials and Technologies. Being a pioneer and leader in the field of China's super-intense and ultra-short laser science and strong-field physics, he has achieved systematic and creative results in laser physics, modern optics, nuclear fusion, and plasma physics. Besides, he has been awarded various honors, such as National Advanced Worker, HLHL Awards of Scientific and Technological Progress, and the 5th National Excellent Scientists. With decades of teaching experience, he “igniting himself to light the path for students; exemplifying virtue as a teacher and selflessly uplifting others,” significantly contributing to the cultivation of physics talents in China.