30: Chapter 30 Chief Technology Engineer?

Lin Yuan's words landed like a bombshell. The massive conference room fell into an eerie silence, with only the sound of dozens of rapid breaths weaving through the air.

Everyone's brain was operating in overdrive—achromatic metalenses, magnetic levitation planar motors, atomic interferometers, absolute positioning... Each of these terms was more formidable than the last, tossed out by Lin Yuan as if he were reciting a menu, so quickly that there was no time to think them through.

He Yicheng, the veteran director of the Institute of Precision Instruments, was the first to snap back to reality. "Comrade Lin Yuan." His voice was not loud, but it was exceptionally clear in the quiet conference room.

"The achromatic metalenses you just mentioned..." He paused for a beat, his phrasing extremely precise. "Is it a phase modulation scheme based on sub-wavelength grating structures, or a wavefront reconstruction scheme based on dielectric nanopillar arrays?"

With that one sentence, he pulled the issue down to the most core technical divergence. Everyone in the conference room involved in precision instruments stared fixedly at Lin Yuan, waiting for his answer.

Lin Yuan stood at the podium without hesitation. "Neither." Three words, clean and crisp.

He Yicheng's brows twitched. "The scheme I am using is topology-optimized high-refractive-index metasurface units, combined with inverse design algorithms for global phase compensation."

Lin Yuan's answer was only one sentence, yet it hit the vital point with precision. The old director opened his mouth but couldn't respond. It wasn't that he didn't want to; it was that the information density of this answer was too high. At least in the quick pass he made through his mind, he couldn't find any obvious flaws.

Following closely, Yang Lin, the lean, middle-aged man from the Automation Control Institute, also spoke up. "What about the decoherence problem of the atomic interferometer?" His speaking speed was faster than He Yicheng's, carrying an inquisitive edge. "In the vibration environment of a Photolithography Machine, how long can the coherence time of an atomic interferometer last?"

This question was even trickier. It struck directly at the biggest pain point of applying atomic interferometers in industrial scenarios.

Lin Yuan glanced at him. "Periodic quantum error correction coding, combined with feed-forward compensation from an active vibration isolation platform. The coherence time issue can be bypassed; there's no need to tackle it head-on."

The lean middle-aged man leaned back an inch. He didn't ask further. It wasn't that he was convinced, but that the concepts Lin Yuan threw out were already beyond the scope he could verify on the spot in this setting. He needed the complete derivation process, needed the formulas laid out line by line before him, to make an accurate judgment.

But he admitted one thing: this young man's answers lacked any hesitation, any ambiguity, and even more so, any phrasing like "I'll go back and confirm." Every question thrown at him was bounced right back along the same path. And the speed and force with which they bounced back were even fiercer than when they were thrown.

To be in such a state, one was either genuinely knowledgeable or insane. Looking at his eyes, it didn't seem like he was insane. Those gazes that originally carried scrutiny and doubt quietly lost their edge, replaced by something purer: a thirst for knowledge.

These people were, after all, technical people at their core. When they vaguely realized that the young man in front of them might be holding the real "hard goods," the reserve brought by seniority and age was as brittle as paper in the face of their thirst for knowledge.

Lin Yuan took it all in. He did not strike while the iron was hot by continuing to throw out concepts—he understood better than anyone that too much is as bad as too little. "Regarding the theoretical materials." Standing on the stage, Lin Yuan proactively took the initiative, asking the question everyone most wanted to ask on their behalf. "They will be distributed to everyone present shortly."

His gaze swept from left to right. "Once you have all finished reading them, if there is anything you are doubtful about, or anything you don't quite understand..." "...you can all come to me."

Lin Yuan said this extremely naturally. But falling into the ears of a room full of scientific heavyweights, the weight was different. Several people exchanged glances. Come to him? This phrasing, in the context of normal scientific exchange, would usually only be output from a mentor to a student, or a senior to a junior. But Lin Yuan just said it. There was no deliberate posturing, no intentional airs; it was just a sense of—I am sufficiently familiar with these things; if you have questions, I can answer them.

Someone recalled the title that had leaked out from the Third Research Institute: Teacher Lin. That bunch of arrogant guys at the Third Research Institute called a newly hired young man "Teacher." It felt absurd when heard at the time. Now, watching Lin Yuan's state on stage, and savoring the speed and precision with which he answered those two technical questions just now, it suddenly felt that this title might not have been wrong after all.

"Alright, my report ends here." Lin Yuan stopped, looking towards the direction of the podium. "Dean Chen, I am finished." A few simple words, without any dragging or messiness, returned control of the entire venue back to him.

"Good. Very well spoken." Chen Jingshan's eyes revealed undisguised admiration. He nodded slightly and stood up. Lin Yuan also proceeded to step down from the podium. Just as he was preparing to return to the Third Research Institute's section, Chen Jingshan suddenly reached out and pointed to a position on his left, right next to the main seat, which had been empty the whole time.

"Lin Yuan, sit here." This light sentence once again caused everyone's heart to skip a beat. That position was not only the closest place to the main seat, but it was also a core seat for the level of deputy commander of the task force! Everyone had seen that seat empty earlier and assumed some big shot from above would be parachuting in later; they never expected it to be a reserved seat for Lin Yuan?!

Upon hearing this, Lin Yuan did not show any bit of refusal or awkwardness. He walked over calmly and sat down steadily under the complex gazes of the room full of big shots.

"Thank you, Comrade Lin Yuan, for the insightful report." Chen Jingshan's gaze swept across the room, taking in everyone's shock and bewilderment. "The technical routes for the two major core components—the objective lens and the dual-stage system—have just been pointed out."

"Although the details were not expanded upon, judging by everyone's expressions now, the general direction should have been understood." Chen Jingshan rested his hands on the table and posed the question with great pressure: "After listening, what are your thoughts?"

The conference room was silent for a second or two. Director He from the Institute of Precision Instruments was the first to speak. "Dean, to be honest." "The concepts Comrade Lin Yuan mentioned just now, I can't judge them just by running through them in my head." "The thing I most want to do right now is to see the complete theoretical materials immediately."

As soon as these words were out, several people nodded in agreement. "Yes, we have the same thought." "The theoretical framework sounds cutting-edge, but listening to concepts alone isn't enough; we need to see the derivation process." "Only when the data and formulas are laid out can we judge whether this path is truly viable."

Chen Jingshan smiled after listening. "Don't be anxious, everyone." "Regarding the materials, Comrade Lin Yuan has already organized them in advance and provided them to me."

As soon as this was said, the posture of several people changed significantly. Chen Jingshan did not give them too much time to speculate and continued directly. "After I received them, I flipped through them briefly." "How should I put it..." "I have been involved in scientific research my whole life and consider myself knowledgeable and experienced." "But after reading those materials, I only have two words to describe the feeling..." "Stunning!"

Coming from Chen Jingshan, these two words carried unusual weight. The atmosphere in the conference room began to change subtly. Those faces that had originally carried some reservations began to soften in expression. The level of anticipation for the materials was maxed out.

Chen Jingshan surveyed the room, taking in everyone's reactions. "The materials will be distributed to everyone shortly; please rest assured about that." "However, before that, there are a few more things I need to settle here first."

The conference room fell silent again. Chen Jingshan's expression tightened. "First." "The higher-ups attach great importance to this task force." He did not specify who exactly the "higher-ups" were, but everyone present was not stupid. The power capable of having the approval process for a task force of this scale completed within twenty-four hours could be counted on one's fingers.

"Therefore, I hope everyone present will attach the same level of importance." "This is not an ordinary scientific research project; it is not something that can be finished just by publishing a few papers or producing a few sets of data." Chen Jingshan's voice was very deep. "This is the first time our Xia Country has the opportunity to go head-to-head in the field of Photolithography Machines." "I don't need to say how precious this opportunity is."

No one made a sound. Everyone sat up straight. "Second." Chen Jingshan continued. "Regarding the internal division of labor and coordination mechanism for the task force, the institute office has already drafted a preliminary plan, which will be distributed to everyone along with the materials later. Each institute should take their positions according to the plan; if there are objections, raise them through formal channels, do not bicker in private."

These words were harsh, but everyone present was an old hand and could tell that this was about establishing rules first. For an organizational structure like a task force that requires cross-institute collaboration, the biggest fear is everyone doing things their own way and shifting blame to each other. Chen Jingshan stating the ugly truth upfront actually saved a lot of trouble later on.

"Third." Chen Jingshan held up three fingers. The air in the conference room tightened. Chen Jingshan's gaze swept from the left side of the conference table to the right, passing over every face, finally looking at the area of the Third Research Institute.

"The technical breakthroughs of this task force involve three major cores: the light source, the objective lens, and the dual-stage system, plus several subsystems. The coverage is extremely broad, and the technical difficulty is extremely high." "Each institute has its own strengths and focuses, which is fine." "But a Photolithography Machine is a systems engineering project; the technical routes between the three major components must be unified and coordinated; we cannot each sing our own tune."

"This requires one person to stand at a global height and coordinate and control the overall technical direction." He enunciated every word clearly. The room full of leading experts, dozens of pairs of eyes, were all fixed tightly on him.

"After comprehensively considering the actual situation of the task force, as well as the technical reserves in all aspects..." Chen Jingshan opened a document on the table, his finger pointing at a certain line. "After research and decision, it is proposed to appoint Comrade Lin Yuan..." "...as the Chief Technical Engineer of the Xia Country Lithography Core Technology Breakthrough Task Force!!"