On September 16, 2018, the 30th Symposium on Fusion Technology opened in Messina, Sicily, Italy, and the award ceremony of the European Prize for Innovation in Fusion (SOFT Innovation Prize) was held that night. WU Yican, Chinese scientist and alumnus of XJTU, became the first Asian winner of this prize.

Wu Yican studied at XJTU and obtained his bachelor's degree in reactor engineering and safety in 1985 and a master's degree in reactor physics in1988. He is currently the director of the Institute of Nuclear Energy Safety Technology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and a world-famous nuclear neutron physicist. He established the neutron transport theory of complex nuclear energy system, which overcame the worldwide problem of accurate modeling and efficient computing of neutron transport.