This research focuses on the object of the Electronic Science and Technology Museum - China's first Magneto-Optical (MO) disc recorder. It traces the historical process of China’s gradual breakthrough in rewritable technologies, beginning with the purchase of Japanese blank disc bases, and culminating in the development of China’s first broadcast-grade MO disc recorder. In the 1980s, China could not manufacture broadcast-grade recorders due to the micron-level requirements of the key parts. In 1992, professor Zhang Yougang at the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China (UESTC) led dozens of members to independently overcome the technical challenges such as target material composition, coating process, and disc manufacturing. It mastered the rewritable MO disc technology, and successfully developed China's first magneto-optical disc recorder. This instrument featured a distortion factor of less than 0.035%, and the recording time was up to 50 minutes. It realized the transition from analog to digital recording. It was certified by the Ministry of Mechanical Industry as being on par with the advanced international products of that time. This research conducted a review of scientific research archives and interviewed the R&D team. It concludes that breakthroughs in domestic technology often require the integration of foreign technology. The high quality and low cost of Japanese blank disc bases accelerated the development of China's MO disc recorder, which was beneficial for establishing a complete technology system rapidly.

In 1988, the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China (UESTC) acquired a transmission electron microscope (TEM) through a World Bank loan project, costing $580,000. This instrument, manufactured by Japan's JEOL Corporation, offered magnifications from 50 to 800,000 times. It enabled quantitative analysis of microstructural images at the nanoscale (10nm). The shared, open-access Material Analysis Center (MAC) established at UESTC, based on this instrument, trained 139 graduate students over the following decade, supporting over 200 research groups across the university. As the most advanced TEM in China then, it also played a critical role in supporting 18 national material projects and talent cultivation for over 30 institutions nationwide. Due to confidentiality from the manufacturer, the circuit diagram of the TEM was not initially available, presenting a challenge for its deployment. To overcome this, UESTC conducted a thorough analysis of the operational principles and detection methods, producing a 100,000-word technical report with 80 illustrations. This report provided essential technical support and served as a reference for hundreds of similar instruments introduced across China.
This study emphasized how Chinese researchers’ efforts in analyzing and understanding foreign technology facilitated the rapid integration of global scientific instruments. TEM’s introduction marked a significant leap in China’s materials analysis, transitioning from the millimeter-scale to the nanometer-scale. The establishment of MAC was pivotal for scientific development at UESTC, which laid a foundation for the electronic material and IC disciplines. Moreover, they contributed substantially to the advancement of cutting-edge materials research across China.

Mega scientific instruments play a pivotal role in advancing scientific frontiers, fostering technological innovation, and enhancing international competitiveness. Their developmental trajectories reflect the evolution and interaction of national technological capabilities, policy frameworks, sociocultural contexts, and international collaboration. As core infrastructures for scientific knowledge production, the development and application of mega scientific instruments serve not only as concrete manifestations of regional scientific practices but also as critical nodes in the global scientific network.
This study, adopting the perspective of the history of scientific instruments, analyzes representative cases to examine the developmental pathways, technological evolution, and policy support mechanisms in the field of mega scientific instruments across China, the United States, and Europe. By doing so, it offers new insights into the interplay between regional and global dynamics in contemporary history of science and technology and expands the scope of inquiry in the field of the history of scientific instruments.