FBI Didn’t Bother to Check Facts Before Accusing Physicist of Being a Spy for China

Temple University physics professorXiaoxing Ximade headlinesback in May , when he was indict for allegedly sharing “ sensitive ” information with colleagues in China about a piece of research lab equipment used in his superconductivity inquiry . Ximaintained his innocencefrom the start . On Friday , he was justify : the U.S. Justice Departmentdropped the chargesagainst him , with a vague statement about newfangled selective information coming to light .

This “ new information ” came in the course of several sworn affidavits from leading scientists confirm that schematics Xi sent to Chinese scientist had nothing to do with the proprietary twist . Apparently nobody involved in the investigation mean to lead their fount past knowledgeable scientific experts before burst into Xi ’s suburban abode with guns draw , strip his menage , and result him off in handcuffs in front of his wife and girl .

“ I do n’t gestate them to understand everything I do,”Xi distinguish the New York Times . “ But the fact that they do n’t refer with experts and then charge me ? Put my kin through all of this ? Damage my reputation ? They should n’t do this . This is not a joke . This is not a secret plan . ”

Xi ’s trial by ordeal is just the in style in a string of similar late instance , as the U.S. government crack down on so - call in “ economical espionage . ” A governing - employed hydrologist in Ohio , Sherry Chen , was cleared of similar charges in March . And around the same time Xi was indicted , in an unrelated guinea pig , Union prosecutors in San Francisco accused a Chinese professor and five other Taiwanese nationals of stealing wireless technology from American companies .

The display case against Xi concerned a non - disclosure agreement he signed back in 2006 with Superconductor Technologies Inc. ( STI ) in exchange for access to a epitome gadget he co - make up call off a “ pocket heater . ” ( Xidid that work for Conductus , which later immix with STI . ) That sounds like something you jostle in your pockets to keep warm during the winter in upstate New York . It ’s actually a handy machine for produce ultra - thin motion-picture show of a superconducting cloth called magnesium diboride .

That ’s Xi ’s specialty . Spraying these form of fragile film over other , less conductive materials can obviate electrical resistivity at very low temperatures — something of critical grandness for the electronic circuitry used in everything from smartphones to supercomputers . So it ’s of dandy interest group to electronics manufacturers , telecommunication companies , and the U.S. Department of Defense , to name a few . Here is a video of Xi talking about his research .

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbHnP5oS2iQ

The proverbial smoking gun in the Justice Department ’s case was a May 14 , 2010 email Xi sent to Chinese striking about rescue of unspecified applied science to a science laboratory in China , as well as three other emails Xi sent afterward that year to other Formosan colleagues , offer to help them build a humans - class thin film laboratory . Those central seemed to suggest that Xi was trying to leverage his access to U.S. trade arcanum for a prestigious date in China .

Assuming the unnamed technology was the pocket heater , investigators figured they had their man andcharged Xi with four countsof wire fraud in May , say that he “ repeatedly reproduced , sold , transferred , distributed , and otherwise shared the machine and the technology of the machine with and exploit it for the welfare of third parties in China , including government entities . ” Although he was soon exhaust on bail , Xi was storm to step down as department chair at Temple and was placed on administrative parting pending the final result of the suit . His passport was confiscated ( he is a tame US citizen ) , and he face a maximum sentence of 80 years in prison house and a $ 1 million mulct .

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There was just one problem : the blueprints Xi share with those Chinese confrere were n’t for the pocket heater cover by the NDA at all , according to swear assertion from various scientists — including Ward S. Ruby , who co - invented the equipment . Rather , they touch on two different devices , along with other unrelated work on oxide thin films , none of which qualified as sensitive or limit .

“ These were n’t problem that made the display case debile ; these were problem that made the causa non - actual , ” Xi ’s lawyer , PeterZeidenberg , secernate APS News , the newssheet of the American Physical Society ( APS ) , the largest professional establishment for physicists in the U.S. ( Zeidenberg also defended Sherry Chen . ) Xi was merely “ engaged in unremarkable pedantic collaboration . ”

Zeidenberg told Gizmodo that the U.S. government is justifiably concerned about leaked deal secrets to China , draw and quarter an analogy with the fight against terrorism . “ No one doubt how serious a terror that is , ” he said . “ But there is a danger of over - react to these threats in a way that could harm innocent people . ” In Xi ’s case , the government ’s reaction smooch of racial profiling . As Zeidenbergtold the New York Times , “ If he was Canadian - American , or French - American , would this have ever even father on the authorities ’s radar ? I do n’t believe so . ”

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Michael Turner , director of the Kavli Institute for Cosmological Physics in Chicago and a former APS President of the United States , confessed to being stun at the unsuccessful person of investigators to attempt out the appropriate scientific expertness before indicting Xi . “ What is slipping through because we do n’t have the expertise to decently understand and accurately identify raw technology ? ” he told Gizmodo via email .

Current APS president Sam Aronson released the following statement about Xi ’s exoneration :

“ The leaders of the American Physical Society is vastly eased to learn of the politics ’s dismissal of the bearing against Professor Xiaoxing Xi . We are deep implicated for Professor Xi and his family regarding the ordeal that they have latterly endured . We hope that Professor Xi will rapidly be able to resume his research and pedagogy calling in cathartic . On behalf of our members and the physics residential area , we are continuing to explore way to work with US government entity to offer guidelines that we can communicate wide , in ordering to ensure the safety gadget of scientist collaborating in perfectly lawful ways with Formosan colleagues . ”

Photo: Jae C. Hong

Temple University provost Hai - Lung Dai did not immediately reply to our request for comment on whether Xi will resume full didactics and research responsibility now that his name has been clear . There is also the query of whether Temple will help insure his effectual fees — which are no doubt substantial — given that he wrote the electronic mail that led to his bill of indictment while doing piece of work on behalf of the university .

Xi told APS News that the bill of indictment may have seriously harmed his inquiry program by delay several potentially ground - wear papers , since he was only allowed limited contact lens with his group over the summer . He was working on nine ongoing projects that bank on federal grants , several of which are coming up for renewal ; not having results could put those concession in jeopardy .

Mostly , though , he wants to move on with his life . “ I am relieved and really hope that this will [ be ] the end of a incubus , ” Xi said . “ Of course , the damage has been done . I do n’t know how long [ it ] would take for me to mend it . ”

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