The National Virtual Simulation Experimental Teaching Center for Engineering Optics is an academic echelon with Academician Liwei ZHOU and professor Yongtian WANG as the chief scientists, and young and middle-aged faculties as the backbone with high academic level. The laboratory area is about 6000 square metres and the equipment value is about 110 millions.

Due to certain factors such as "invisible optical mechanism, inaccessible microstructure of devices, irreversible effect of light on matter, and difficulty in popularizing frontier innovation", the existing experimental teaching methods are difficult to meet the needs of students. Virtual simulation technology can vividly simulate the propagation process of light and its interaction with matter, so the idea of "virtual experiment" came into stage. The center has set up 51 virtual simulation experiments supporting physics, optoelectronics and other courses, which can fully demonstrate and verify the basic theories, concepts and principles of optics. The "experimental teaching and management network platform" independently developed by the center has greatly improved the efficiency of course management.

At present, the center undertakes many projects, such as national major projects, international cooperation key projects, national defense equipment/key pre-research/basic research, etc. There are three teaching masters of Beijing, Lin LI, Tingzhu BAI and Haiyun HU, who have built one national-level excellent course and two Beijing-level excellent courses. Many young teachers have successively won several national-level teaching awards.

The center not only opens to all teachers and students, but also establishes cooperation with many primary and secondary schools in Beijing, and actively carries out popular science activities for general public. Augmented reality digital restoration technology displayed at Laval Virtual Virtual Reality Exhibition in France is the only innovative technology that represents China's participation. Its prototype technology, cultural background connotation and Chinese style of booth layout attracted a large number of professionals and the public's strong interest, and won the best image award from the exhibition. The center has set up the digital reconstruction system of Yuanmingyuan based on augmented reality technology in the western building scenic spot of Yuanmingyuan in Beijing, which has provided popular science exhibitions for China Science and Technology Museum, Guangdong Science Center and China Optical Science and Technology Hall, and achieved remarkable social benefits.