准晶是具有长程准周期性平移序和非晶体学旋转对称的固态有序相。它的出现导致了晶体学与凝聚态物质结构理论的一次革命，极大推动了相关学科的完善和发展。其发现者Daniel Shechtman因此获得2011年度诺贝尔化学奖。本文简介了准晶的发现、结构特征和发展现状，同时介绍了中国科学家在这一领域的独特贡献。

Quasicrystals are solid phases having long-range quasiperiodic translational order and non-crystallographic rotational symmetry. The discovery of quasicrystals has brought about a paradigm shift in the understanding of the structure of matters. The influences of it, which is in obedience to no previously thought-out plan, on the way of thinking of Human beings are enormous, profound and lasting. Daniel Shechtman won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 2011 for his discovery of quasicrystals. The past and the current status of quasicrystal research are shortly reviewed in this paper, in which the outstanding scientific contributions of Chinese scientists are introduced.