As a Chinese Communist Party Member, CAO graduated from the Department of Physics of Fudan University in 1982. In 1989, he got his PhD degree from the program jointly organized by CAS Changchun Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics (CIOFM) and Japan's Tohoku University. In 1989-1992, he accomplished his postdoctoral research at CIOFM. Later he worked as research fellow, supervisor of PhD students, Executive Deputy Director (legal representative) and Director of CIOFM as well as the Director of CAS Changchun Institute of Optics, Fine Mechanics and Physics. He then served as assistant to President of CAS, head of the preparatory group of CAS Opto-Electronics Group, and president of CAS Academy of Opto-electronics. In January 2005, he was nominated Vice President and member of the Party Leading Group of CAS as well as president of CAS Academy of Opto-electonics and Director of State Key Laboratory of Applied Optics. Since September 2006, he has taken up the duties of Vice Minister of Science and Technology as a member of the Leading Party Group of MOST.