The Joliot Curie School trains each year, and since 1982, PhD students, post-doctorates and researchers on scientific breakthroughs performed in a topic related to nuclear physics, in a broad range.
Elevated to the rank of European School of Physics in 2009, the Joliot Curie School has excelled over the years in promoting and teaching the most recent advances in fields as varied as nuclear physics, nuclear astrophysics and associated applications to students and researchers alike.
First being a high-standard French speaking school, it became international since 2009. The school is mainly funded by CNRS Formation, CNRS Nuclei&Particles (IN2P3) and CEA.
HISTORY
* Excerpt from the preface to the first edition, 1982:
We can’t introduce the courses in this first edition of the Joliot-Curie School of Nuclear Physics without briefly presenting the school itself. In choosing to associate it with the names of Frédéric Joliot and Irène Joliot-Curie, its organizing committee wished to pay a tribute that the scientific and human stature of the latter alone justified. But it was mainly because of their fundamental role in the development of French research in Nuclear Physics that we wanted to place ourselves under such a prestigious patronage. Indeed, the ambition of this school is to contribute, in its own right, to ensuring that our discipline retains the vigour and quality it has demonstrated in France since the days of Frédéric Joliot and Irène Joliot-Curie. The celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the discovery of artificial radioactivity will be an opportunity for us to measure the progress made, but even more so to celebrate the fact that the problems opened up at that time remain as numerous, varied and motivating as ever.
The school’s pedagogical approach is to present the results and prospects of a topical issue in a format that is accessible to all researchers, including students graduating from a specialized DEA. The vitality and dynamism of a discipline like ours is measured by our ability to attract young researchers. We are delighted to note that around 30% of the participants in this school are about to embark on, or have recently embarked on, a post-graduate thesis. The balance between these young physicists and more established researchers, whether or not working in the strict field covered by the school, is also a necessary condition for success.
This school has come into being and will continue to fulfil its role thanks to the moral and financial support of IN2P3, and the backing of its Director, Jean Yoccoz.
Long live the Joliot-Curie School of Nuclear Physics!
P. QUENTIN
The successive chairs have been:
1982‐1989 Philippe Quentin (CENBG, Bordeaux)
1990‐1998 Yvon Abgrall (CENBG, Bordeaux)
1999‐2003 Christian Le Brun (LPC, Caen)
2004‐2008 Marie-Geneviève Porquet (CSNSM, Orsay)
2009‐2010 Faïçal Azaïez (IPN, Orsay)
2011‐2013 Navin Alahari (GANIL, Caen)
2013‐2016 Elias Khan (IPN, Orsay)
2017‐2022 Miguel Marqués (LPC, Caen)
since 2023 Stéphane Grévy (LP2i, Bordeaux – former CENBG)
EJC 2026
13 – 18 september
Saint Pierre d’Oléron
Joliot Curie Euroschool on Exotic Beams
Theory to shape experiments
L’école européenne Joliot Curie, fondée en 1982 au sein de l’IN2P3, est l’école de référence en France pour la physique nucléaire. Elle a pour objectif de former en priorité les doctorants et post-doctorants mais aussi les personnels permanents chercheurs et IT aux avancées récentes sur tous les domaines liés à la physique nucléaire et étudiés au sein de l’IN2P3.
En 2026, le sujet sera « Theory to Shape Experiments ». Nous discuterons donc des développements théoriques en tant que tels en nous appuyant sur les nombreuses expertises présentes au CNRS/IN2P3 mais aussi au CEA. Le but n’est cependant pas de faire une école « pour les théoriciens » mais pour un public plus large de physiciens expérimentateurs et théoriciens afin de discuter ensemble des avancées récentes dans la description des noyaux et de la matière nucléaire, de discuter des meilleures observables à même de contraindre les modèles et de réfléchir aux voies les plus prometteuses à explorer dans les années à venir. Il est important d’intégrer cet aspect collaboratif au sein du vivier de jeunes chercheurs afin de les inciter ensuite à entreprendre des projets communs ambitieux dans un cadre collaboratif.
Afin d’assurer une ouverture maximale à l’école, les cours seront organisés selon des thématiques de physique qui seront utilisées comme support pour discuter les différentes méthodes théoriques :
- Théorie de la Fonctionnelle de la Densité (DFT) et Dynamique / Fission et noyaux (super)lourds
- Réactions à quelques corps / Astrophysique Nucléaire
- Méthodes à N corps / Spectroscopie, Déformation and appariement
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The Joliot Curie European School, founded in 1982 within IN2P3, is France’s leading school in nuclear physics. Its primary mission is to train PhD students, postdoctoral researchers, and permanent staff—both researchers and engineers—on recent advances across all fields of nuclear physics studied at IN2P3.
In 2026, the theme will be « Theory to Shape Experiments. » We will explore theoretical developments, drawing on the extensive expertise available at CNRS/IN2P3 and CEA. However, the goal is not to propose a school « for theorists » alone, but rather to engage a broader audience of experimental and theoretical physicists. Together, we will discuss recent progress in describing nuclei and nuclear matter, identify the most promising observables to constrain models, and explore the most fruitful avenues for future research.
Collaboration is a key focus of this school. By fostering interaction among early-career researchers, we aim to inspire ambitious joint projects and strengthen collaborative networks.
To ensure the school is as inclusive as possible, the lectures will be organized around thematic physics topics, which will serve as a foundation for discussing various theoretical methods:
- Density Functional Theory (DFT) and Dynamics / Fission and (Super)heavy Nuclei
- Few-Body Reactions / Nuclear Astrophysics
- Many-Body Methods / Spectroscopy, Deformation, and Pairing
More information and registration
This year’s lectures are :
- Lynda Achouri (LPC Caen)
- Nicolas Chamel (ULB)
- Stéphane Grévy (LP2iB)
- Anthea Fantina (GANIL)
- Chloé Fougères (CEA DAM)
- Serge Franchoo (IJCLab Orsay)
- François Gelis (CEA IRFU-IPhT)
- Arnaud Guertin (Subatech)
- Frank Gunsing (CEA IRFU-SPhN)
- Marcel Heine (IPHC)
- Guillaume Hupin (IJCLab Orsay)
- Cédric Lorcé (CPhT, École Polytechnique)
- Antonin Maire (IPHC)
- Carlos Muñoz Camacho (IJCLab Orsay)
- Stephan Oberstedt (European Commission)
- Barbara Sulignano (CEA IRFU-SPhN)
- Antonio Uras (IP2I Lyon)