General information on collaboration

Academician Bruno Pontecorvo is a particular symbol of links between JINR and Italy. He was born in Italy but lived in Russia most of his life and successfully worked in Dubna. In 1963, he was honored to be awarded the Lenin prize for experimental and theoretical research in the fields of neutrino physics and weak interactions. For work in those scientific fields in which research is still conducted by Italian scientists and scientists from Dubna.

JINR has kept in touch with Italian physicists since its foundation. At first, Italian scientists visited JINR on the invitation of JINR Director, and JINR staff members made return visits to Italy. Professors G. Vatagin, T. Regge, A. Zichichi and other famous Italian physicists gave lectures on problems of experimental and theoretical physics in Dubna.

In the late 1960s, a new stage of development of JINR cooperation with Italian scientific centres started: scientists began to conduct joint experiments at the Synchrocyclotron of the Laboratory of Nuclear Problems in JINR (DLNP JINR) and at the proton accelerator in Protvino. The aim of the first such experiment (1968) was to study elastic and inelastic pion scattering at helium nuclei with streamer cameras. Physicists from Torino under the direction of professor G. Perugino and the National Laboratory in Frascati headed by professor R. Scrimaglio participated most actively from the part of Italy. Yu.A. Shcherbakov and I.V. Falomkin headed the expert group of JINR.

The cooperation of scientific groups from Dubna, Milan and Bologna was effective in experiments with the Magnetic Spark Chamber Spectrometer of JINR (MSCC). As a result, scientists studied excitation level spectrum of composite meson structure according to both the orbital and radial quantum number. As a fundamental result, two new resonance states of Pi-meson were discovered during collaborative research. Subsequently, scientists worked jointly at a modernised facility (spectrometer MSCC-2) for research on boson resonances under meson dissociation at nuclei. Professors D.-P. Bellini, G. Vengi (MSCC), F. Palombo and P. Frabetti (MSCC-2) headed working groups of Italian partners.

In the 1980s-90s, scientists carried out research, which was a collective contribution to a more wide cooperation, namely to the projects of the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN). Then, bilateral agreements were signed in the frames of the experiments PS-179 and PS-201 in CERN (study of antiproton interactions with nuclei under low and middle energies at the LEAR accelerating antiproton storage ring).

Due to the prospect of construction of a supercollider in the USA, 2 protocols on collaborative development, creation and testing of detectors and calorimeters of a new generation for operation at TeV-colliders were signed with a group of Italian physicists headed by professor D. Belletini. Unfortunately, this project in the USA was stopped for an indefinite period of time. JINR and Italian physicists continue to work on this theme in a collaborative experiment at FNAL accelerator in the USA (the CDF project).

At present, the cooperation is maintained in all JINR scientific activities. A close cooperation of theoreticians from Dubna an Italy should be highlighted. The International Centre of Theoretical Physics is located at the territory of Italy in Trieste. It was founded in 1964 for development of fundamental research in developing countries by organising lectures and seminars by famous physicists from different countries. JINR staff members also came on business trips to this Centre. Physicists from Dubna together with physicists from Torino conduct research in the frames of the DUBTO project under the supervision of G. Pontecorvo. They obtain and process data on ejection of protons and photons as well as fragments in inelastic reactions of pions with the lightest nuclei.

Nowadays, OPERA and BOREXINO conducted at the Gran Sasso underground laboratory, aimed at search for netrino oscillations (the idea about neutrino oscillations was suggested by B. Pontecorvo in Dubna) and study of their parameters as well as measuring fluxes of solar neutrinos, unite scientists from Dubna and Italy as other projects. It is one of the four laboratories of the Italy National Institute of Nuclear Physics (INFN). Scientists from Dubna know about the National Laboratory in Catania and the Frascati National Laboratory. At present, experts from Catania together with colleagues from JINR take part in CERN projects, namely CMS and ALICE, do collaborative work with FLNR staff on synthesis of new nuclei, perform research on nuclei properties and reaction mechanisms under heavy ions, they participate in development of FLNR cyclotrons, work on physics and technologies of particle accelerators. Within the agreement with INFN, the Frascati National Laboratory maintains cooperation with Dubna in the fields of modern mathematic physics on the theme: “International Theoretical Physics School of Dubna”. Scientists do collaborative research on nuclei and particle interactions at intermediate energies within the cooperation protocol. Scientists also do collaborative work on testing of low-energy QCD predictions, joint research is carried out in the COMPASS and HERMES (DESY) projects, collaborative research is being done at the GSI accelerating complex (Darmstadt). In addition to 4 laboratories, 19 divisions basing on physics departments of universities are included in INFN: in Bari, Bologna, Genoa, Cagliari etc. All of them actively cooperate with JINR. Let’s consider Bari, for example. Its staff members take part in theoretical research on fields and particles, modern mathematical physics, in joint study of neutrino oscillations and defining of neutrino oscillation parameters, and in collaborative work in the CMS and ALICE CERN projects.

Recently, the CERN Directorate awarded INFN for its contribution to development of Grid-technologies (computational “cells”) at the national and European levels (the award was presented to INFN President Roberto Petronzio). This project was started in 1999 and was one of the first examples of Grid-infrastructure creation. INFN initiated another project – EGEE (Enabling Grids for E-sciencE), implementation of which started in 2004. CERN experience (that is the INFN experience too) is used by JINR in creation of its Grid-segment and in including it into the European and world Grid-infrastructure.

The Italian National Agency of New Technologies, Energetics and Protection of Environment is another organisation that cooperates with JINR in the fields of neutron nuclear physics: fundamental and applied research are carried out within the bilateral agreement, and collaborative work on creation of neutron resonance source (IREN project of JINR) is held. The staff of the Centre of Advanced Research of this Agency keeps in touch with their colleagues from Dubna in nucleus theory.

The Italian Embassy in Russia greatly contributes to organization of cooperation. Well-known physicists professors G. Perugino and P. Spillantini (who later replaced Perugino) were counsellors for science of the Embassy in the recent past.

Contacts

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  RAS Academician
  Victor A. Matveev
  Executive of the contacts with Italy, Professor, Scientific Leader of JINR

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  +7 (49621) 6-50-45
  fax: +7 (49621) 6-51-46

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  matveev@jinr.ru

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  Alexander S. Sorin
  Executive of the JINR contacts with Italy, Deputy Director of VBLHEP JINR

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  +7 (49621) 6-59-40

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  sorin@theor.jinr.ru

Contact Information on the Embassies

Embassy of Italy in the Russian Federation:

• http://www.ambmosca.esteri.it

Russian Embassy in Italy:

• http://www.ambrussia.com