Evgeny Velikhov | |
|---|---|
Евгений Велихов | |
_(cropped).jpg) Velikhov in 2017 | |
| Born | (1935-02-02)2 February 1935 |
| Died | 5 December 2024(2024-12-05) (aged 89) |
| Citizenship |  Soviet Union Russia |
| Alma mater | M.V. Lomonosov Moscow State University |
| Awards | Hero of Socialist Labour (1985) Lenin Prize (1984) State Prize of the Russian Federation (2003) Global Energy Prize (2006) Orders of Lenin Order of Merit for the Fatherland Order of Courage Order of the Red Banner of Labour |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Nuclear physics |
| Institutions | Kurchatov Institute Russian Academy of Sciences Soviet Academy of Sciences Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology Public Chamber of Russia |
| Academic advisors | Alexander Prokhorov |
Evgeny Pavlovich Velikhov (Russian:Евгений Павлович Велихов; 2 February 1935 – 5 December 2024) was a Russian physicist and scientific leader.[1] His scientific interests includedplasma physics,lasers,controlled nuclear fusion,power engineering, andmagnetohydrodynamics (high-power pulsedMHD generators). He was the author of over 1500scientific publications and a number of inventions and discoveries.
Velikhov held the post of president of theKurchatov Institute (named afterIgor Kurchatov) and first Secretary (head) of theCivic Chamber of the Russian Federation. He was a member of theRussian Academy of Sciences and the vice-president of theAcademy of Sciences of the Soviet Union.
Evgeny Velikhov graduated from the Department of Physics atM.V. Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU) in 1958, where he specialized in theoretical physics. From 1958 until 1961, he studied at graduate school. After completing his graduate work, he began work as a junior researcher at theInstitute of Atomic Energy, the precursor institution to the Russian Research Centre (RRC) "Kurchatov Institute". He spent most of his scientific career rising through the ranks of this famous federal scientific agency.
His early work regardingfluid and plasmainstabilities led to the discovery of themagnetorotational instability in 1959,[2] and theelectrothermal instability in 1962.[3]
In 1964, he defended histhesis before receiving hisDoctor of Science degree inphysics andmathematics.
In 1968, he obtained the rank of Professor ofatomic physics, plasma physics, and microelectronics at the Physics Department ofMoscow State University. In 1973, he became the head of the Department until 1988. In 1971, he became a member of theCommunist Party.
From 1971 to 1978, he was the director of theMagnetic Laboratory (later known as theTRINITY State Scientific Center), a branch of theAcademy of Sciences of the Soviet Union in 1956, and subdivision of Kurchatov Institute since 1961, atTroitsk, Moscow Oblast.
In 1972, he founded an energy and space plasma research department atMoscow Institute of Physics and Technology (MIPT, more known as "Phystech"), with a base in this branch of the Kurchatov Institute of Atomic Energy (KIAE).
In 1975, he established another newdepartment at Phystech in order to study the problems of physics and energy, for which he received the honor ofchair of plasma energy. The next year, he was appointed the firstdean of theFaculty of Physics For Energy (FPFE), aR&D department of fusion energy specialized in plasma and high pressure physics, quantum optics, laser, and space technologies. Ten years later, in 1986, he was promoted as the scientific director of FPFE. In 1986, he was also a science advisor toMikhail Gorbachev and helped in the clean-up of theChernobyl Disaster.
In 1988, he was named director of Kurchatov Institute and chairman of the international programme (Russia, United States,European Union and Japan) for the creation of the thermonuclear experimentaltokamakITER, and has been its president from 1992 until his death in December 2024. In 2009 he was elected Chair of the ITER Council, the governing body of ITER.
He was also president of thejoint-stock companyRosshelf (Russian offshore development company to develop seafloor-based oil and gas production complex),Gazprom's subsidiary; and co-chairman ofRELCOM board of directors.
Velikhov resided inMoscow until his death on 5 December 2024, at the age of 89.[4]
Evgeny Velikhov was well known in the world scientific and engineering community for his diverse activities, for which he has received several honors and awards, among which:
