Exhibition-museum of scientific achievements of the Kharkiv Physical-Technical Institute

Kharkov Institute of Physics and Technology (the KIPT, earlier referred to as Ukrainian Institute of Physics and Technology), being one of oldest and largest centers of physical science in Ukraine, was created in 1928 for the purpose of developing urgent lines of research (at that time - nuclear physics and solid-state physics). As soon as four years later, on October 10, 1932, an outstanding result was received by A.K.Val'ter, K.D.Sinel'nikov, A.I.Lejpunsky, G.D.Latyshev, namely, the nucleus of lithium atom was caused to undergo fission. In 1931 L.V.Shubnikov organized the first cryogenic laboratory in the USSR. For a short period many significant scientific results were received in this laboratory. Liquid hydrogen and helium were obtained here for the first time in the USSR. The first school of cryogenic physics in the country was born. Practically at the same time the talented physicist-theorist, future Nobel prize winner, L.D.Landau, who worked at the KIPT from 1932 to 1937, formed an internationally known school of theoretical physics. A guest session of the USSR Academy of Sciences, 1937, was here held, where Academician S.I.Vavilov told that the scientists of the Institute did more than a quarter of the whole physics in the USSR. N.Bohr, P.Dirac, R.Paierls and other famous foreign scientists visited the Institute. The known Soviet physicists I.V.Obreimov, I.V.Kurchatov, N.E.Alekseevsky, L.F.Vereshagin, E.M.Lifshits, I.M.Lifshits, A.A.Slutskin, V.E.Ivanov, B.I.Verkin, A.A.Galkin, I.Ya.Pomeranchuk, A.F.Prikhot'ko, A.Ya.Usikov, D.V.Volkov and others worked here.

In succeeding years in the KIPT the first radar installation was constructed. The institute has pioneered high vacuum engineering in the USSR, on the basis of which subsequently a new physico-technological direction - vacuum metallurgy - was advanced.

The distinctive properties of the Institute were always the combination of the fundamental approach to solving the problems with a practical orientation of work and a wide range of the studies done. The last circumstance has played an important role in formation of several large scientific institutions with the KIPT as the base: Institute of Low Temperature Physics and Engineering of National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Institute of Radioelectronics of NAS of Ukraine, and others. On the initiative of the Institute the first in Ukraine physico-mechanical faculty at the Kharkov Polytechnical Institute and the physico-technical faculty at the Kharkov State University were created.

In post-war years the KIPT was one of the active participants working on the problem of use of atomic energy in the USSR. Systematic measurements of constants of neutron and other particle interactions with fissile and structural materials have been performed. These constants have been used in developments of nuclear reactors and weapons. Later the Institute was included in thermonuclear fusion investigations. In 60-70th many unique experimental installations, namely, a number of electron and ion accelerators, including the largest USSR electron linear accelerator, a family of thermonuclear installations "Uragan", were constructed. A number of new materials, significant technological processes and installations were introduced into industry, in particular: the process of manufacturing fuel elements for nuclear reactors; the manufacturing technology of high-temperature heaters; the technology of depositing heat-resistant, hard and superhard coatings on materials operating in aggressive environments; the technologies of hardening cutting tools and machine components; vacuum rolling mills and the process of hot rolling of multilayer materials in vacuum; ultrapure materials and alloys on their basis; superconductors; composite carbon - carbon materials; small-sized accelerators of charged particles, and so on.

Significant part of research in the NSC KIPT is executed within the framework of international agreements, on contracts with foreign organizations and companies of the USA, France, Germany, Italy, Austria, Spain, Holland, Brazil, Poland, Korea, China, Japan. The Center sup-ports and develops relations with research institutes of Moscow, Saint-Petersburg, Protvino, Novosibirsk (all - Russia), many international organizations and centers of science (IAEA, CERN, JLAB (USA), Joint Institute of Nuclear Research in Dubna), research centers of Uzbekistan and Kazachstan.

The basic lines of research work at NSC KIPT are: solid-state Physics, physics of radiation effects and radiation materials science, technologies of materials, plasma Physics and controlled fusion, nuclear physics, physics of electromagnetic interactions, physics and engineering of electron accelerators, plasma electronics and physics of high-current beams, physics and engineering of heavy charged particle accelerators, new methods of acceleration, theoretical physics.