EAST LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – Michigan State University and the French research organization, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) announced and signed a five year agreement to establish the International Research Laboratory on Nuclear Physics and Astrophysics, or IRL NPA on the campus of MSU. 

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“We are honored that the French government is investing in this exciting frontier of research – nuclear physics and astrophysics- I am humbled to join with you as we serve our nations and the world itself in this joint program,” MSU interim president, Teresa Woodruff said, “Like the CNRS, advancing knowledge, sharing that knowledge for the benefit of society, and developing the next generation of scientists and researchers is the mission of Michigan State University.” 

More than 100 gathered to witness the partnership’s official announcement, hosting members of CNRS, government, and university scientists and officials. 

“The thing that enables us to be here, is the amazing success of the construction of the facility for rare isotope beams, and that resulted from a remarkable partnership between Michigan State University, the Department of Energy, Office of Management and Budget, Congress, everybody working together and as a product of that we are very proud that this facility is not only world leading, but it was finished on budget and ahead of schedule,” U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science associate director of science for nuclear physics, Dr. Tim Hallman said. 

There are currently 80 other international research laboratories worldwide, however, this will be the first dedicated nuclear physics and astrophysics lab to be located at MSU’s Facility of Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB), and will provide a place for French researchers to come and live temporarily, anywhere between a year and up to five according to Reynald Pain, director CNRS Institut National de Physique Nucleaire et de Physique des Particules, or IN2P3.

With the partnership, MSU joins other higher education institutions including the University of California, Berkeley and the University of Tokyo, that host this type of research lab dedicated to advancing specific areas of science.

“It was mentioned that we opened one in Berkeley which was focusing on cosmology, we have one in Tokyo for focusing on materials physics, and we also opened one in Germany,” Pain said. He added that the facility in Germany is focused on searching for and researching Dark Matter.  

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According to Pain, the partnership is also historic not only in scope of research but also the timeline it took to complete which impressed the CRNS international office. 

“We managed to have this lab created in less than a year,” he said, “I can tell you this is really an achievement because it usually takes two to three years to get it approved.” 

After the ceremony, Pain and other speakers shared about some of the focuses of the partnership. 

“Most of the time French people will come here to work on the FRIB Accelerator,” he added, “Which is something by the way very similar to what is happening to the stars, when the stars explode or when the stars run their reactions, then it’s the same thing you can produce in the lab here.” 

While the partnership has officially begun, August 1 is the soft deadline for research and projects to commence at the facility.