Moscow Engineering Physics Institute
Encyclopedia
National Research Nuclear University MEPhI / NRNU MEPhI, NIYaU MEPhI or MEPhI) is one of the most recognized technical universities in Russia. MEPhI was founded in 1942 as the Moscow Mechanical Institute of Munitions , but it was soon renamed the Moscow Mechanical Institute. Its original mission was to train skilled personnel for the Soviet military and atomic programs. It was renamed the Moscow Engineering Physics Institute in 1953, which was its name until 2009.
By the law document, issued by the Russian Government on April 8, 2009 (#480-r) on behalf of Russian President's law document of October 7, 2008 (#1448) "On the pilot project launching on creating National Research Universities" the university MEPhI was granted this new status. The university was reorganized. The aim of the university existence is now preparing the specialists by giving them higher professional, post-graduation professional, secondary professional and additional professional education, as well as educational and scientific activities.
The institute offers bachelor, masters, and post-graduate degrees in physics, mathematics, computer science, and other areas. MEPhI facilities include a 2.5 MW (thermal) pool-type research reactor
and Neutrino Water Detector NEVOD
. The university has about 6,000 students at six branches in Moscow and other towns.
It normally takes 5.5 (some sub-departments take six) years for a student to graduate from MEPhI. The curriculum of the first two years consists exclusively of required courses, with emphasis on mathematics, physics, experimental work and English. After the two first years of studying students on a competition basis enroll to the sub-departments which specialize in different branches of physics, computer science, information security, mathematics, etc.
Starting with the fourth year, some students have a choice to make their diploma thesis, working at base science institutes. Most of them are research institutes, usually belonging to the Russian Academy of Sciences. For instance, Lebedev Physical Institute
, Institute for Theoretical and Experimental Physics
, Kurchatov Institute etc.
The MEPhI curriculum is, indeed, considerably more extensive compared to an average American or European college. In addition, MEPhI programs usually focus more on research and less on classroom education.
Among MEPhI graduates are Nobel Prize
winners, members of the Russian Academy of Sciences
, and winners of national prizes. Its professors and alumni have made major contributions to various fields of theoretical and experimental physics, mathematics, cybernetics, and computer sciences.
Traditional university rankings are based on the universities' research output and prizes won by faculty. In contrast, many distinguished professors teaching at MEPhI are officially on staff at the base institutes like Kurchatov Institute
. Student research work is typically carried out outside of MEPhI, and published research results do not mention MEPhI. In effect, many MEPhI professors are not considered as such for the rankings, and student research is not earning any ranking points for MEPhI. This effectively hides MEPhI from the academic radar, an effect not unwelcome during the Cold War era when leading scientists and engineers of the Soviet arms and space programs studied there.
In recent years, the institute has been working to improve its curricula in the humanities, economic sciences, and foreign languages.
is a representation of the hand of man taming the wild animal of science for his own use. Students at the school sometimes creatively interpret the logo to be the hand of the school's rector pressing the students for more and more work until sparks shoot out of their eyes.
station on the Zamoskvoretskaya Line
of the Moscow Metro
. Its campus is one kilometre from the famous Kolomenskoe park and museum.
By the law document, issued by the Russian Government on April 8, 2009 (#480-r) on behalf of Russian President's law document of October 7, 2008 (#1448) "On the pilot project launching on creating National Research Universities" the university MEPhI was granted this new status. The university was reorganized. The aim of the university existence is now preparing the specialists by giving them higher professional, post-graduation professional, secondary professional and additional professional education, as well as educational and scientific activities.
Academics
Today, MEPhI has six departments:- Experimental and theoretical physics
- High technology physics
- Cybernetics
- Information security
- Automatics and electronics
- Humanities
The institute offers bachelor, masters, and post-graduate degrees in physics, mathematics, computer science, and other areas. MEPhI facilities include a 2.5 MW (thermal) pool-type research reactor
Research reactor
Research reactors are nuclear reactors that serve primarily as a neutron source. They are also called non-power reactors, in contrast to power reactors that are used for electricity production, heat generation, or maritime propulsion.-Purpose:...
and Neutrino Water Detector NEVOD
NEVOD
NEVOD is a neutrino detector and cosmic ray experiment that attempts to detect Cherenkov radiation arising from interactions between water and charged particles...
. The university has about 6,000 students at six branches in Moscow and other towns.
It normally takes 5.5 (some sub-departments take six) years for a student to graduate from MEPhI. The curriculum of the first two years consists exclusively of required courses, with emphasis on mathematics, physics, experimental work and English. After the two first years of studying students on a competition basis enroll to the sub-departments which specialize in different branches of physics, computer science, information security, mathematics, etc.
Starting with the fourth year, some students have a choice to make their diploma thesis, working at base science institutes. Most of them are research institutes, usually belonging to the Russian Academy of Sciences. For instance, Lebedev Physical Institute
Lebedev Physical Institute
The Lebedev Physics Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences , situated in Moscow, is one of the leading Russian research institutes specializing in physics. It is also one of the oldest research institutions in Russia: its history dates back to a collection of physics equipment established by...
, Institute for Theoretical and Experimental Physics
Institute for Theoretical and Experimental Physics
The Institute for Theoretical and Experimental Physics is located in Moscow, Russia as a MinAtom physical institute....
, Kurchatov Institute etc.
The MEPhI curriculum is, indeed, considerably more extensive compared to an average American or European college. In addition, MEPhI programs usually focus more on research and less on classroom education.
Among MEPhI graduates are Nobel Prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
winners, members of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Russian Academy of Sciences
The Russian Academy of Sciences consists of the national academy of Russia and a network of scientific research institutes from across the Russian Federation as well as auxiliary scientific and social units like libraries, publishers and hospitals....
, and winners of national prizes. Its professors and alumni have made major contributions to various fields of theoretical and experimental physics, mathematics, cybernetics, and computer sciences.
Traditional university rankings are based on the universities' research output and prizes won by faculty. In contrast, many distinguished professors teaching at MEPhI are officially on staff at the base institutes like Kurchatov Institute
Kurchatov Institute
The Kurchatov Institute is Russia's leading research and development institution in the field of nuclear energy. In the Soviet Union it was known as I. V. Kurchatov Institute of Atomic Energy , abbreviated KIAE . It is named after Igor Kurchatov....
. Student research work is typically carried out outside of MEPhI, and published research results do not mention MEPhI. In effect, many MEPhI professors are not considered as such for the rankings, and student research is not earning any ranking points for MEPhI. This effectively hides MEPhI from the academic radar, an effect not unwelcome during the Cold War era when leading scientists and engineers of the Soviet arms and space programs studied there.
In recent years, the institute has been working to improve its curricula in the humanities, economic sciences, and foreign languages.
Student population
The student population, especially on natural science departments, is predominantly male. During the first years from MEPhI's foundation there was a ban against accepting women. In recent years this situation has changed and in 2010 more than 30% of first year students were females.Logo
MEPhI's logoLogo
A logo is a graphic mark or emblem commonly used by commercial enterprises, organizations and even individuals to aid and promote instant public recognition...
is a representation of the hand of man taming the wild animal of science for his own use. Students at the school sometimes creatively interpret the logo to be the hand of the school's rector pressing the students for more and more work until sparks shoot out of their eyes.
Location
It is a fifteen-minute walk (or a five-minute bus ride) from the university to the KashirskayaKashirskaya
Kashirskaya is a cross-platform station complex on the Moscow Metro. It was opened on 11 August 1969 as part of the Kakhovsky radius extension, and from 1983 was an interchange between the Kakhovskaya and the Orekhovskaya branches of the Zamoskvoretskaya Line...
station on the Zamoskvoretskaya Line
Zamoskvoretskaya Line
Zamoskvoretskaya Line , formerly Gorkovsko-Zamoskvoretskaya , is a line of the Moscow Metro. Opened in 1938, chronologically it became the third line. There are twenty stations on the Zamoskvoretskaya line, and it spans , roughly crossing Moscow in a north-south direction. A normal trip along the...
of the Moscow Metro
Moscow Metro
The Moscow Metro is a rapid transit system serving Moscow and the neighbouring town of Krasnogorsk. Opened in 1935 with one line and 13 stations, it was the first underground railway system in the Soviet Union. As of 2011, the Moscow Metro has 182 stations and its route length is . The system is...
. Its campus is one kilometre from the famous Kolomenskoe park and museum.
Famous alumni & faculties
- Nicolay Gennadiyevich Basov (Николай Геннадиевич Басов) - Nobel Prize
- Alexander Mikhajlovich BaldinAlexander Mikhajlovich BaldinAlexander Mikhajlovich Baldin was a Russian Soviet physicist, expert in the field of physics of elementary particles and high energy physics....
(Александр Михайлович Балдин) - Anatoly Ivanovich Larkin (Анатолий Иванович Ларкин)
- Alexander BalankinAlexander BalankinAlexander Balankin is a Mexican scientist of Russian origin whose work in the field of and its engineering applications won him the UNESCO Science Prize in 2005....
(Александр Сергеевич Баланкин) - Igor TammIgor TammIgor Yevgenyevich Tamm was a Soviet physicist and Nobel laureate who received most prestigious Nobel Prize in Physics, jointly with Pavel Alekseyevich Cherenkov and Ilya Frank, for the discovery of Cherenkov radiation, made in 1934.-Biography:Tamm was born in Vladivostok, Russian Empire , in a...
(Игорь Евгеньевич Тамм) - Nobel Prize - Igor KurchatovIgor KurchatovIgor Vasilyevich Kurchatov , was a Soviet nuclear physicist who is widely known as the director of the Soviet atomic bomb project. Along with Georgy Flyorov and Andrei Sakharov, Kurchatov is widely remembered and dubbed as the "father of the Soviet atomic bomb" for his directorial role in the...
(Игорь Васильевич Курчатов) - Lev Gor'kovLev Gor'kovLev Gor'kov is a Soviet-Russian-American research physicist internationally known for his pioneering work in the field of superconductivity.He is a professor of physics at Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida, and a program director in Condensed Matter at the National High Magnetic...
(Горьков Лев Петрович) - Evgenii FeinbergEvgenii FeinbergEvgenii L'vovich Feinbergwas a Soviet physicist, well known for his contributions totheoretical physics.He was a son to a physician, born in Baku, moving to Moscow in 1918 where he...
(Фейнберг Евгений Львович) - Isaak PomeranchukIsaak PomeranchukIsaak Yakovlevich Pomeranchuk was a Soviet physicist, who was the founder and first head of the theory division at ITEP. The particle pomeron is named in his honour. For his work, Pomeranchuk was twice awarded Stalin Prize .-External links:**...
(Исаак Яковлевич Померанчук) - Pavel Alekseyevich CherenkovPavel Alekseyevich CherenkovPavel Alekseyevich Cherenkov was a Soviet physicist who shared the Nobel Prize in physics in 1958 with Ilya Frank and Igor Tamm for the discovery of Cherenkov radiation, made in 1934.-Biography:...
(Павел Алексеевич Черенков) - Nobel Prize - Lev OkunLev OkunLev Okun is a Russian theoretical physicist.He was born in 1929 in the Soviet Union, and graduated from Moscow Mechanical Institute in 1953 where he was a student of Arcady Migdal and later a graduate student of Isaak Pomeranchuk....
(Лев Борисович Окунь) - Sergei AvdeyevSergei AvdeyevSergei Avdeyev is a Russian engineer and cosmonaut.Avdeyev was born in Chapayevsk, Samara Oblast , Russian SFSR. He graduated from in 1979 as an engineer-physicist. From 1979 to 1987 he worked as an engineer for NPO Energiya...
(Сергей Васильевич Авдеев), record for time spent in space: 747.59 days
External links
- and English language and Russian language official website of National Research Nuclear University “MEPhI”