Lebedev Physical Institute

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The Lebedev Physical 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 Peter the Great in the Kunstkamera of Saint Petersburg in 1714. The institute was established in its present shape in 1934 by academician Sergey Vavilov. It moved to Moscow and was named after a prominent Russian physicist Pyotr Lebedev the same year. It is also known as Lebedev Institute of Physics or just Lebedev Institute. In Russian it is often referred to by the acronym FIAN (ФИАН) standing for "Physical Institute of the Academy of Sciences".

Among the wide range of the research activities, the following fields should be noted: laser technology, dark matter structure, nanostructures, superconductivity, cosmic rays, gamma-astronomy. In addition to broad scientific developments, the institute is known for perfecting a technique of crystallizing cubic zirconia (which was called Fianit in Russia, named after FIAN). In recent years the institute has emerged as a leading center of research in physical economics.

[edit] Directors of the Institute

Sergey Vavilov (1934–1951)
Dmitri Skobeltsyn (1951–1972)
Nikolay Basov (1973–1988)
Leonid Keldysh (1988–1994)
Oleg Krokhin (1994–2004)
Gennadii Mesyats (2004–)

[edit] Nobel prizes awarded to FIAN scientists

1958 — Pavel Cherenkov, Igor Tamm, Ilya Frank: "for the discovery and the interpretation of the Cherenkov-Vavilov effect".
1964 — Nikolay Basov, Aleksandr Prokhorov: "for fundamental work in the field of quantum electronics, which has led to the construction of oscillators and amplifiers based on the maser-laser principle".
1975 — Andrei Sakharov won a Peace Prize for his campaigning for human rights.
2003 — Vitaly Ginzburg: "for pioneering contributions to the theory of superconductors and superfluids".