Yuri Andreevich Osipyan (russian: Юрий Андреевич Осипьян; February 15, 1931 – September 10, 2008) was a

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nation ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ' ...

physicist A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...

who worked in the field of solid state physics. Osipyan was born in Moscow and graduated from Georgi Kurdyumov's class at

Moscow Institute of Steel and Alloys The National University of Science and Technology (MISiS) (russian: Национальный исследовательский технологический университет МИСиС) is a public technological university in the field ...

in 1955. His first scientific work pu. Later, he summarized his interest in science: In late 1950s and 1960s Osipyan worked on the extended effects of interaction of

electron The electron ( or ) is a subatomic particle with a negative one elementary electric charge. Electrons belong to the first generation of the lepton particle family, and are generally thought to be elementary particles because they have no ...

s with solid matter and discovered the effect of

optical excitation Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behaviour and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of instruments that use or detect it. Optics usually describes the behaviour of visible, ultravio ...

of plastic properties in

semiconductor A semiconductor is a material which has an electrical conductivity value falling between that of a conductor, such as copper, and an insulator, such as glass. Its resistivity falls as its temperature rises; metals behave in the opposite way. ...

s. Also in 1960s Osipyan released his theory of

dislocation In materials science, a dislocation or Taylor's dislocation is a linear crystallographic defect or irregularity within a crystal structure that contains an abrupt change in the arrangement of atoms. The movement of dislocations allow atoms to s ...

s in semiconductor

crystal structure In crystallography, crystal structure is a description of the ordered arrangement of atoms, ions or molecules in a crystalline material. Ordered structures occur from the intrinsic nature of the constituent particles to form symmetric patterns ...

. In 1962 Osipyan became a cofounder and director of the Institute of Solid State Physics in

Chernogolovka Chernogolovka (russian: Черноголо́вка) is a town in Moscow Oblast, Russia. Center of the town is located some 43 km (27 miles) northeast of the Moscow city limit and 59 km (37 miles) from Red Square. Its population in 2018 ...

and remained at the head of the Institute until his death. Osipyan was elected full member of

Russian Academy of Sciences The Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS; russian: Росси́йская акаде́мия нау́к (РАН) ''Rossíyskaya akadémiya naúk'') consists of the national academy of Russia; a network of scientific research institutes from across ...

at the age of 37, and vice-president of the Academy in 1988—2001. He chaired the Departments of Solid State physics at

Moscow State University M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU; russian: Московский государственный университет имени М. В. Ломоносова) is a public research university in Moscow, Russia and the most prestigious ...

and

Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (MIPT; russian: Московский Физико-Технический институт, also known as PhysTech), is a public research university located in Moscow Oblast, Russia. It prepares speciali ...

. In 1980s Osipyan and his Institute conducted microgravity experiments on board of

Mir ''Mir'' (russian: Мир, ; ) was a space station that operated in low Earth orbit from 1986 to 2001, operated by the Soviet Union and later by Russia. ''Mir'' was the first modular space station and was assembled in orbit from 1986 to&n ...

station. In 2000s Osipyan engaged in the studies of fullerens. Throughout his lifetime Osipyan chaired numerous academic commissions, conferences and journal boards. From 1990 to 1993 he was president of the

International Union of Pure and Applied Physics The International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP ) is an international non-governmental organization whose mission is to assist in the worldwide development of physics, to foster international cooperation in physics, and to help in the ...

(IUPAP). In 2005 he was awarded

Lomonosov Gold Medal The Lomonosov Gold Medal (russian: Большая золотая медаль имени М. В. Ломоносова ''Bol'shaya zolotaya medal' imeni M. V. Lomonosova''), named after Russian scientist and polymath Mikhail Lomonosov, is awarded ...

of the Russian Academy. In an interview the year after, Osipyan summarized his creed in science: "All my life I was mining for

experimental data Experimental data in science and engineering is data produced by a measurement, test method, experimental design or quasi-experimental design. In clinical research any data produced are the result of a clinical trial. Experimental data may be qua ...

. I am an experimenter, although I was trained in theory. In the Soviet age, creative and (most important) ''independent'' work was possible only in science. May I say that my choice was based on a will for freedom and independence."

External links

* ''Interview with Osipyan''. Kvant, 2006 Number 2, pp. 2–

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Osipyan, Yuri 1931 births 2008 deaths Full Members of the USSR Academy of Sciences Full Members of the Russian Academy of Sciences Foreign Members of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences Academic staff of Moscow State University Academic staff of the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology Russian people of Armenian descent Armenian physicists Soviet physicists 20th-century Russian physicists National University of Science and Technology MISiS alumni Heroes of Socialist Labour Recipients of the Lomonosov Gold Medal Presidents of the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics