Youth

Horia Hulubei had a rough upbringing as an orphan - his father passed way in 1911. Despite all the difficulties caused by the loss of his father, he finished high school as the valedictorian of his class. He then enrolled the Faculty of Physics and Chemistry of Iasi University but, shortly after, he had to abandon his studies, being called to active duty during the outbreak of World War I. He is sent to France to train as an aviation pilot at the recommendation of General Berthelot. Hulubei is wounded, while bravely fighting and as a recognition of his merits, he receives the "Legion of Honour" order. He was stationed for four years (1916-1920), between the east and west battle lines.

The passion for aviation and the need to survive in a country decimated by war, keeps him away another two years from the University, until he decided to return to his studies, in 1922. As a student, his remarkable qualities recommend him for a position of research assistant - the first step toward a brilliant academic career, that will continue to evolve up to the greatest title that one can receive: Doctor Honoris Causa of the same University. In 1923 he publishes his first scientific paper (link ), and in 1926 he is awarded his bachelor's degree with the distinction Magna cum Laude . After a year of working as an assistant of Professor Petru Bogdan, Hulubei transfers from the chemistry lab of Iasi University to the Sorbonne science laboratory, where he will work in the group of Jean Perrin, Nobel Prize Laureate (1926).

Parisian studies, PhD

In France, his research focused on domains very promising at that time, such as X ray diffusion, multiple Compton scattering, X-ray spectroscopy of noble gases, the discovery of new chemical elements based on their X-ray spectra. He defends two theses during that period, the first main one (première these - link), entitle "Contribution to the study of X ray quantic diffusion", a second thesis, "Modifications of Raman spetra under the action of various physical agents". Both theses are based on original devices or methods, developed under the supervision of Jean Perrin: the first one uses an X ray spectrograph, designed by Yvette Couchois; the second, a method developed by Hulubei himself

Having excellent knowledge of the field and access to the state-of-the-art equipment, while being able to work in a exemplary scientific environment, Hulubei addresses problems of great interest, an activity that will represent his most productive scientific decade. Together with Yvette Couchois, he manages to identify new spectral lines and interpret them as the observation of new elements, that fill out the empty frames in Mendeleev Periodic Table, that correspond to atomic numbers 85, 87, 93. The unprecedented difficulties encountered in the identification of these elements, prompted the scientific community to give credit for their discovery to those who isolated them chemically, a decade or two after the pioneering work of Horia Hulubei and Yvette Cauchois. The major contributions of Hulubei and Cauchois are now acknowledged in more recent books of history of chimistry, the two being recognized as co-discoverers of these elements.

The return to Romania

Towards the end of 1930 decade, Hulubei moves back and forth between Romania and France. He enthusiastically accepts to be part of the organizing committee of the Great Exposition organized at the Palais des découvertes in Paris, where his efforts are well appreciated by his French patterners. As he returns to Romania, he starts to teach the course entitle Matter structure, first as junior Professor and then as Senior Professor, at University of Iasi and then at University of Bucharest. He works together with his younger colleagues, George Manu and Radu Grigorovici, at designing the first laboratories of physics and chemistry from Romania, initially situated in the basement of the main building of University of Bucharest. During the distressed times of carliste dictature (1938-1940), he tries to make functional the "Scientific Research Institute King Carol the II", located in Cluj. He has a major contribution at editing the first highly cited Romanian scientific paper, named "Disquisitiones Mathematicae et Physicae" -link (although well received papers were published in less cited papers, such as "Bulletin de la Société Roumaine de Physique"). Unfortunately, the enforcement of the Vienna Dictate and the loss of Northern Transylvania, Cluj included, forces him to give up on these projects.

The intellectual and human qualities, as well as the great appreciation of his French partners, recommended Horia Hulubei for a diplomatic position: he became a cultural counselor of the Romanian Embassy in Paris, for three months, starting April 1940. From this position, we will witness the defeat of France (22 June 1940), an historic catastrophe felt not only in Paris, but in Bucharest as well. In years of immense frustrations that followed the territorial losses from 1940, that strongly affected the patriot youth, Hulubei proved to be a providential presence as the head of Bucharest University. He wisely managed the student's frustrations and knew to use his position as a chancellor to resume to resume the scientific connections with the French State (the Vichy government), of course at a modest pace, but all the more comforting for the defeated party. His gestures of support for the values of the French culture, either by awarding the title of Doctor Honoris Causa to scientists with democratic beliefs, or giving scholarships to French students and awards to university professors, were very appreciated by our former ally.

The fall of democracy

The Sovietisation of Romania, occuring after 23 August events, could have had dramatic consequences for Horia Hulubei. His connections to France("servitude" to the Western imperialism?, using the doublespeak of that time) and his position as chancellor during the anti-Soviet war placed Hulubei in a vulnerable position. The most dramatic consequence was his arrest for a couple of weeks, in the spring of 1945; fortunately, such episodes will never repeat again.

The work experience that Horia Hulubei and Yvette Cauchois gained while working in the laboratory of Jean Perrin will soon recommend the two scientists for writing a valuable tables volume of X ray atomic spectra, "Constantes sélectionnées; Longueurs d'onde des émissions X et des discontinuités d'absorption", published in Paris 1947 - link.

In Romania, the process of industrialization of the country, a priority for the communist party, made Hulubei an essential element. The beginnings of the Physics Institute of Academy of the Popular Republic of Romania (1946), soon converted to the Institute of Atomic Physics, were very rough for Hulubei, being constantly under supervion. Fortunatly, his wisdom, erudition, skilfulness and diligence convinced the communist government of the necessity of maintaining him as the leadership of Romania science. Starting mid '50s, his position was strengthened by the amazing success of the Institute. In only two decades, Hulubei managed to bring the Romanian research in physics to international standards.

Institute of Atomic Physics

Despite having major personalities, such as Augustin Maior and Serban Titeica, the Romanian institutional research has been slowly moving forward, in the few existing university labs. It required the exceptional scientific, human and organizational qualities of Horia Hulubei and firm industrialization policy persue by the communist power, for the spectacular development of Romanian physics to unfold. This realisation plan started with the creation of the Institute of Physics of the Academy of the Popular Republic of Romania(1949), that seven years later split into Institute of Atomic Physics and Bucharest Physics Institute and several other regional research centres. In this exceptional context, one has to take a moment to praise the devotement and the patriotism of a generation, that while having a live full of deprives and confronted with the unforgiven ideologic rigor, made possible, in only one decade, the establishement of an elite institute. In the first years of IFA, the development of Romanian nuclear physics was focused in three major directions: the training of young researchers for using the scientific equipment that was imported from URSS (the reactor, the cyclotron etc.); forming research groups in neutron physics, low energy physics, nuclear reactions and particle physics. Hulubei did not limit just to import the technique, but also decisively contributed to its upgrade. For example, by simple modifications of the reactor, its power was increased by a factor of 1.75.

The scientific and technological achievements, in the most diverse areas, from nuclear medicine to computing techniques, or monitoring the furnace wear for neutron physics, were well documented in a rapport elaborated under the coordination of Hulubei (link) or in more recent publications (link). The open spirit and wide scientific interests of Hulubei, as well as his constructive involvement in all the research directions of the institute, lead to remarkable accomplishments, such as the first Romanian computer and first laser designed in Romania. Hulubei is also the person that initiated and encouraged the development of the scientific collaborations with international research centres, namely IUCN-Dubna and CERN-Geneva.