International Union of Pure and Applied Physics

The International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP; /ˈaɪjuːpæp, ˈjuː-/) 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 application of physics toward solving problems of concern to humanity.^[1][4][5] It was established in 1922 and the first General Assembly was held in 1923 in Paris.^[6] The Union is domiciled in Geneva, Switzerland.^[7]

International Union of Pure and Applied Physics

Abbreviation	IUPAP
Formation	1922; 102 years ago (1922)
Type	International
Legal status	Active
Purpose	To stimulate and facilitate international cooperation in physics and the worldwide development of science [1]
Headquarters	Geneva, with an administrative office in Trieste[2]
Location	Switzerland[3]
Region served	Worldwide
Membership	International Science Council
Official language	English
President	Silvina Ponce Dawson
Main organ	Executive Council
Website	iupap.org

IUPAP carries out this mission by: sponsoring international meetings; fostering communications and publications; encouraging research and education; fostering the free circulation of scientists;^[8][9] promoting international agreements on the use of symbols, units, nomenclature and standards;^[10][11] and cooperating with other organizations on disciplinary and interdisciplinary problems.^[12][13][14]

IUPAP is a member of the International Science Council.

IUPAP is the lead organization promoting the adoption of the International Year of Basic Sciences for Sustainable Development,^[15] a proposal to be considered by the 76th session of the UN General Assembly.

History

In 1919 was formed the International Research Council^[16] “largely through the representatives of the National Academy of Sciences, Washington, and of the Royal Society, London, to coordinate international efforts in the different branches of sciences, under whose aegis international associations or unions in different branches of science could be formed".

In accordance with this principle, the 1922 General Assembly of the IRC convened at Brussels and a number of physicists present decided that the formation of a Physics Union was imperative.

Thirteen countries (Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Netherlands, Empire of Japan, Norway, Poland, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States and Union of South Africa) immediately announced their adherence to the new Union.

An Executive committee was formed which undertook to prepare rules, regulations, and activities of the organization. The committee consisted of ten distinguished physicists: W.H. Bragg, M. Brillouin, O.M. Corbino, M. Knudsen, M. Leblanc, R.A. Millikan, H. Nagaoka, E. Van Aubel, and H. Abraham. The committee had Bragg as President, Van Aubel as Vice-President, and Abraham as Secretary. This was the birth of the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics.

The year 2022 marked the centenary of the IUPAP, organized and run by the physics communities of the world. In this context, the IUPAP sponsored the publication of Globalizing Physics: One Hundred Years of the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics, edited by Roberto Lalli and Jaume Navarro. This anthology brings together contributions on the history of IUPAP since its foundation.^[17]

Committees and governance

The Union is governed by its General Assembly, which meets every three years. The Council is its top executive body, supervising the activities of the nineteen specialized International Commissions and the four Affiliated Commissions – it typically meets once or twice per year. The Union is composed of Members representing identified physics communities. At present 60 Members adhere to IUPAP. The Members are represented by Liaison Committees. Members of the Council and Commissions are elected by the General Assembly, based on nominations received from Liaison Committees and existing Council and Commission members.^[18]

The IUPAP specialised Commissions are:

C1. Commission on Policy and Finance

C2. Commission on Symbols, Units, Nomenclature, Atomic Masses & Fundamental Constants

C3. Commission on Statistical Physics

C4. Commission on Astroparticle Physics. The commission was previously known as the Commission on Cosmic Rays.

C5. Commission on Low Temperature Physics

C6. Commission on Biological Physics

C8. Commission on Semiconductors

C9. Commission on Magnetism

C10. Commission on the Structure and Dynamics of Condensed Matter

C11. Commission on Particles and Fields

C12. Commission on Nuclear Physics

C13. Commission on Physics for Development

C14. Commission on Physics Education

C15. Commission on Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics

C16. Commission on Plasma Physics

C17. Commission on Laser Physics and Photonics

C18. Commission on Mathematical Physics

C19. Commission on Astrophysics

C20. Commission on Computational Physics

The Affiliated Commissions are:

AC1. International Commission for Optics

AC2. International Commission on General Relativity and Gravitation

AC3. International Commission for Acoustics

AC4. International Commission on Medical Physics

AC5. International Association of Physics Students

AC6. History and Philosophy of Physics

In addition IUPAP has established a number of Working Groups, among others the International Committee for Future Accelerators (WG1)^[19][20] and Women in Physics (WG5),^[21] to provide an overview of important areas of international collaboration in physics.

Sponsored conferences

Each year, IUPAP endorses approximately 30 international conferences and awards grants to the majority of them. Applications for sponsorship can be made via the IUPAP website.

Sponsored conferences fall into four categories:

General Conferences - Type A

These provide a broad overview of an entire field (typically the field of interest to a Commission), and normally occur at two- or three-year intervals, as advances in the field warrant. Attendance in the range of 750–1000 would be anticipated.

Topical Conferences - Type B

These concentrate on broad sub-fields (e.g. nuclear spectroscopy, nuclear reaction mechanisms, heavy ion physics, are possible sub-fields in the field of Nuclear Physics). They would normally be scheduled in the years between the corresponding Type A General conferences. Attendance in the range of 300-600 individuals would be anticipated.

Special Conferences - Type C

These concentrate on much more specialised topics than in the case of Type B Conferences (e.g. angular correlations, lifetime measurements, neutron resonance studies in the field of Nuclear Physics). Attendance in the range of 50-200 would be anticipated.

Workshops in Developing Countries - Type D

These concentrate on meeting the needs of a developing region. Unlike the Type A, B and C conferences, they do not need to be truly international, but should involve neighbouring countries, and they should address the needs of the region. One Type D conference will be approved each year. All applications for Type-D Conferences must be submitted to the Commission on Physics for Development (C13).

Sponsored awards

IUPAP commissions sponsor various awards for scientists. These include:

• The IUPAP Young Scientist Prize, approved and adopted at the 2005 General Assembly for all commissions. The prize was renamed Early Career Scientist Prize at the General Assembly 2021.^[22]
• The SUNAMCO Medal, given by the Commission on Symbols, Units, Nomenclature, Atomic Masses and Fundamental Constants (C2)
• The Boltzmann Medal, awarded by the Commission on Statistical Physics (C3)
• The Fritz London Memorial Prize, given by the Commission on Low Temperature Physics (C5)
• The Young Author Best Paper Award, established by the Commission on Semiconductors (C8) and sponsored by the semiconductor industries of USA, Japan and Europe
• ICM Award in Magnetism, established by the Commission on Magnetism (C9)
• The Kennedy Reed Medal for Outstanding Contributions to the Enhancement of Physics in Developing Countries (C13)
• The ICPE Medal, sponsored by the Commission on Physics Education (C14)
• Penning Award Excellence in Low-Temperature Plasma Physics, established by the Commission on Plasma Physics (C16)
• ICO Prize, awarded by the Affiliated Commission for Optics (AC1)
• ICO Galileo Galilei Award, awarded by the Affiliated Commission for Optics (AC1)

Sponsored symposiums

• Symposium on Laser Physics

Member States of IUPAP

IUPAP was founded in 1922 by 13 states: Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Netherlands, Empire of Japan, Norway, Poland, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States, and South Africa. Since, then many new members have joined the union. Today, the IUPAP consists of 56 member states.

Below is the list of Member States of IUPAP:

List of the Current and Former Member States of IUPAP[23]
	Country	Shares (2015)	Votes (2015)	Year of Joining	Year of ceasing to be a member	Rejoining (1)	Rejoining (2)
1	Algeria	1	1	2009
2	Argentina	1	1	1951		1984
3	Australia	4	3	1925
4	Austria	2	2	1957
5	Belgium	4	3	1922
6	Brazil	8	4	1951
7	Canada	8	4	1922
8	Chile	1	1	1984
9	China-Beijing (PRC)	15	5	1984
10	China-Taipei (Taiwan)	5	3	1984
11	Costa Rica	1	1	2009	2017
12	Croatia	1	1	1993
13	Cyprus	1	1	2003
14	Czech Republic	4	3	1993
15	Denmark	3	2	1922
16	Estonia	1	1	2002
17	Ethiopia	1	1	2009	No Voting rights[24]
18	Finland	3	2	1947
19	France	15	5	1922
20	Germany	15	5	1954
21	Ghana	1	1	?
22	Greece	1	1	2009
23	Hungary	3	2	1948
24	India	8	4	1948
25	Iran	1	1	?
26	Ireland	1	1	1966
27	Israel	2	2	1951
28	Italy	12	5	1923
29	Japan	15	5	1922
30	Jordan	2	1	2018
31	Korea (ROK)	10	5	1969
32	Latvia	1	1	2002
33	Lithuania	1	1	2002
34	Mexico	2	2	1925
35	Netherlands	4	3	1922
36	New Zealand	1	1	1954
37	Norway	3	2	1922
38	Pakistan	0	0	1951		2017
39	Peru	1	1	2009
40	Philippines	1	1	2009
41	Poland	4	3	1922
42	Portugal	1	1	1984
43	Romania	1	1	1947		1960-87	2009
44	Russia	18	6	1992
45	Saudi Arabia	1	1	1990
46	Senegal	1	1	?	No voting rights
47	Singapore	2	2	2009
48	Slovakia	1	1	1993
49	Slovenia	1	1	1993
50	South Africa	3	2	1922
51	Spain	8	4	1922
52	Sweden	8	4	1923
53	Switzerland	4	3	1922
54	Tunisia	1	1	2005
55	United Kingdom	15	5	1922
56	United States	18	6	1922
	Bolivia	0	0	1963
	Bulgaria	0	0	1957
	Cameroon	1	1	2009	2017
	Colombia	1	1	2009	2017
	Cuba	1	1	1969	No voting rights
	Egypt	1	1	1948	2017
	East Germany			1960
	Kenya	1	1	1995	2017
	Nigeria	0	0	1990
	Republic of China (membership renewed as China-Taipei)			1934	1984
	Soviet Union (succeeded by Russia)	18	6	1957	1991
	Yugoslavia	0	0	1954	1992

List of IUPAP Presidents

The IUPAP President is the head of the Executive Council. IUPAP Presidents are elected by the General Assembly. During the election of the Executive Council, the future President is also elected to the post of President-Designate. Thus in every Executive Council the current President-Designate will succeed the incumbent President.

Below is the list of IUPAP Presidents since its inception in 1922.

Term	President	Nationality
1922–1931	Sir Willilam Henry Bragg[5]	United Kingdom
1931–1934	Robert Andrews Millikan[12]	United States
1934–1947	Mann Siegbahn[6]	Sweden
1947–1951	Hendrik Anthony Kramers[25]	Netherlands
1951–1957	Sir Nevill Francis Mott[26][27]	United Kingdom
1957–1960	Edoardo Amaldi[28]	Italy
1960–1963	Homi Jehangir Bhabha[6]	India
1963–1966	Louis Eugène Félix Néel[6]	France
1966–1969	Dmitrii Ivanovich Blokhintsev[29]	Soviet Union
1969–1972	Robert Fox Bacher[12]	United States
1972–1975	Heinz Maier-Leibnitz[30]	Germany
1975–1978	Sir Clifford Charles Butler[31]	United Kingdom
1978–1981	Leonard Sosnowski [32]	Poland
1981–1984	Kai Manne Börje Siegbahn	Sweden
1984–1987	David Allan Bromley[33]	Canada/ United States
1987–1990	Larkin Kerwin[34]	Canada
1990–1993	Yuri Andreevich Ossipyan[35]	Russia
1993–1996	Yasatuka Yamaguchi [36]	Japan
1996–1999	Jan S. Nilsson [37][38]	Sweden
1999–2002	Burton Richter[39][40]	United States
2002–2005	Yves Pierre Petroff	France
2005–2008	Alan Astbury[41]	Canada
2008–2011	Sukekatsu Ushioda	Japan
2011–2014	Cecilia Jarlskog[42]	Sweden
2014–2017	Bruce McKellar[43]	Australia
2017–2020	Kennedy J. Reed[42]	United States
2020–2024	Michel Spiro[44]	France

IUPAP reactions to sanctions in science

IUPAP, whose mission is to assist in the worldwide development of physics, to foster international cooperation, and to help in the application of physics toward solving problems of concern to humanity, has throughout its history defended the stand that no scientists should be barred from participating in conferences or events on the basis of their nationality or their affiliation.^[5][45] Shortly after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, IUPAP issued a statement against the military offensive, while advocating for continued international scientific cooperation.^[46][47][48] To alleviate sanctions in science and to promote principles and policies for international scientific collaboration,^[49] IUPAP offers physicists, including students, from any country around the world, who feel excluded from academic exchange based exclusively on their affiliation and/or country of origin, to apply to use the IUPAP as their affiliation.^{[50][51][52][53]}

See also

• International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry

References

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External links

• International Union of Pure and Applied Physics
• IUPAP 'Red Book'