Jubilees

Professor Lachesar KOSTOV:
"Doing science is not so much a profession as a calling"

On 11 October, the 70th-year anniversary of the Vice-Director of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, Doctor of Physical and Mathematical Sciences Lachesar Krumov Kostov was celebrated.

In 2006-2020, he was the plenipotentiary representative of the Government of the Republic of Bulgaria at JINR. He is widely known as a specialist in the field of experimental research of nuclear structure, transmutation and nuclear energy, natural radioactivity, restoration of radioactively contaminated soils and radiation safety. He has published more than a hundred scientific papers on this topic. For many years, he has worked at the Bulgarian Nuclear Regulatory Agency. In recent years, in Dubna, he has been widely involved in the work of the Supervisory Board of the megaproject "NICA Complex". He is Honorary Doctor of JINR, Honorary Member of the Union of Physicists of Bulgaria, awarded the Rosatom Medal for his contribution to international cooperation. On the eve of the anniversary, Lachesar Kostov answered questions of the editor of the weekly Dubna.

My first question is about the cultural traditions of international Dubna. It seems that just recently, another Day of Bulgarian Education, Culture and Slavic Literature has been celebrated. Your compatriots have prepared the exhibition "Bulgaria's Contribution to the Cultural Heritage of the Slavs" and at its opening, you noted that despite the difficult geopolitical situation, under conditions of strong restrictions, Bulgaria, a JINR Member State has set an example of how it is possible to develop and expand cooperation, especially scientific and cultural ties since the establishment of the Institute.

- Yes, to put it mildly, the geopolitical situation in the world is complicated. Fortunately, not only in Bulgaria, but throughout the world, more and more people understand the enduring importance of fundamental science and the value of open scientific dialogue in overcoming the great challenges facing humanity. As a continuation of this thought, I can say: all JINR Member States are proud that the activities of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in the name of developing the scientific, technological and intellectual potential of the Member States contributed to the development of an international scientific, educational and cultural environment in Dubna, confirming the motto: "Science brings nations together." As for cultural exchange between peoples, there are strong and long-standing traditions at JINR. And the exhibition you have mentioned is another example of these traditions.

You have succeeded to work in a lot of international scientific committees. Does this activity help you to navigate the complex issues that you meet as the chairman of the expert analytical group, a working body under Director of the Institute?

- Yes, at the risk of seeming immodest, I would say that I have decent international experience. For many years, I have been engaged in experimental research of nuclear structure. Like most of our colleagues, we have carried out this work in collaboration with international teams. For many years, I have been Head of the Bulgarian delegation to the IAEA General Conference. I have been widely participating in the activities of this international organization for more than 15 years. For several years, I have been a member of the Science and Technology Council of EURATOM. For 15 years, I have been the plenipotentiary representative of Bulgaria at the JINR CP. Of course, all this helps to fulfill the tasks that I have to meet as part of my duties as Vice-Director of JINR. Not only as the chairman of the expert-analytical group, but also in organizing the work of the CP and the Finance Committee, in the process of regulating relations with the Member States, expanding the geography of the JINR Member States, others.

How do you remember your student years?

- I remember this wonderful time with great pleasure and nostalgia. Unlike today, life then was much fairer, our ideals were high and beautiful, our friendship was real, each of us had the opportunity to realize our talent.

Nuclear physics was one of the most prestigious specialties and the educational level was maintained at a very high level. The competition for entering the university was strong. Like most of my colleagues and me too, we were very motivated kids to study as deeply as possible what our professors taught us. We dreamed of doing scientific research.

Tell us about your first steps in your scientific career.

I prepared my thesis at the Institute of Nuclear Research and Nuclear Energy of the BAS under the supervision of Academician Ventseslav Andreichev. He was then a young doctor of physical sciences, defended his dissertation at the Central Institute for Nuclear Research of the Academy of Sciences of the GDR in Rossendorf and developed a generalized technique for shifting the centre of gravity for measuring the lifetimes of excited nuclear states in the subnanosecond area. Immediately after defending my thesis, I was invited to Rossendorf. With my active participation, our group refined the technique and we started to apply it to systematic investigations of nuclear structure in reaction with alpha particles, neutrons, heavy ions and nuclear decay. Several candidate's theses were defended.

What else would you like to do in science, in scientific management?

- For the last two decades, I have been engaged in applied research and application of nuclear physics methods to meet various issues of radioecology and nuclear energy. One of the areas that I am particularly interested in is studying the possibilities of a new electronuclear method scheme based on nuclear relativistic technologies (NRT scheme) for generating energy and recycling spent nuclear fuel. I would like to carry out experiments that will help us to better understand how effective and generally realistic this method of energy production is.

In recent years, our international intergovernmental organization has been developing very dynamically. Recently, Egypt has become a full member. In February 2023, a Joint Declaration of Intent regarding cooperation in the field of fundamental and innovative applied scientific research was signed between the National Council of Science and Technology - CONACYT (Mexico) and the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research. In March 2023, a protocol was signed between the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People's Republic of China, the Joint Institute of Nuclear Research and the Chinese Academy of Sciences on strengthening cooperation in the field of fundamental scientific research at the government level. In May 2023, a Joint Letter of Interest in the field of fundamental scientific research was signed between JINR and the National Centre for Physics of Pakistan. Active negotiations are underway with the Argentine Atomic Energy Committee and the National Nuclear Energy Committee of Brazil. The establishment and deepening of these cooperations is a new stage in the development of JINR.

What are your preferences in literature, art, maybe sports?

- I enjoy listening to both classical and pop music of the 1970s and 1980s of the last century. In literature, my preferences probably also gravitate towards the classical genre. Lately, I have been reading with interest studies related to our recent history.

When I was young, I played a lot of football and tried to stay in shape. And a year and a half ago, my friends from the Bulgarian community encouraged me, after a long break, to try to remember my youth. And today, when I'm in Dubna, every Saturday evening you can see me with them on the football field.

What would you like to wish to youth that are just starting their path in science?

- Doing science today is far from being a prestigious hobby as it was 40-50 years ago. However, despite it, many young talented people choose this path. They probably understand well that doing science is not so much a profession as a vocation. Of course, I wish them good health, creative success and constant improvement of their skills to work in a team. I can assure them that we also well understand that talented people with their bold ideas and insatiable passion for science are the main value of JINR and we do our bests to create favorable working conditions for them at our Institute.

Interview by Evgeny MOLCHANOV