Nuclear physicists: who are they and what do they do?

Nuclear physicist is a relatively new profession that appeared only at the end of the last century. Therefore, it is not surprising that this concept has not yet taken root in our minds, and although many know about the existence of such a profession, they do not quite understand what the people who have mastered it are doing. And today we will try to fill this gap.

To begin with, nuclear physicists are not really scientists, and they do not do research work at institutes. They work at nuclear power plants and monitor how power plants operate.

The earliest power plants were operated by the people who developed them. However, over time, nuclear power plants became more and more, and appropriate qualified personnel were needed to maintain them.

Today, nuclear power is the backbone of the economy of many countries, and nuclear physics has become the most real applied discipline. By the way, not only nuclear physicists, but also specialists associated with this area leave the universities of atomic energy. Researchers who study the principles of atomic nuclei are also trained there; however, the overwhelming majority of specialists are still NPP workers.

While nuclear physicists do not make any discoveries, this profession is by no means an easy one. A nuclear physicist makes sure that the nuclear reactor is working properly: he monitors its condition, takes readings from instruments and draws conclusions based on the obtained figures, reboots and starts new reactors.

Working in a nuclear power plant is very difficult. The responsibilities of a nuclear physicist include:

• checking the health of all devices, sensors, systems and structures;
• regular measurements of radiation levels;
• registration of neutral, charged and elementary particles;
• recording and processing of data received from devices;
• analysis of permissible radiation fluxes;
• security regulation at the facility;
• accounting and control of radioactive substances;
• assessment of fuel reserves of a nuclear power plant;
• control of spent nuclear fuel.

This is what nuclear physicists do during business hours. Specialists of this class need to keep in mind a huge amount of information. They must know everything about the operation of the nuclear power plant and ensure that the work at the facility entrusted to them proceeds in accordance with all instructions. And also they must understand the principles of operation of atomic generators and know how to act in a given situation.

It is impossible to overestimate what the nuclear physicist does, because the lives of hundreds, thousands, and maybe even millions of people depend on him.

It is clear that only highly qualified specialists are allowed to work with nuclear installations. To work here, a person must not only understand the principle of operation of the nuclear power plant itself, but also have knowledge of nuclear physics in general. More precisely, a university graduate must have knowledge in the following areas:

1. fundamentals of nuclear physics;
2. the technology of operation of nuclear reactors and their design;
3. practice in control and diagnostics of nuclear power plant equipment;
4. the practice of maintaining documentation and working out standards.

In addition to theoretical knowledge, a nuclear physicist must also have certain personal qualities:

1. analytic skills;
2. high level of concentration and concentration;
3. ability in mathematics and physics;
4. the ability to think rationally and make decisions quickly;
5. good memory and observation;
6. emotional stability and the ability to act in critical situations.

When applying to study to be a nuclear physicist, the applicant must be initially ready for hard academic work. The demand from specialists in this industry is very high, and their work is incredibly responsible, therefore they are trained more diligently than others.

Already before entering a university, a person must have good knowledge of physics and mathematics, especially since they will come in handy when you need to take exams. Therefore, if you are thinking about enrolling, it would be better to pull up these items. High school students are encouraged to study in specialized classes with a bias in physics and mathematics, and those who receive their education after graduation will find it useful to enroll in preparatory courses at the university.

By the way, about universities. In Russia, the following universities are considered leading in this direction:

1. Ural Federal University;
2. Polytechnic and State Universities of St. Petersburg;
3. Bauman Moscow State Technical University;
4. National Research Nuclear University MEPhI;
5. Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology;
6. Far Eastern Federal University.

Of course, these are not all higher educational institutions where nuclear physicists are taught. Many physical and technical universities have a department of atomic energy or nuclear physics.

On the website of the Rosatom company, you can find a good list of universities that graduate nuclear physicists. These universities are considered pivotal, which means that their graduates are much more likely to find work in the company.

In order to enter one of these institutions, you need to get good points on the exam. The main subjects for admission here, of course, are physics and mathematics, and you also need the Russian language.

The required number of points can vary greatly depending on the chosen place of study. In the most famous universities, such as NRNU MEPhI, the passing score for the budget can be above 250 points, although the average for the universities listed above is just below 200 points.

Nuclear physicists work in nuclear power plants. There are already a lot of them on the territory of the Russian Federation, and over time, most likely, it will become even more. This means that the demand for nuclear physicists will grow.

At the same time, you need to understand that new power plants mean new technologies, because progress does not stand still. Already now, old Soviet-style installations are being decommissioned, and new ones are being built, operating on mixed fuel (plutonium and uranium).

That is why nuclear physicists also need to keep pace with the times, to study new types of installations. Although there are pluses in this (for physicists): modern installations are much safer and easier to use. In addition, they try to automate the process of their work as much as possible. Of course, a person is still needed in enterprises of this type, because a computer cannot replace him in everything (which, in general, is also good news for physicists), but now at least you don’t need to do everything manually.

Now let's talk about companies that provide jobs for specialists in this field. The leader here is undoubtedly Rosatom. It is he who is involved in everything related to nuclear energy in Russia: fuel extraction, transportation, design and construction of new nuclear power plants, research, ensuring safety at enterprises - in short, everything.

Wherein lately Rosatom has begun to enter the international market, which also had a fruitful effect on the number of jobs offered by the company.

But not only Rosatom needs nuclear physicists. The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation are considered their main "competitor".

Most of the physicists recruited by the military are involved in overseeing the manufacture and storage of the country's nuclear weapons. Some of them also monitor the construction and operation of vehicles capable of using uranium as fuel (nuclear icebreakers and submarines).

But this does not limit the sphere of capabilities of nuclear scientists. They also need to remember about Roscosmos. Presently space rockets do not yet fly on nuclear fuel, but if you believe the media, developments in this direction have been going on for several years.

Many more go to work in the so-called Silicon Valley, where new methods of using and extracting nuclear energy are being developed. By the way, similar studies are also being conducted at many institutes. Although all this is rather a research work, you can try your hand at it.

As you can see, an intelligent nuclear physicist will definitely not be left without work. Moreover, specialists in this area are in demand not only in our country, but also abroad.

If, for some reason, a nuclear physicist cannot find a job for himself "in his specialty", then there are still many industries where his skills and knowledge can be useful. First of all, these are, of course, other areas of the energy industry: hydroelectric power plants, enterprises that generate energy from sunlight and wind, thermal power plants.

Even at the beginning of the 21st century, all nuclear physicists tried to leave Russia and get a job abroad, because they paid many times more there. Fortunately, trends have begun to change lately. The salary of domestic nuclear engineers is gradually growing and has almost approached the indicators of foreign specialists. This has been noticed, and in recent years, most of the graduates have chosen to stay at home.

Of course, you shouldn't expect huge salaries right away. Even a graduate of the most prestigious university will first have to work as a simple laboratory assistant. The salary of laboratory technicians is low - on average, about 20 thousand rubles.

But over time, income can grow dramatically. A good specialist with a scientific degree "in his pocket" gets 3 times more - that is, about 60 thousand.

And you also need to take into account the size of our country, where a separate region is almost a separate world. The difference between the salaries of nuclear physicists from different regions can reach 10, or even 20 thousand rubles.

Besides, it is not known for certain how much the specialists invited to work on secret and experimental projects receive; but, most likely, a lot.

And, of course, do not forget about career growth, which is also present here. By working hard, an ordinary specialist can well become the head of a department or even the director of an entire enterprise.