On 27 August, Moldova, a Member State of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, celebrates its national holiday – the Independence Day.

The Republic of Moldova, as part of the USSR, joined JINR since its foundation in 1956. As a sovereign republic, Moldova has been a JINR Member State since 1992.

The country takes an active part in research projects of the Institute. The Moldova – JINR collaboration involves the Research and Educational Networking Association of Moldova (RENAM), the Academy of Sciences of Moldova and its scientific organizations, such as the Institute of Mathematics and Computer Science, the Institute of Applied Physics, and the Institute of Chemistry, as well as Moldova State and Technical Universities.

Moldavian scientists cooperate with JINR on 10 topics of the Topical plan for JINR research and international cooperation. Their scientific interests are fundamental and applied research at heavy ion beams, investigations of neutron nuclear interactions and properties of the neutron, biomedical and radiation-genetic studies using different types of ionising radiation. The cooperation is developing in the fields of a theory of nuclear systems, computational physics, as well as personnel training.

The Republic of Moldova participates in the creation of the NICA complex, as well as the development and construction of the prototype of a complex for radiotherapy and applied research with heavy-ion beams at the Nuclotron.

In 2015 – 2016, Moldova became one of the countries in which employees of the Frank Laboratory of Neutron Physics analysed air quality using moss-biomonitors within the UN air programme in Europe called the ICP Vegetation. Scientists analysed the amount of atmospheric precipitation of heavy metals for different regions of the country.

In 2022, scientists of the Laboratory of Neutron Physics in cooperation with the Institute of Microbiology and Biotechnology of Moldova studied the effect of silver nanoparticles on organisms of laboratory animals. The results of the study indicate the toxicity of these nanoparticles.

Moldavian scientists participated in the development of a new method for studying interfaces in thin-film heterostructures – i.e. isotope-identifying neutron reflectometry. This is a unique world practice, since the method is carried out on a pulsed neutron source spectrometer.

The Directorate of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research congratulates Moldavian colleagues and partners, as well as their relatives, on the Independence Day and wishes them good health, happiness, well-being, luck, and new professional successes for the benefit of science and progress.