ICTP Associate Ivane Murusidze remains optimistic that his native Georgia can regain its footing in science after a difficult period of transition.

Tradition and Transition

When ICTP Associate Ivane Murusidze leaves Trieste to return to his home in Tbilisi, Georgia, in early May, it will mark the end of his third visit to ICTP during the past six years. Murusidze, who is trained as a plasma physicist, is thankful for the opportunities that the Centre has provided him during a period of unprecedented change for both scientists and scientific institutions in his home country.

Georgia is one of the 'newly independent states,' located between the Black and Caspian seas in the Caucasus, that re-emerged after the collapse of the U.S.S.R. in 1991. "Our problems," Murusidze notes, "are similar to the problems faced by other republics that belonged to the Soviet Union. Economically, we now resemble a developing country, but scientifically we do not."

In fact, Georgia has a long tradition of excellence not only in science but in other fields of inquiry--for example, history, philosophy and the arts--that date back to the 12th century. "Our culture has a deep and abiding respect for education," he notes, "and that respect has found expression in the accomplishments of our teachers, humanitarians, artists and scientists."

Murusidze cites the work of Elevter Andronikashvili, who served as the director of the Georgian Academy of Science's Institute of Physics between 1950 and 1988, as a prime example of his country's enviable history of scientific excellence. Andronikashvili is considered to have been one of the world's foremost condensed matter physicists.

"Under communism," Murusidze says, "scientific institutions were part of a large, politically powerful network able to secure sufficient resources to sustain high-level research in physics and many other fields."

"Today, however, we are in a period of transition. Our ties to the Soviet system of science have been severed and we have yet to develop a fully functioning market economy." As a result, funding for scientific institutions has declined dramatically. "In the late 1980s," Murusidze notes, "about 200 physicists worked at the Georgian Academy of Science's Institute of Physics." Some former employees have retired, some have moved to the West and some have migrated to other fields, notably computer science and business. Despite the exodus, the scientists who remain continue to do excellent work.

Murusidze acknowledges that the benefits he derives from his association with ICTP "may be different from the benefits derived by his younger colleagues from other parts of the world where scientific institutions have not been strong."

At the same time, he maintains that "the benefits he has received from his ties to the Centre are no less valuable." ICTP is a "unique place that has enabled me to remain in contact with colleagues who share my research interests. The Centre's library and computer facilities have also proven invaluable. No other single library in Europe houses as comprehensive a collection of journals and monographs in physics and mathematics. Meanwhile, the capacity and speed of the Centre's computer network has facilitated my efforts in model building and simulations, which has proven indispensable to my research. I owe a particular sense of gratitude to Swadesh Mahajan, who has been course director of the College in Plasma Physics for many years."

Murusidze's two major fields of research are nonlinear wave dynamics in plasma and nonlinear optics in semiconductors. In the first field, his research focuses on laser-plasma interactions at relativistic (very high) intensities.

"Small-scale experiments in laser-plasma interactions," he notes, "have proven that lasers can be used to compress and then ignite plasma. Scientists are now studying how the laser pulses would interact with plasma on a large scale. The challenge is that the relationship is nonlinear. Simply put, the pulse quickly changes the material properties of the plasma, making the pulse unstable."

Theoretical investigations into these areas require a first-class research environment and state-of-the-art computer networks. "That's why I've found my visits to ICTP so productive," Murusidze says. "Being able to converse with colleagues and utilise the Centre's facilities has helped push my research forward."

Despite the difficult period of transition Georgia has faced over the past decade, Murusidze remains optimistic about his country's future. "Young Georgians continue to come to our universities to learn science and their families continue to value science as a noble endeavour. These are encouraging signs for my country."

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