History of the CPHT

The Centre for Theoretical Physics at École Polytechnique was founded by Louis Michel in 1958.

Louis Michel is a theoretical physicist specialising in group theory, whose training and early, highly productive years of research took place in England and the USA. His work led to his appointment as a professor at the IHES and as a member of the Academy of Sciences.

In 1954, he became a senior lecturer in physics at École Polytechnique and, in 1956, he forged strong ties with a small group of students with whom he began research work in theoretical physics.

In 1958, they were joined by Dimitri Fotiadi, a marine engineer, and together they set up the laboratory in two rooms provided by the École’s administration.

In 1960, the small group went their separate ways: the students sought jobs and/or scholarships to spend time abroad. Dimitri Fotiadi met up again with Jean Lascoux at Princeton, whom he had previously met at the laboratory. For his part, Louis Michel became a professor at the Faculty of Sciences in Orsay, which was expanding at the time. Everything changed in 1962 with the return of Dimitri Fotiadi and Jean Lascoux, who brought a scientific dynamism that was quite mathematical yet highly eclectic, and who welcomed new recruits sent by Louis Michel, most of whom came from Orsay.

A significant development took place with the creation in 1965 of the Centre for Mathematics, with which the laboratory has always maintained very close ties.

The laboratory then expanded and was allocated more and more space within the School. 

The move to Palaiseau in 1975 marked the beginning of a new era, notably with the arrival of a new team (the plasma team), which enabled the laboratory to take on a more applied focus.