Pedro Miguel Etxenike, physicist in the kingdom of chemicals
Pedro Miguel Etxenike, physicist in the kingdom of chemicals
Pedro Miguel Etxenike
He was born in Isaba (Roncal), but being Euskaldun he does not do so in roncalés, since as a young man he learned Basque. He studied physics at the University of Navarra and after working as a professor in Barcelona, he now works at the Faculty of Chemistry of San Sebastián. As a competent researcher, he has worked in several major research centers around the world: From Oak Rigde National Lavoratory of Tennessee to Cavendish Lavoratory of Cambridge. He has also worked in politics and was Education Advisor in the first government of Karlos Garaikoetxea.
Elhuyar- To the current complex society, what can the physical offer?
Pedro Miguel Etxenike - Many things, everything. Technology has enabled the human being: Modification of relations with nature. At present, the human being takes Nature as a friend. But before, he considered him an enemy.
On the other hand, the development of physics, chemistry and medicine have drastically altered the living conditions of the human being and, for example, has greatly increased his life, even in third world countries. Technology will provide the human being with the solution to his serious problems.
However, we cannot forget that at this moment the human being can destroy himself, for example through thermonuclear pumps.
On the other hand, we have to reach a balance in the perspective of physics or science. On the one hand, we should not salute science as a tool that solves all problems and, on the other hand, we cannot consider it the origin of all the negative aspects of our society.
Elh.- Addressing more concrete things, in the first pages of Physics mass media has been two or three times in recent years: I want to mention superconductivity at high temperature and cold fusion. What is the current situation of these two discoveries?
PME.- I think the two issues have been treated differently, although both have a broad echo in the press. The high temperature superconductivity came out of traditional scientific channels, after passing through the referee n of scientific journals. However, the cold fusion was published through the press, that is, without scientific debates, without going through repeatability and verification controls. I think today there is a cold fusion and that's what I said in your day.
In addition, I do not think it will take us anywhere as the cold fusion has been raised. The path of cold fusion is finished at this time. However, this does not mean that there is no interesting physics or chemistry behind it.
On the other hand, the high temperature superconductivity has been completely demonstrated and repeated. There are thousands of articles, I would say, articles in international scientific journals. However, we still do not see the unitary principle that explains why resistance disappears or why the Meissner effect appears. To ignore this principle is not worrying, it is a matter of time. For example, in the case of low-temperature superconductors it took 46 years (between 1911 and 1957) to obtain a theoretical explanation.
Elh.- Will the superconductivity at high temperature have an immediate technological application?
PME.- If the theoretical problem were resolved, technological applications would be much easier to process. However, some, such as nuclear magnetic resonance used in medicine, may have immediate use.
Its use in other major technological applications (transport and energy storage, maglevs, etc.) It is a more serious problem, since these new materials are very fragile.
However, I think they will have more and more applications.
Elh.- This is history at least partly, but where does physics go?
PME.- I always answer the same question. Physics goes in two directions. On the one hand, towards the smallest. There are physicists who pursue the laws that govern the relationships between the essential components of matter (quark, etc. ). They demand increasing amounts of money to be able to repeat in the laboratory the conditions that could exist at the beginning of the universe. In my opinion, the physics of elementary particles has become the basis of this physics, which can be in serious danger of being contemptible.
On the other hand, the path that leads to complex systems. When many particles are interposed, systems appear that present characteristics different to those of the individual arrangement of them. An example is superconductivity.
To understand easily this complexity seems very important and fundamental, more important than the other way and much more important from a technological point of view.
Projects that use a lot of money, take money away from small projects. And I believe that small science has always been more fruitful than big projects.
Elh.- Among the current challenges of physics, obtaining a controlled nuclear fusion energy can be one of the most attractive from the point of view of the human being in the street. In what situation is the question now?
PME.- As is known, thermonuclear fusion consists of the union of two particles and fission in the rupture of a particle. The main problem in fusion is to evict two charged particles with load of the same sign. In addition, the repulsion force is inversely proportional to the square of the distance, so the closer the greater repulsion force appears. And around zero the force is unlimited.
To overcome the Coulombian barrier, which occurs in the sun, very high temperatures have been used and fusion has been achieved. It is an example of this hydrogen pump, but it has not been achieved to carry out the fusion in a controlled manner. The cold fusion wanted to steal the problem under normal conditions.
Another form of great interest is the so-called temperate fusion announced last year in San Sebastián.
However, I dare not predict when the energy of nuclear fusion will be accessible. Not less than fifty years. An unforeseen event can happen before... as happens in superconductors at high temperature.
LH.- Let's talk now about closer things. Can you explain to us in what field of Physics you are working now?
PME.- I work in four main areas. One of the areas is the interaction of slow ions with plasma, as they release energy by contacting slow ions with plasma. These ions work much slower than plasma electrons. This topic is very related to thermonuclear fusion, since through this process the plasma cools down. We are in contact with foreign groups about this work, such as the prestigious professor Nagy.
We also work on electron microscopy. By analyzing the interactions of electrons, the characteristics of a material can be known. We analyze the interactions of fast electrons with materials. We are working with the Cavendish laboratory, Professor Howie, of the University of Cambridge.
We also work in the field of fast ions. They are important in particle accelerators and in nuclear physics. We analyze the state of charge and the loss of energy in fast ions displacements in material media. We are working mainly with the federal laboratory of Oak Rigde, Professor Ritchie. However, we also have relationship with the university groups of Kyoto and Frankfurt.
Fourth, the electronic location on the surfaces, called the image state (two-dimensional gases of electrons and electrons located on the surface) is being investigated. Both from the point of view of quantum mechanics and from the point of view of applications, these have special characteristics. In this field we speak of Dr. Pendry of the Imperial College of London and Dr. Flores of Madrid. The truth is that Dr. Flores also collaborated on other topics.
The main topics are basically the following. However, we also carry out small excursions. Now, for example, we study the problems of heavy ions in cold plasmons and heat. We have also spoken of temperate fusion, and we have published the article in Physical Review Letters, which is the only theoretical explanation, although highly speculative. In addition, it has generated a great debate.
Throughout the cold morning of December, we interviewed other topics such as his policy and the future of research. On the latter, he stressed that research in Euskal Herria should be based on three pillars: flexibility, uniqueness and international projection.
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