Since September 1, 2024, the Grenoble synchrotron (Isère) has had a new general director, Jean Daillant. At 61, he succeeds Francesco Sette, who had held the position since 2009 after having been director of research.
Jean Daillant therefore took over the management of the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF), which has 650 employees, is governed by 21 partner countries, has 44 beamlines and has a ring measuring 844 metres in circumference. A graduate in physics from the Ecole Normale Supérieure de Saint-Cloud, he joined the French Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) in 1989, where he became head of the Soft Matter and Interfaces group. Between 1999 and 2003, he was co-director of the Laboratory for the Use of Electromagnetic Radiation, which was a synchrotron radiation production facility located in Orsay (Essonne).
He has been the Director General of the Soleil synchrotron since 2011, after having headed its scientific council. Located in Saint-Aubin (Essonne), on the Saclay plateau, this synchrotron is one of the very large French research infrastructures. Jean Daillant is also Vice-President of the Association of European Synchrotrons (League of European Accelerator-based Photon Sources).
A new research director
Jean Daillant is already familiar with the ESRF, having been a member of its Scientific Advisory Committee between 2003 and 2009. Since its reopening in 2020, the tool has become the most powerful in the world, capable of generating X-rays 100 times brighter than its previous version, with an investment of 150 million euros. The synchrotron is part of a very dynamic R&D landscape in Grenoble, as illustrated by the extension of STMicroelectronics in Crolles (Isère). A new form of uranium was notably identified there this summer.
Within the ESRF, another appointment was announced this fall, that of Michael Krisch to the position of Research Director for Chemistry, Life and Medical Sciences and Soft Matter Science. A position he has held on an interim basis since March 2024, and for which he has been confirmed for a period of five years since September 1. He joined the structure in 1988, and was previously a member of the Complex Systems and Biomedical Sciences Group of the Experiments Division, as head of one of the beamlines.
Selected for you
