Member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (MTA), nuclear physicist and professor emeritus Gyula Csikai passed away at the age of 91 – the Academia reported in a statement on Monday. 

Gyula Csikai was born in 1930 and studied mathematics and physics at the University of Debrecen (KLTE). In 1956, he started working for the MTA’s Institute for Nuclear Research (Atomki), of which he became deputy-director in 1964. In 1967, he started teaching at the KLTE, of which he became the rector in 1981. He was a member of numerous scientific committees and societies and was even Deputy Minister of Culture for a brief time in 1987.

His work was not only known domestically but acknowledged internationally as well. From 1976, Csikai was a permanent research fellow of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), working on a number of projects across the globe, and in 1991 he was granted membership of the London-based European Academy as well.

Among others, his accomplishments include proving the existence of the neutrino in fog chambers using the theory of impulse conservation. He was awarded the Hungarian Academic Prize and Eötvös-medal, among many other awards, for his invaluable work for the scientific community. 

Source: MTI