The Patrimoines, Transmissions, Héritages (PaTHs) institute is a federation of research centers and groups that have sprung up in and around the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters in recent years.

The bringing together of researchers active in these groups should lead to the promotion of a diachronic approach to social and cultural phenomena in the broadest sense and also to intensified collaboration between "human sciences" ordinarily perceived as complementary, but whose research objects and methods in fact present a great heterogeneity.

Logo PaTHs

The PaTHs institute is distinguished by its emphasis on critical analysis of the "traces" of the past (written, material, monumental, landscape, visual, sound...), to the point of placing the "trace" itself at the heart of scientific questioning.

This epistemological orientation, inherited from a long tradition of research at UNamur, draws on fundamental disciplinary skills (historical criticism, philological criticism, methods of studying the built environment, etc.) to build effective methods of analysis that lead to innovative interpretations.

The very vigor of disciplinary know-how makes it possible - and this is a second specificity of PaTHs - to develop a range of innovative methods of analysis.

The very vigour of disciplinary know-how makes possible - and this is a second specificity of PaTHs - bold openings towards the exact sciences, which have already been initiated by most of the centers and groups affiliated to the institute. Witness LIATEC's and AcanthuM's collaborations with geologists, and PraME's with physicists and chemists.

Research centers

AcanthuM (Monumental, archaeological and artistic heritage)

See content

ARaiRe (Recherches namuroises en histoire Rurale, 1500-1850)

See content

Fontes Antiquitatis center

See content

HiSI research center (History, sounds and images)

See content

Pratiques médiévales de l'écrit (PraME) research center

See content

Spotlight

News

The Department of Physics welcomes a delegation from CERN

Alumni
Materials, energy and environment
Heritage, culture and society
Physics
Life and health sciences
UniversEH
Vulgarisation scientifique

In May 2025, the Department of Physics welcomed two special visitors: Serge Mathot and François Briard from Namur, both alumni of UNamur and members of CERN. Several activities were on the program, ranging from a visit to the particle accelerator, to science popularization and thematic seminars, particularly in heritage sciences. The aim? To identify areas or activities in which UNamur and CERN could strengthen their collaboration.

Photo de groupe

In the picture, from left to right: (top) Pierre Louette, Director of the Physics Department; François Briard, Head of the Science Portal Group (CERN); Julien Colaux, IBA specialist, physics researcher; Boris Hespeels, biology researcher; Alexandre Mayer, physics researcher; Anne-Catherine Heuskin, physics and biophysics researcher. (bottom) André Füzfa, astrophysicist and mathematics researcher; Serge Mathot, Applied Physicist (CERN) and Michaël Lobet, physics researcher.

The love affair between CERN and UNamur goes back a long way. CERN's accelerator complex and experimental program are very different and much larger than those of UNamur's Physics Department, but the fields in which the two institutions work have much in common.

In addition, both guests have a personal history with UNamur. The Physics Department was pleased to welcome Serge Mathot, Referent Applied Physicist (CERN) and alumni of the UNamur Physics Department (1992), as well as François Briard, Group Leader Science Portal (CERN), and alumni of the UNamur Faculty of Computer Science (1994).

The activities began with a meeting between the guests, Rector Annick Castiaux, Vice-Rector for Research Carine Michiels, Physics Department Director Pierre Louette and several other members of the Physics and Biology Department. After a general presentation of the University, the participants pointed out the missions shared by both institutions: research and the transfer of technology and knowledge, service to society, scientific popularization and education and training.

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Focus on meetings

Physics lunch - CERN presentation

The physics lunch is the monthly meeting between students and members of the physics department and a professional, alumni or not, coming to explain his or her background and what he or she does on a daily basis as a physicist.

During this meeting, attended by around 80 people, François Briard and Serge Mathot presented CERN, the world's largest laboratory for particle physics. CERN's mission is to understand the most elementary particles and the laws of our universe.

At the end of the seminar, the students came away with stars in their eyes. Indeed, opportunities for internships or even first jobs at CERN are possible for physicists but also in many other fields.

Photo de groupe
Image
Photo de Serge Mathot

Your physics training at UNamur is your best ticket to a job at CERN. It's more than just a degree in particle physics!

Serge mathot Referent Applied Physicist (CERN) and alumni of the UNamur Physics Department (1992)

Some internship programs at CERN are particularly well suited to the needs of young Belgian students.

The vast majority of physicists working with CERN (over 13,000) are in fact sent to CERN for varying periods of time by their employing national research institutes. CERN offers an exceptional opportunity to develop international experience under excellent conditions, in an environment that is unique in the world! What an inspiration for our young students!

Visit of the ALTAÏS and SIAM facilities

Capable of generating ion beams consisting of any stable element with energies of up to 16 Mega electron-Volt (MeV), the ALTAÏS particle accelerator is used in various fields of fundamental and applied research, notably through industrial partnerships. CERN's largest current linear accelerator can produce particle beams of up to 160 MeV.

ALTAIS - L'accélérateur de particules du LARN (UNamur)

Meeting with members of the ARC PHOENIX project, complemented by a heritage science seminar given by Serge Mathot.

The projet d'Action Recherche Concertée (ARC) PHOENIX aims to renew our understanding of medieval parchments and ancient coins. Artificial intelligence will be exploited to analyze the data generated by material characterization.

This joint study between the Department of Physics and the Namur Institute of Structured Matter (NISM) and the Department of History and the Institut Patrimoines, Transmissions, Héritages (PaTHs) will address questions relating to the production chain and use of these objects and materials in past societies.

At the same time, Serge Mathot presented a seminar in heritage science attended by some 50 people. In particular, he presented his research and the brand-new ELISA accelerator: a miniaturized gas pedal capable of delivering a 2 MeV proton beam used to perform real measurements at the Science Portal.

Meeting on science popularization

Having the opportunity to exchange views with François Briard, Group Leader of the CERN Science Portal is a rare opportunity. Comparing outreach activities has opened up new avenues, discovering and sharing approaches, assessing what works and what doesn't, depending on the target audience. A highly satisfying enrichment for the members present from Confluent des Savoirs (CDS), the University of Namur's research outreach and dissemination service.

Image
François Briard - Chef de projet Portail de la science

The CERN Science Portal is a place where you can explore CERN and science through authentic and innovative experiences: immersive multimedia exhibitions, hands-on lab workshops, science shows, events combining science and culture, prototyping workshops on the theme of innovation, tours of CERN sites, all accompanied by CERN staff.

François Briard Group Leader, CERN Science Portal

BD Physix - Energy

Teachers André Füzfa and Michaël Lobet were able to present the comic strip project created with author Jean-Marc Dubois.

The theme? Energy!

What could be more natural than to talk about it with François Briard, chief popularizer at CERN, who is interested in this popularization project in a medium accessible to people aged 7 to 77!

Image illustrative - vue de la cathédrale saitn aubain

Meeting on the theme of biophysics

Professor Anne-Catherine Heuskin and Dr. Boris Hespeels are currently working on the BEBLOB project, a Belspo project with ESA support, as part of the UNIVERSEH (European Space University for Earth and Humanity) alliance. They are particularly interested in its astonishing ability to withstand high doses of radiation.

Anne-Catherine Heuskin also works in radiobiology. Particles are used to irradiate cancerous cells in order to destroy their genetic material and prevent them from proliferating: this is the basis of radiotherapy and proton therapy.

Meeting with FaSEF regarding teacher training opportunities.

The meeting confirmed the willingness of FaSEF and UNamur to get involved in coordinating the Belgian National Teacher Programme in French-speaking Belgium, which CERN intends to relaunch in 2026. Consideration was also given to other avenues for teacher training, such as CERN's forthcoming involvement in the "Salle des Pros", the training venue for the various players involved in teacher training at UNamur.

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A visit to TRAKK

The TRAKK is Namur's creative hub supported by 3 complementary partners in the field: BEP, KIKK, and UNamur. In addition to the venue, François Briard was able to visit the ProtoLab , which bridges the gap between ideas and industry by being a decentralized research and development hub accessible to SMEs and project leaders by offering advanced support in prototyping products or services.

Guests at CERN

François Briard - CERN Science Portal Group Leader, UNamur alumni 1994

Specialities:

  • Information systems, administrative applications and databases (Oracle)
  • Communications for the general public
  • Visitor reception logistics
  • Event organization for up to 80,000 participants.
Photo de François Briard, Chef de groupe Portail de la science du CERN, alumni UNamur 1994

Graduating in law and information technology management (DGTIC) in 1994 after his bachelor's and master's degrees in computer science in 1993, François Briard works at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research in Geneva, the world's largest particle physics laboratory.

During his school career, which was 100% at UNamur, he was vice-president of the Régionale namuroise and student delegate during his years as a candidate in economic and social sciences, computer science option.

Thanks to the multidisciplinary training provided at UNamur, he was able to seize several opportunities to redirect his career at CERN, where he was an information systems engineer from 1994 and then, from 2014, redirected his career until he became Group Leader of the Science Portal, which is CERN's general public communications center.

Serge Mathot - Referent Applied Physicist at CERN, UNamur alumni 1992

His specialties

  • Ion Beam Analysis (IBA)
  • Metallurgy, vacuum brazing
  • Radio-Frequency Quadrupole (RFQ) linacs, ion sources
Photo de Serge Mathot, Referent Applied Physicist au CERN, alumni UNamur 1992

Serge Mathot obtained his doctorate in applied sciences from UNamur in 1992, following his bachelor's degree in physical sciences in 1985.

He then carried out a post-doctorate at the Joint Research Center (EU science hub) in Geel, which aims to bring together multidisciplinary skills to develop new measurement methods and tools such as reference materials.

He perfected his expertise in physical metallurgy before joining CERN in 1995 as a Referent Applied Physicist. He has worked on numerous research projects (CLOUD, MACHINA, ELISA...) and developed numerous parts for the manufacture of CERN's gas pedals.

It's a great pleasure to meet him.

CERN

CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, is one of the world's largest and most prestigious scientific laboratories. Its vocation is fundamental physics, the discovery of the constituents and laws of the Universe. It uses highly complex scientific instruments to probe the ultimate constituents of matter: the fundamental particles. By studying what happens when these particles collide, physicists understand the laws of Nature.

The instruments used at CERN are particle gas pedals and detectors. Gas pedals carry beams of particles at high energies to collide with other beams or fixed targets. Detectors observe and record the results of these collisions.

Founded in 1954, CERN is located on either side of the French-Swiss border, near Geneva. It was one of the first organizations on a European scale and today has 25 member states, including Belgium.

Physics programs at UNamur

From the infinitely small to the infinitely large, from elementary particles to galaxies, are you thirsty to understand the whys and wherefores of the natural phenomena you observe? Physics answers all your questions.

New impetus for the humanities and social sciences at UNamur

Institution
Sciences humaines et sociales
ODD #4 - Quality education

A new platform dedicated to research in the humanities and social sciences (SHS) is being launched at UNamur. The aim? To offer SHS researchers methodological support tailored to their needs and strengthen SHS excellence at UNamur. This platform, SHS Impulse, will provide various services such as financial support for training, consultancy, access to resources, or co-financed software purchases.

Logo SHS Impulse

Whether it concerns linguistics, economics, politics, sustainable development, law, history, educational sciences, literature or translation, research in the humanities and social sciences is as eclectic as it is rich and essential for tackling society's challenges. Of UNamur's eleven research institutes, seven are directly involved in SHS research. While there is a high degree of complementarity in these areas of research, better pooling of resources, sharing and easier access to certain services, resources and support will help to sustain and strengthen the excellence of SHS research at UNamur. It is with this in mind that the SHS impulse platform has just been created.

Image
Laurence Meurant

We started from the needs of SHS researchers to establish four axes developed within this platform

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Laurence Meurant Research Fellow F.R.S.-FNRS, Professor of Linguistics, President of the NaLTT Institute and member of the SHS Impulse management committee.

Resources organized around 4 axes

  • Axis 1 - Support for the acquisition of databases, documentary resources and software
  • Axis 2 - Subsidy for cutting-edge training in the use of specialized methods
  • Axis 3 - Funding access to the SMCS "Support en Méthodologie et Calcul Statistique" platform at UCLouvain, thanks to an inter-university partnership.
  • Axis 4 - Setting up an SHS space, containing a laboratory for running experiments and shared work tools promoting exchanges between researchers.

Outlook

This initiative, launched in January 2025, addresses the specific challenges faced by SHS researchers. The long-term aim is to sustain and expand the services. "We will also hire a researcher expert in methodological analysis in SHS who will be able to inform innovative methodologies and frame the methodological design of research projects," emphasizes Sandrine Biémar, vice-dean of UNamur's Faculty of Education and Training Sciences, a member of the IRDENA institute and the SHS Impulse management committee. "The wish is also to support networking between SHS researchers at UNamur and to be a lever for setting up interdisciplinary projects," adds Sandrine Biémar.

The platform's management team is made up of representatives of the university's various SHS institutes, and ensures efficient management of resources. The platform's impact will be assessed during its initial phase (2025-2027), enabling strategies for its sustainability and development to be defined.

FNRS 2024 calls: Focus on the PaTHs Institute

Art history and archaeology
Sustainable
SDG #11 - Sustainable cities and communities

Two researchers from the Institut Patrimoines, Transmissions, Héritages (PaTHs) have just been awarded funding from the F.R.S - FNRS following calls whose results were published in December 2024. The PaTHs institute is a federation of research centers and groups that have sprung up in and around the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters. The institute is distinguished by its emphasis on critical analysis of the "traces" of the past (written, material, monumental, landscape, visual, sound...), to the point of placing the "trace" itself at the heart of scientific questioning.

René Preys, Danielle Leenarts et les logos de PaTHs et FNRS

The strength of disciplinary know-how within PaTHs makes possible bold openings into the exact sciences, which have already been initiated by most of the 5 centers and groups affiliated to the institute: AcanthuM (Monumental, archaeological and artistic heritage), aRaiRe (Recherches namuroises en histoire Rurale), Fontes Antiquitatis, HiSI (History, sounds and images) and PraME (Medieval written practices).

René Preys' Research Project (PDR) "The Roman Mammisi of Dendera

René Preys - Pôles AcanthuM et Fontes Antiquitatis de l'Institut PaTHs - is an Egyptologist, Professor and member of the Department of Archaeology and Art Sciences in the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters at UNamur and Director of the Queen Elisabeth Egyptological Association. He has received PDR funding for a project entitled "The Roman mammisi of Dendera: the creation of a monument to the gods, from theological conception to the engraving of the walls".

Le mammisi romain de Dendera et décoration des parois extérieures
The Roman mammisi at Dendera and decoration of the outer walls

The mammisi or birthing house is a typical architectural feature of Egyptian temples from the Greco-Roman period. The Roman mammisi at Dendera, dating from the Nerva-antonine period (2nd century CE), is the last specimen of this type and embodies the synergy of 400 years of tradition and innovation. The mammisi was dedicated to the child-god and celebrated his (re)birth as a guarantee of natural cycles and thus of Egypt's prosperity.

This project aims to reconstruct the intellectual and material processes that had to be put in place to realize the architectural project. From the priests who gathered theological ideas to the hierogrammatists who wrote the texts and designed the decoration on papyrus, from the architects and workers who erected the walls to the engravers who transferred the concept of decoration from papyrus to the walls, this project sets out to study this monument from different angles in order to identify the operational chain of an architectural project.

The missions in Egypt will produce a new publication conforming to modern standards of epigraphy and a translation of all the texts. This will make it possible to study the arrangement of the monument's decoration made up of offering scenes and texts according to the rules that Egyptologists have called "temple grammar", and to understand the relationship between image and text.

The project will thus provide the first detailed study of the theology of Dendera's two child-gods. It will analyze the hieroglyphic system, characteristic of texts from the Roman period, and examine the walls to define the engraving techniques of the ancient craftsmen. Finally, he will place the mammisi in a wider context to highlight the architectural strategies of the emperors of the Nerva-antonine dynasty in Egypt.

Read our previous articles on the subject

René Preys: the archaeologist who looks at the Egyptian menu: https://www.unamur.be/fr/newsroom/rene-preys-larcheologue-qui-se-penche-sur-le-menu-des-egyptiens

Egypt: understanding the renovation of the kiosk at the Temple of Amun-Ra: https://www.unamur.be/fr/newsroom/egypte-comprendre-la-renovation-du-kiosque-du-temple-damon-re

Photo de René Preys examinant des hiéroglyphes

Le Crédit de Recherche (CDR) "(Faire) face au nucléaire" by Danielle Leenaerts

Danielle Leenaerts - Pôle AcanthuM of the PaTHs Institute - is Professor of Contemporary Art History in the Department of Archaeology and Art Sciences in the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters at UNamur. She has received CDR funding for a project entitled "Study of the aesthetics and creative contexts of 10 international photographic corpora representing the proven effects or potential risks of radioactivity"

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Photo de Danielle Leenaerts

Over the past twenty years, several works by photographic artists have given visibility to the effects of radioactivity - mainly following the Chernobyl and Fukushima nuclear disasters - or to the risks associated with the burial of radioactive waste.

Series by Japan's Takashi Arai, Switzerland's Julian Charrière, France's David Fathi, Guillaume Herbaut, Jacqueline Salmon, Anaïs Tondeur and Lucas Chastel, Germany's Jürgen Nefzger and Wim Wenders, and Belgium's Cécile Massart have been selected.

Five objectives are pursued in this research:

  • analyze the contexts of these artistic productions;
  • define the intentions of their authors, with regard to their body of work and their contribution to a nuclear culture;
  • study the aesthetics of their creations, in relation to the materiality of photography, its nature as imprint, trace, testimony or even representation ;
  • evaluate the public reception of these distinct works;
  • contribute, through the dialogical linking of these works, their analysis and dissemination, to a nuclear culture nourished by artistic expression.

A comparative method will be applied to the study of the different series in the corpus to identify their specificities, convergences and/or divergences, assessed against the scientific literature available in the field of visual arts and the humanities on nuclear power and its representations. Fieldwork will be undertaken through interviews conducted with each photographer.

From a cultural studies perspective, this research is part of an approach to analyzing the construction of representations and knowledge, free from bias but invested in societal debates in which the art center and publishing house partners in this research project are also involved, through their respective activities, and which will disseminate the results via:

  • an exhibition scheduled at the Le Delta art center (Namur, March-July 2026)
  • a study day involving some of the exhibited artists (UNamur, March 2026)
  • a book to be published by La Lettre Volée editions (Brussels) (spring 2026)

FNRS funding will enable interviews to be conducted with the artists concerned, in Belgium, France and Germany, but also to guarantee the dissemination of this research, by funding part of the book and exhibition communication in which it will take shape.

FNRS, the freedom to search

Every year, the F.R.S.-FNRS launches calls for funding for fundamental research. It has set up a range of tools enabling it to offer scientific and technical personnel, equipment and operating resources to researchers, who are the bearers of a project of excellence.

Logo FNRS

Find out more

21 new F.R.S.-FNRS grants for research at UNamur

Institution

The F.R.S.-FNRS has just published the results of its various 2024 calls. Equipment calls, research credits and projects, FRIA doctoral grants and Mandant d'Impulsion Scientifique (MIS), there are many instruments to support fundamental research. Find out more about UNamur's results.

Deux chercheurs dans un laboratoire

The "research credits and projects" call resulted in 14 grants for ambitious new projects. These include two "equipment" grants, five "research credits (CDR)" grants and seven "research projects (PDR)" grants, including one in collaboration with the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Western Switzerland. The FRIA doctoral research support call will fund 6 doctoral fellowships.

A prestigious Mandat d'Impulsion Scientifique (MIS) has also been obtained. This 3-year funding supports young permanent researchers wishing to develop an original and innovative research program while acquiring scientific autonomy within their department.

Results in detail

Call for Equipment

  • Max Collinet, Institut ILEE
  • Catherine Michaux, with Stéphane Vincent and Guillaume Berionni, co-sponsors, Institut NISM

Call for Research Credits (CDR)

  • Thierry Arnould, Institut NARILIS
  • Thomas Balligand, Department of Medicine
  • Danielle Leenaerts, Institut PaTHs
  • Denis Saint-Amand, Institut NaLTT
  • Elio Tuci, Institut NADI

Appel Projets de Recherche (PDR)

  • Nathalie Burnay, in collaboration with "the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Western Switzerland", Institut Transitions (Subject to acceptance by SNSF Switzerland)
  • Catherine Guirkinger, Institut DEFIPP, co-promoter in collaboration with UCLouvain
  • Luca Fusaro, Institut NISM
  • Laurence Meurant, Institut NaLTT
  • René Preys, Institut PaTHs
  • Stéphane Vincent, Institut NISM, co-promoter in collaboration with UCLouvain
  • Johan Wouters, Institut NISM, co-promoter in collaboration with UCLouvain

Fonds pour la formation à la Recherche dans l'Industrie et dans l'Agriculture (FRIA)

  • Alix Buridant - Promoter: Henri-François Renard, Institut NARILIS ; Co-sponsor: Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck - Austria -
  • Constance De Maere d'Aertrycke - Promoter Nicolas Gillet, Institut NARILIS
  • Noah Deveaux - Promoter: Benoît Champagne, Institut NISM
  • Nicolas Dricot - Promoter: Muriel Lepère, Institut NISM; Co-promoter: Bastien Vispoel, Institut NISM and Université Grenoble Alpes
  • Laurie Marchal - Promoter Thierry Arnould. Co-promoter: Patricia Renard. Institut NARILIS
  • Léa Poskin - Promoter: Catherine Michaux, Institut NISM; Co-promoter: Jean-Pierre Gillet, Institut NARILIS

Mandat d'Impulsion Scientifique (MIS)

  • Arthur Borriello, Institut Transitions

Congratulations to all and sundry

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F.R.S.-FNRS missions

The mission of the Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique - FNRS is to develop basic scientific research through initiatives presented by researchers. It promotes the production and development of knowledge by supporting individual researchers on the one hand, and by financing research programs carried out in laboratories and departments located mainly in the universities of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation on the other.

Based on the sole criterion of scientific excellence, financial support from the F.R.S.-FNRS is provided in several ways. Numerous calls for funding are launched each year to support fundamental research at all levels of researchers' careers.

The Department of Physics welcomes a delegation from CERN

Alumni
Materials, energy and environment
Heritage, culture and society
Physics
Life and health sciences
UniversEH
Vulgarisation scientifique

In May 2025, the Department of Physics welcomed two special visitors: Serge Mathot and François Briard from Namur, both alumni of UNamur and members of CERN. Several activities were on the program, ranging from a visit to the particle accelerator, to science popularization and thematic seminars, particularly in heritage sciences. The aim? To identify areas or activities in which UNamur and CERN could strengthen their collaboration.

Photo de groupe

In the picture, from left to right: (top) Pierre Louette, Director of the Physics Department; François Briard, Head of the Science Portal Group (CERN); Julien Colaux, IBA specialist, physics researcher; Boris Hespeels, biology researcher; Alexandre Mayer, physics researcher; Anne-Catherine Heuskin, physics and biophysics researcher. (bottom) André Füzfa, astrophysicist and mathematics researcher; Serge Mathot, Applied Physicist (CERN) and Michaël Lobet, physics researcher.

The love affair between CERN and UNamur goes back a long way. CERN's accelerator complex and experimental program are very different and much larger than those of UNamur's Physics Department, but the fields in which the two institutions work have much in common.

In addition, both guests have a personal history with UNamur. The Physics Department was pleased to welcome Serge Mathot, Referent Applied Physicist (CERN) and alumni of the UNamur Physics Department (1992), as well as François Briard, Group Leader Science Portal (CERN), and alumni of the UNamur Faculty of Computer Science (1994).

The activities began with a meeting between the guests, Rector Annick Castiaux, Vice-Rector for Research Carine Michiels, Physics Department Director Pierre Louette and several other members of the Physics and Biology Department. After a general presentation of the University, the participants pointed out the missions shared by both institutions: research and the transfer of technology and knowledge, service to society, scientific popularization and education and training.

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Focus on meetings

Physics lunch - CERN presentation

The physics lunch is the monthly meeting between students and members of the physics department and a professional, alumni or not, coming to explain his or her background and what he or she does on a daily basis as a physicist.

During this meeting, attended by around 80 people, François Briard and Serge Mathot presented CERN, the world's largest laboratory for particle physics. CERN's mission is to understand the most elementary particles and the laws of our universe.

At the end of the seminar, the students came away with stars in their eyes. Indeed, opportunities for internships or even first jobs at CERN are possible for physicists but also in many other fields.

Photo de groupe
Image
Photo de Serge Mathot

Your physics training at UNamur is your best ticket to a job at CERN. It's more than just a degree in particle physics!

Serge mathot Referent Applied Physicist (CERN) and alumni of the UNamur Physics Department (1992)

Some internship programs at CERN are particularly well suited to the needs of young Belgian students.

The vast majority of physicists working with CERN (over 13,000) are in fact sent to CERN for varying periods of time by their employing national research institutes. CERN offers an exceptional opportunity to develop international experience under excellent conditions, in an environment that is unique in the world! What an inspiration for our young students!

Visit of the ALTAÏS and SIAM facilities

Capable of generating ion beams consisting of any stable element with energies of up to 16 Mega electron-Volt (MeV), the ALTAÏS particle accelerator is used in various fields of fundamental and applied research, notably through industrial partnerships. CERN's largest current linear accelerator can produce particle beams of up to 160 MeV.

ALTAIS - L'accélérateur de particules du LARN (UNamur)

Meeting with members of the ARC PHOENIX project, complemented by a heritage science seminar given by Serge Mathot.

The projet d'Action Recherche Concertée (ARC) PHOENIX aims to renew our understanding of medieval parchments and ancient coins. Artificial intelligence will be exploited to analyze the data generated by material characterization.

This joint study between the Department of Physics and the Namur Institute of Structured Matter (NISM) and the Department of History and the Institut Patrimoines, Transmissions, Héritages (PaTHs) will address questions relating to the production chain and use of these objects and materials in past societies.

At the same time, Serge Mathot presented a seminar in heritage science attended by some 50 people. In particular, he presented his research and the brand-new ELISA accelerator: a miniaturized gas pedal capable of delivering a 2 MeV proton beam used to perform real measurements at the Science Portal.

Meeting on science popularization

Having the opportunity to exchange views with François Briard, Group Leader of the CERN Science Portal is a rare opportunity. Comparing outreach activities has opened up new avenues, discovering and sharing approaches, assessing what works and what doesn't, depending on the target audience. A highly satisfying enrichment for the members present from Confluent des Savoirs (CDS), the University of Namur's research outreach and dissemination service.

Image
François Briard - Chef de projet Portail de la science

The CERN Science Portal is a place where you can explore CERN and science through authentic and innovative experiences: immersive multimedia exhibitions, hands-on lab workshops, science shows, events combining science and culture, prototyping workshops on the theme of innovation, tours of CERN sites, all accompanied by CERN staff.

François Briard Group Leader, CERN Science Portal

BD Physix - Energy

Teachers André Füzfa and Michaël Lobet were able to present the comic strip project created with author Jean-Marc Dubois.

The theme? Energy!

What could be more natural than to talk about it with François Briard, chief popularizer at CERN, who is interested in this popularization project in a medium accessible to people aged 7 to 77!

Image illustrative - vue de la cathédrale saitn aubain

Meeting on the theme of biophysics

Professor Anne-Catherine Heuskin and Dr. Boris Hespeels are currently working on the BEBLOB project, a Belspo project with ESA support, as part of the UNIVERSEH (European Space University for Earth and Humanity) alliance. They are particularly interested in its astonishing ability to withstand high doses of radiation.

Anne-Catherine Heuskin also works in radiobiology. Particles are used to irradiate cancerous cells in order to destroy their genetic material and prevent them from proliferating: this is the basis of radiotherapy and proton therapy.

Meeting with FaSEF regarding teacher training opportunities.

The meeting confirmed the willingness of FaSEF and UNamur to get involved in coordinating the Belgian National Teacher Programme in French-speaking Belgium, which CERN intends to relaunch in 2026. Consideration was also given to other avenues for teacher training, such as CERN's forthcoming involvement in the "Salle des Pros", the training venue for the various players involved in teacher training at UNamur.

.

A visit to TRAKK

The TRAKK is Namur's creative hub supported by 3 complementary partners in the field: BEP, KIKK, and UNamur. In addition to the venue, François Briard was able to visit the ProtoLab , which bridges the gap between ideas and industry by being a decentralized research and development hub accessible to SMEs and project leaders by offering advanced support in prototyping products or services.

Guests at CERN

François Briard - CERN Science Portal Group Leader, UNamur alumni 1994

Specialities:

  • Information systems, administrative applications and databases (Oracle)
  • Communications for the general public
  • Visitor reception logistics
  • Event organization for up to 80,000 participants.
Photo de François Briard, Chef de groupe Portail de la science du CERN, alumni UNamur 1994

Graduating in law and information technology management (DGTIC) in 1994 after his bachelor's and master's degrees in computer science in 1993, François Briard works at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research in Geneva, the world's largest particle physics laboratory.

During his school career, which was 100% at UNamur, he was vice-president of the Régionale namuroise and student delegate during his years as a candidate in economic and social sciences, computer science option.

Thanks to the multidisciplinary training provided at UNamur, he was able to seize several opportunities to redirect his career at CERN, where he was an information systems engineer from 1994 and then, from 2014, redirected his career until he became Group Leader of the Science Portal, which is CERN's general public communications center.

Serge Mathot - Referent Applied Physicist at CERN, UNamur alumni 1992

His specialties

  • Ion Beam Analysis (IBA)
  • Metallurgy, vacuum brazing
  • Radio-Frequency Quadrupole (RFQ) linacs, ion sources
Photo de Serge Mathot, Referent Applied Physicist au CERN, alumni UNamur 1992

Serge Mathot obtained his doctorate in applied sciences from UNamur in 1992, following his bachelor's degree in physical sciences in 1985.

He then carried out a post-doctorate at the Joint Research Center (EU science hub) in Geel, which aims to bring together multidisciplinary skills to develop new measurement methods and tools such as reference materials.

He perfected his expertise in physical metallurgy before joining CERN in 1995 as a Referent Applied Physicist. He has worked on numerous research projects (CLOUD, MACHINA, ELISA...) and developed numerous parts for the manufacture of CERN's gas pedals.

It's a great pleasure to meet him.

CERN

CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, is one of the world's largest and most prestigious scientific laboratories. Its vocation is fundamental physics, the discovery of the constituents and laws of the Universe. It uses highly complex scientific instruments to probe the ultimate constituents of matter: the fundamental particles. By studying what happens when these particles collide, physicists understand the laws of Nature.

The instruments used at CERN are particle gas pedals and detectors. Gas pedals carry beams of particles at high energies to collide with other beams or fixed targets. Detectors observe and record the results of these collisions.

Founded in 1954, CERN is located on either side of the French-Swiss border, near Geneva. It was one of the first organizations on a European scale and today has 25 member states, including Belgium.

Physics programs at UNamur

From the infinitely small to the infinitely large, from elementary particles to galaxies, are you thirsty to understand the whys and wherefores of the natural phenomena you observe? Physics answers all your questions.

New impetus for the humanities and social sciences at UNamur

Institution
Sciences humaines et sociales
ODD #4 - Quality education

A new platform dedicated to research in the humanities and social sciences (SHS) is being launched at UNamur. The aim? To offer SHS researchers methodological support tailored to their needs and strengthen SHS excellence at UNamur. This platform, SHS Impulse, will provide various services such as financial support for training, consultancy, access to resources, or co-financed software purchases.

Logo SHS Impulse

Whether it concerns linguistics, economics, politics, sustainable development, law, history, educational sciences, literature or translation, research in the humanities and social sciences is as eclectic as it is rich and essential for tackling society's challenges. Of UNamur's eleven research institutes, seven are directly involved in SHS research. While there is a high degree of complementarity in these areas of research, better pooling of resources, sharing and easier access to certain services, resources and support will help to sustain and strengthen the excellence of SHS research at UNamur. It is with this in mind that the SHS impulse platform has just been created.

Image
Laurence Meurant

We started from the needs of SHS researchers to establish four axes developed within this platform

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Laurence Meurant Research Fellow F.R.S.-FNRS, Professor of Linguistics, President of the NaLTT Institute and member of the SHS Impulse management committee.

Resources organized around 4 axes

  • Axis 1 - Support for the acquisition of databases, documentary resources and software
  • Axis 2 - Subsidy for cutting-edge training in the use of specialized methods
  • Axis 3 - Funding access to the SMCS "Support en Méthodologie et Calcul Statistique" platform at UCLouvain, thanks to an inter-university partnership.
  • Axis 4 - Setting up an SHS space, containing a laboratory for running experiments and shared work tools promoting exchanges between researchers.

Outlook

This initiative, launched in January 2025, addresses the specific challenges faced by SHS researchers. The long-term aim is to sustain and expand the services. "We will also hire a researcher expert in methodological analysis in SHS who will be able to inform innovative methodologies and frame the methodological design of research projects," emphasizes Sandrine Biémar, vice-dean of UNamur's Faculty of Education and Training Sciences, a member of the IRDENA institute and the SHS Impulse management committee. "The wish is also to support networking between SHS researchers at UNamur and to be a lever for setting up interdisciplinary projects," adds Sandrine Biémar.

The platform's management team is made up of representatives of the university's various SHS institutes, and ensures efficient management of resources. The platform's impact will be assessed during its initial phase (2025-2027), enabling strategies for its sustainability and development to be defined.

FNRS 2024 calls: Focus on the PaTHs Institute

Art history and archaeology
Sustainable
SDG #11 - Sustainable cities and communities

Two researchers from the Institut Patrimoines, Transmissions, Héritages (PaTHs) have just been awarded funding from the F.R.S - FNRS following calls whose results were published in December 2024. The PaTHs institute is a federation of research centers and groups that have sprung up in and around the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters. The institute is distinguished by its emphasis on critical analysis of the "traces" of the past (written, material, monumental, landscape, visual, sound...), to the point of placing the "trace" itself at the heart of scientific questioning.

René Preys, Danielle Leenarts et les logos de PaTHs et FNRS

The strength of disciplinary know-how within PaTHs makes possible bold openings into the exact sciences, which have already been initiated by most of the 5 centers and groups affiliated to the institute: AcanthuM (Monumental, archaeological and artistic heritage), aRaiRe (Recherches namuroises en histoire Rurale), Fontes Antiquitatis, HiSI (History, sounds and images) and PraME (Medieval written practices).

René Preys' Research Project (PDR) "The Roman Mammisi of Dendera

René Preys - Pôles AcanthuM et Fontes Antiquitatis de l'Institut PaTHs - is an Egyptologist, Professor and member of the Department of Archaeology and Art Sciences in the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters at UNamur and Director of the Queen Elisabeth Egyptological Association. He has received PDR funding for a project entitled "The Roman mammisi of Dendera: the creation of a monument to the gods, from theological conception to the engraving of the walls".

Le mammisi romain de Dendera et décoration des parois extérieures
The Roman mammisi at Dendera and decoration of the outer walls

The mammisi or birthing house is a typical architectural feature of Egyptian temples from the Greco-Roman period. The Roman mammisi at Dendera, dating from the Nerva-antonine period (2nd century CE), is the last specimen of this type and embodies the synergy of 400 years of tradition and innovation. The mammisi was dedicated to the child-god and celebrated his (re)birth as a guarantee of natural cycles and thus of Egypt's prosperity.

This project aims to reconstruct the intellectual and material processes that had to be put in place to realize the architectural project. From the priests who gathered theological ideas to the hierogrammatists who wrote the texts and designed the decoration on papyrus, from the architects and workers who erected the walls to the engravers who transferred the concept of decoration from papyrus to the walls, this project sets out to study this monument from different angles in order to identify the operational chain of an architectural project.

The missions in Egypt will produce a new publication conforming to modern standards of epigraphy and a translation of all the texts. This will make it possible to study the arrangement of the monument's decoration made up of offering scenes and texts according to the rules that Egyptologists have called "temple grammar", and to understand the relationship between image and text.

The project will thus provide the first detailed study of the theology of Dendera's two child-gods. It will analyze the hieroglyphic system, characteristic of texts from the Roman period, and examine the walls to define the engraving techniques of the ancient craftsmen. Finally, he will place the mammisi in a wider context to highlight the architectural strategies of the emperors of the Nerva-antonine dynasty in Egypt.

Read our previous articles on the subject

René Preys: the archaeologist who looks at the Egyptian menu: https://www.unamur.be/fr/newsroom/rene-preys-larcheologue-qui-se-penche-sur-le-menu-des-egyptiens

Egypt: understanding the renovation of the kiosk at the Temple of Amun-Ra: https://www.unamur.be/fr/newsroom/egypte-comprendre-la-renovation-du-kiosque-du-temple-damon-re

Photo de René Preys examinant des hiéroglyphes

Le Crédit de Recherche (CDR) "(Faire) face au nucléaire" by Danielle Leenaerts

Danielle Leenaerts - Pôle AcanthuM of the PaTHs Institute - is Professor of Contemporary Art History in the Department of Archaeology and Art Sciences in the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters at UNamur. She has received CDR funding for a project entitled "Study of the aesthetics and creative contexts of 10 international photographic corpora representing the proven effects or potential risks of radioactivity"

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Photo de Danielle Leenaerts

Over the past twenty years, several works by photographic artists have given visibility to the effects of radioactivity - mainly following the Chernobyl and Fukushima nuclear disasters - or to the risks associated with the burial of radioactive waste.

Series by Japan's Takashi Arai, Switzerland's Julian Charrière, France's David Fathi, Guillaume Herbaut, Jacqueline Salmon, Anaïs Tondeur and Lucas Chastel, Germany's Jürgen Nefzger and Wim Wenders, and Belgium's Cécile Massart have been selected.

Five objectives are pursued in this research:

  • analyze the contexts of these artistic productions;
  • define the intentions of their authors, with regard to their body of work and their contribution to a nuclear culture;
  • study the aesthetics of their creations, in relation to the materiality of photography, its nature as imprint, trace, testimony or even representation ;
  • evaluate the public reception of these distinct works;
  • contribute, through the dialogical linking of these works, their analysis and dissemination, to a nuclear culture nourished by artistic expression.

A comparative method will be applied to the study of the different series in the corpus to identify their specificities, convergences and/or divergences, assessed against the scientific literature available in the field of visual arts and the humanities on nuclear power and its representations. Fieldwork will be undertaken through interviews conducted with each photographer.

From a cultural studies perspective, this research is part of an approach to analyzing the construction of representations and knowledge, free from bias but invested in societal debates in which the art center and publishing house partners in this research project are also involved, through their respective activities, and which will disseminate the results via:

  • an exhibition scheduled at the Le Delta art center (Namur, March-July 2026)
  • a study day involving some of the exhibited artists (UNamur, March 2026)
  • a book to be published by La Lettre Volée editions (Brussels) (spring 2026)

FNRS funding will enable interviews to be conducted with the artists concerned, in Belgium, France and Germany, but also to guarantee the dissemination of this research, by funding part of the book and exhibition communication in which it will take shape.

FNRS, the freedom to search

Every year, the F.R.S.-FNRS launches calls for funding for fundamental research. It has set up a range of tools enabling it to offer scientific and technical personnel, equipment and operating resources to researchers, who are the bearers of a project of excellence.

Logo FNRS

Find out more

21 new F.R.S.-FNRS grants for research at UNamur

Institution

The F.R.S.-FNRS has just published the results of its various 2024 calls. Equipment calls, research credits and projects, FRIA doctoral grants and Mandant d'Impulsion Scientifique (MIS), there are many instruments to support fundamental research. Find out more about UNamur's results.

Deux chercheurs dans un laboratoire

The "research credits and projects" call resulted in 14 grants for ambitious new projects. These include two "equipment" grants, five "research credits (CDR)" grants and seven "research projects (PDR)" grants, including one in collaboration with the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Western Switzerland. The FRIA doctoral research support call will fund 6 doctoral fellowships.

A prestigious Mandat d'Impulsion Scientifique (MIS) has also been obtained. This 3-year funding supports young permanent researchers wishing to develop an original and innovative research program while acquiring scientific autonomy within their department.

Results in detail

Call for Equipment

  • Max Collinet, Institut ILEE
  • Catherine Michaux, with Stéphane Vincent and Guillaume Berionni, co-sponsors, Institut NISM

Call for Research Credits (CDR)

  • Thierry Arnould, Institut NARILIS
  • Thomas Balligand, Department of Medicine
  • Danielle Leenaerts, Institut PaTHs
  • Denis Saint-Amand, Institut NaLTT
  • Elio Tuci, Institut NADI

Appel Projets de Recherche (PDR)

  • Nathalie Burnay, in collaboration with "the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Western Switzerland", Institut Transitions (Subject to acceptance by SNSF Switzerland)
  • Catherine Guirkinger, Institut DEFIPP, co-promoter in collaboration with UCLouvain
  • Luca Fusaro, Institut NISM
  • Laurence Meurant, Institut NaLTT
  • René Preys, Institut PaTHs
  • Stéphane Vincent, Institut NISM, co-promoter in collaboration with UCLouvain
  • Johan Wouters, Institut NISM, co-promoter in collaboration with UCLouvain

Fonds pour la formation à la Recherche dans l'Industrie et dans l'Agriculture (FRIA)

  • Alix Buridant - Promoter: Henri-François Renard, Institut NARILIS ; Co-sponsor: Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck - Austria -
  • Constance De Maere d'Aertrycke - Promoter Nicolas Gillet, Institut NARILIS
  • Noah Deveaux - Promoter: Benoît Champagne, Institut NISM
  • Nicolas Dricot - Promoter: Muriel Lepère, Institut NISM; Co-promoter: Bastien Vispoel, Institut NISM and Université Grenoble Alpes
  • Laurie Marchal - Promoter Thierry Arnould. Co-promoter: Patricia Renard. Institut NARILIS
  • Léa Poskin - Promoter: Catherine Michaux, Institut NISM; Co-promoter: Jean-Pierre Gillet, Institut NARILIS

Mandat d'Impulsion Scientifique (MIS)

  • Arthur Borriello, Institut Transitions

Congratulations to all and sundry

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F.R.S.-FNRS missions

The mission of the Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique - FNRS is to develop basic scientific research through initiatives presented by researchers. It promotes the production and development of knowledge by supporting individual researchers on the one hand, and by financing research programs carried out in laboratories and departments located mainly in the universities of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation on the other.

Based on the sole criterion of scientific excellence, financial support from the F.R.S.-FNRS is provided in several ways. Numerous calls for funding are launched each year to support fundamental research at all levels of researchers' careers.

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