To access all features of this site, you must enable Javascript. Here are the instructions for enabling Javascript in your web browser.
Fundamental Research Division
The DRF at the CEA assemble approximately 6,000 scientists since January 2016.
As a building block in DNA and RNA, cytosine possesses numerous isomers with the same molecular formula, but different structural formulas or distinct space configurations. An international consortium, of which IRAMIS is a member, was able to identify five of these forms by combining computer simulations of quantum chemistry and UV photonization imaging carried out at the SOLEIL synchrotron facility.
Some cancer cells in the prostate are resistant to conventional chemotherapeutic treatments, as they appear to enter a “quiescent state” at the time of treatment. A team from CEA-BIG has proposed a strategy to eliminate these cells.
Light-by-light scattering, predicted in 1936, was observed for the first time by the ATLAS experiment at the LHC, thanks to “ultra-peripheral” collisions of lead ions. It is of particular interest to physicists, as it is the result of interactions between a vacuum and intense electromagnetic fields.
A team from INAC has produced and characterized, for the first time, a layer of molybdenum diselenide (MoSe2) with a triatomic thickness on an extended surface of about 1 cm². Electric conduction is more elaborate than in a classic semiconductor (“Mott gaps”) and decreases in the presence of a magnetic field. These properties provide the compounds of the MoSe2 family with a high potential for electronics, optoelectronics, and valleytronics (named after the property of electrons called the “valley index”).
Joint damage in people infected with chikungunya remains poorly understood. Scientists from the CEA François-Jacob Institute and their partners have identified an actor of the antiviral immune response whose inhibition paradoxically reduces the severity of the symptoms.
A researcher from IRFU has participated in the study of an astonishing planetary procession discovered around the star TRAPPIST-1, which is 40 light-years away from Earth. Three of the seven identified planets host conditions that are compatible with the potential presence of liquid water at the surface;
A team of scientists from the Frédéric-Joliot Institute has demonstrated that the technique of PELDOR electron paramagnetic resonance makes it possible to detect the interaction between electronic spins in order to solve the structure of proteins in vivo.
As the staple food for more than half of the world’s population, rice is expected to drop considerably in yield in the event of significant climate change, necessitating CO2 fertilization and the genetic selection of adaptable species/
Using computer simulations, a team of scientists from IRFU is seeking to predict the results of a future experiment on the annihilation of a proton-antiproton pair, followed by the annihilation of an electron-positron pair. This experiment, which will take place in Germany by 2020, will lead to a better understanding of the structure of the proton, in particular its “time-like” aspect.
A patient with severe sickle cell disease has undergone gene therapy developed at the CEA François-Jacob Institute. Two years after treatment, the remission of clinical signs was complete.
Top page
CEA is a French government-funded technological research organisation in four main areas: low-carbon energies, defense and security, information technologies and health technologies. A prominent player in the European Research Area, it is involved in setting up collaborative projects with many partners around the world.