Quantum of Independence: How Ukraine Is Reclaiming Its Pioneering Role in the History of Modern Physics

The history of science is never neutral. Behind formulas, experiments, and Nobel lectures, there are always human destinies, institutional struggles, and geopolitics. For centuries, Ukrainian intellectual contributions have been dissolved in grand imperial narratives—first of the Russian Empire, then of the Soviet Union. Ukrainian names became “Russian,” Ukrainian institutions turned into “branches,” and unique technologies were appropriated as “the property of the center.”

Today, we are at a bifurcation point. Right now, against the backdrop of a war for survival and decades of close cooperation with Europe, it is time to call things by their proper names, get rid of the inferiority complex, and return Ukrainian physics its true face. This issue has always been important, but now it is especially acute for several reasons.

The year 2026 marks ten years since Ukraine has become an associate member of the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN). This is not just a formal date. This is the decade when Ukrainian flags officially flew over the Large Hadron Collider as a symbol of equal partnership.

This date is an occasion not only for formal summaries, but also for a broader conversation about the real role of Ukraine and its scientists in world science. That we are not “poor relatives” in major international projects, but equal partners. This was the spirit of the workshop “Ukrainian contributions to particle physics” which took place in a hybrid format (Geneva, CERN - Kharkiv, Institute for Scintillation MAterials of NAS of Ukraine).

The full-scale Russian invasion in 2022 became a catalyst for reexamining Ukraine’s entire heritage. The war revealed that the appropriation of history can itself be a weapon. In physics, this issue is particularly pronounced: the term “Soviet school” is still often interpreted worldwide as “Russian,” which is a fundamental misconception.

Without restoring historical justice, it is impossible to build a strategy for the future. The loss of institutional memory undermines the ability to think critically. Reclaiming these names is not merely about the past—it lays the foundation for future generations.

Mechanisms of imperial erasure: how it worked

Decolonial studies and analyses of oral histories reveal the cynical yet effective methods by which the empire systematically undermined Ukrainian science.

1. The myth of the "Soviet nuclear project"

In popular perception, Soviet nuclear physics is most often associated with the Kurchatov Institute. Yet the history of the Soviet atomic bomb project is far more complex. Laboratory No. 1 was based in Kharkiv—at the Ukrainian Institute of Physics and Technology (UFTI)—which played a pioneering role in Soviet nuclear research.

Kyrylo Synelnykov and the Kharkiv research team were not merely following orders; they were true co-creators of the nuclear program. As early as 1940, Kharkiv researchers Friedrich Lange, Volodymyr Shpinel, and Viktor Maslov filed patents for a nuclear bomb and methods for producing uranium-235—predating similar projects elsewhere in the world. At the time, however, these ideas were considered too revolutionary and did not receive the support and development they deserved in the Soviet Union. Only after the atomic bombings that ended World War II did it become clear how advanced the research conducted at UFTI truly was. Despite this, Kharkiv’s role is often overlooked in textbooks and publications on nuclear history, overshadowed by that of Moscow.

2. The policy of the "Brain Drain"

There was a systematic practice of “brain drain.” Talented graduates from Ukrainian universities were forcibly assigned to Russian scientific centers (Moscow, Leningrad, etc.), while scientists from other republics were sent to work in Ukrainian institutes. The careers of the students of the outstanding Kharkiv physicist Anton Walter illustrate this policy. Viacheslav Grekov, a longtime researcher of Ukrainian scientific history, noted in his presentation: “This contributed to the erasure of national distinctions and the construction of a ‘Soviet’ identity dominated by Russian attributes.”

3. Technological alienation

When Ukrainian scientists developed breakthrough technologies, factories to implement them on an industrial scale were often built in the Russian part of the Soviet Union. This made Ukraine dependent on the center and created the impression that Ukrainian scientists could provide only the “raw materials,” while the high-tech products were manufactured elsewhere.

4. Distortion of historical facts.

For a long time, historiography has promoted the idea that physics in Kharkiv was initiated by a “landing party” of scientists from Leningrad. This is a classic colonial narrative: “civilization was brought to the savages.” Such a cliché overlooks the fact that some scientists who came to Kharkiv from Leningrad (or more often after foreign internships obtained through the Leningrad connection) were of Ukrainian origin or returned to Ukraine by their own choice. The formation of the Kharkiv physics school was a complex process, shaped both by local talent and by scientists with Ukrainian roots who consciously devoted their lives and careers to Ukraine.

5. The role of the KGB in the transfer of Western technologies and ideological control. 

Historian Sergei Zhuk presented his findings that “between 1965 and 1987, almost 90 percent of all technological innovations in all research institutes and the factories of the “military-industrial complex” of Soviet Ukraine were based on the stolen information from the capitalist countries by the specially trained KGB agents.” This underscores that science in the USSR was never free from the policy of terror. But does this mean that Soviet Ukraine lacked its own innovations? True innovation requires investment, international collaboration, and freedom of thought—conditions that were often in short supply. At the same time, according to Zhuk and Kyiv historian Gennadii Kazakevych, the imported  Western technologies were adopted by the Soviet population in unexpected ways, ultimately opening society and creating new opportunities in science and technology.

Workshop of 2026: The Return of Names

The participants of the workshop—scientists Tetiana Hryn’ova, Maksym Strikha, and Viacheslav Grekov—emphasized that restoring the Ukrainian dimension is not a rewriting of history, but a recovery of its scientific continuity.

Thanks to the work of historians and physicists, figures who helped shape the global scientific canon—but whose Ukrainian affiliation was long suppressed—are being restored to their rightful place in history:

• George Gamow, Dmitry Ivanenko, Gleb Wataghin, Dmitry Volkov - titans without whom modern field theory and astrophysics would be incomplete.
• Vladimir Veksler, Gersh Budker, Edward Ginzton and Marvin Chodorow - leaders in the development of new accelerators not only in the Soviet Union, but also in the United States. 
• Mykola Bogolyubov – whose school of theoretical physics has a worldwide recognition.
• Anton Walter and Kyrylo Synelnykov – pioneers and founding figures of experimental nuclear physics in Ukraine. 

Who is a Ukrainian physicist? New criteria

To put an end once and for all to speculation surrounding the names of prominent Ukrainian physicists appropriated by Russia, the scientific community proposes a clear gauge for identifying scientists that rejects the imperial notion that “speaking Russian means being Russian.”

The participants of the workshop proposed focusing on at least one of the four basic criteria:

1. Origin: Born within the borders of Ukraine.
2. Affiliation: Conducted research at Ukrainian scientific institutions.
3. Scientific contribution: Founded or developed scientific schools in Ukraine.
4. Self-identification: A complex but important criterion, especially given the pressures of the totalitarian system.

Applying these criteria makes it clear that a significant share of what is often labeled as “Soviet” achievements in high-energy physics has its roots in Ukraine.

More than science

The discussion that unfolded around the 10th anniversary of Ukraine’s associate membership in CERN extends far beyond physics. It is part of the broader process of decolonization that our country is undergoing now.

One of the most emotional moments of the workshop at CERN came during the presentation on Mykola Bogolyubov. Because of power outages in Kyiv, it had to be shown in a slides-only format.

This episode symbolizes our times. Despite rocket attacks, blackouts, and the destruction of infrastructure, Ukrainian science is alive. It is not merely surviving—it is advancing and forging new international collaborations. It deserves recognition and respect.

Ukrainian contributions are not confined to archives. They are the “hardware” operating today in the world’s largest experiments. Advanced ultralight interconnection technologies from RPE LTU in Kharkiv enable scientists to study the state of our Universe shortly after its creation in the ALICE detector at CERN. Lead tungstate and cesium iodide crystals from the Institute for Single Crystals of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine are essential components of the ALICE and CMS detectors at CERN as well as the Belle/Belle II experiment in Japan. They allow scientists to record the results of particle collisions. These experiments which led to the Nobel Prizes in Physics in 2013 and 2008—and which continue to evolve and gather new data—would not have been possible without Ukrainian contributions. This is the strongest argument against any sense of inferiority.

We have the right to write our own success story. Ukrainian particle physics has a strong, self-sustaining tradition that has given the world scientists of the highest caliber as well as breakthrough technologies. Recognizing this legacy is essential to building a new, confident, intellectually powerful Ukraine—free from imperial shadows. The time of self-doubts and inferiority has passed. The time for leadership has arrived.