Renowned Physicist, Honorary Doctor of the University, Academician of the NAS of Ukraine, Honored Scientist of Ukraine Ivan Neklyudov Has Passed Away: The University Expresses Condolences

9 september 2024 year

It is with deep sorrow we announce that on September 7, 2024, at the age of 90, the heart of Honorary Doctor of Karazin University, distinguished Ukrainian scientist in the field of material strength and plasticity, radiation physics of solids, and radiation materials science, Academician of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Professor Ivan Neklyudov, has stopped.

Ivan Matviyovych was born on February 10, 1935. In 1955, he graduated with honors from the School of Physics and Mathematics of the H. S. Skovoroda Kharkiv Pedagogical Institute. After completing his postgraduate studies, he joined the Kharkiv Institute of Physics and Technology, where he advanced from junior researcher to general director. In 1964, Ivan Matviyovych defended his PhD dissertation, and in 1975, his doctoral dissertation, earning the title of professor. In 2000, he was elected a corresponding member, and in 2004, a full member of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine.

By profession, he was an experimental physicist, specializing in the strength and plasticity of materials, radiation physics of solids, and radiation materials science. His works on the physics of plastic deformation, impurity-deformation hardening, radiation damage physics, and radiation materials science received wide recognition both in Ukraine and abroad. He theoretically substantiated and experimentally confirmed a fundamentally new direction in creating a strengthened state of materials and products, known as "programmed strengthening." Ivan Matviyovych made significant contributions to the study of the physical mechanisms of radiation phenomena in materials under irradiation, as well as to the development of scientific and technical foundations for rapid forecasting of the behavior of steels and alloys in the active zones of nuclear and future thermonuclear reactors using mathematical modeling and charged particle accelerators.

Ivan Neklyudov's scientific interests were focused on solving issues related to enhancing the safety and extending the service life of Ukraine's nuclear power plants, creating a new generation of reactor materials with high radiation resistance, and developing effective methods for applying modern nuclear physics techniques in Ukraine's economy and industry. He played a significant role in strengthening scientific and technical support and defining the future prospects for the development of Ukraine's nuclear energy. For over forty years, Ivan Matviyovych taught at the Department of Reactor Engineering of the School of Physics and Technology of Kharkiv University (now the Education and Research Institute of the School of Physics and Technology of Karazin University), delivering key lecture courses on the physics of strength and plasticity. Many of his students pursued careers in solid-state physics, materials science, and technology.

From April 2004 until 2016, he was a member of the Presidium of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine and headed the Department of Nuclear Physics and Energy at the NAS of Ukraine as an academic secretary. Ivan Neklyudov was a member of several problem-solving councils of the NAS of Ukraine, the chairman of the section "Constructions and Equipment of Nuclear Energy" of the Scientific and Technical Expert Council under the NAS Presidium of Ukraine, the chief editor of the journal "Problems of Atomic Science and Technology," and a member of the editorial boards of several scientific journals in Ukraine.

Ivan Matviyovych was the author of more than 1,000 scientific works, 60 inventions and patents, 38 monographs and textbooks, and many scientific and technical developments and technological processes for the creation of new structural steels and alloys, as well as composite materials for nuclear energy and special equipment. Under his supervision, a powerful experimental research base was created. He trained 12 doctors and 31 PhDs, making significant contributions to the scientific and technical support of Ukraine’s nuclear energy and defining its future development prospects. Thanks to the initiative and active participation of Ivan Matviyovych, important state decisions were made at the Washington Summit in 2010 regarding Ukraine’s non-nuclear status and the construction of a new safe neutron source with a subcritical assembly.

He was awarded the Order of Merit III degree, the Orders of Yaroslav the Wise V and IV degrees, and several medals. He was a laureate of the State Prize in Science and Technology of Ukraine, an Honored Worker of Science and Technology of Ukraine, an Honorary Citizen of Kharkiv, and an Honorary Doctor of V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University.

Due to his outstanding personal qualities, exceptional work ethic, organizational talent, and scientific brilliance, Ivan Matviyovych earned great respect and recognition in the scientific community.

The cherished memory of Ivan Matviyovych will forever remain in the hearts of his students, colleagues, and friends.