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Lille, the European hub of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR)
September 20, 2004Lille is at the leading edge worldwide in terms of research into Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR). NMR is THE big subject in vogue in the current scientific debates. Since its discovery in 1946 by Félix Bloch and Edward Purcell, twelve Nobel prizes have been awarded for their work on NMR. To sum up, we can say that NMR is a revolutionary means of communicating with matter, at the level of the atom, via waves similar to those used for radio (see details below, Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, how does it work ?).
There are innumerable applications for NMR
NMR applications are very concrete and meaningful for the general public. MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging), in the medical sector, is the most well - known application. By identifying very precisely the chemical nature and the environment of each atom, NMR enables us for example - it was moreover one of its first general applications - to find out everything about a wine (calcium concentration, sunshine, nature of the soil...) and therefore check its quality. With this technique, we are dealing just as much with chemistry as physics, spectroscopy, quantum mechanics and electricity. Today, this method is applied in the fight against doping and fraud. NMR is at the origin of the principal progress made in fields ranging from chemistry to the working of the brain, but also in fundamental biology and pharmacology. Recently NMR has even enabled identification of the parts of the brain which react differently in autistics and thus help progress in this field of research.
The world match United States versus Europe
Nuclear Magnetic Resonance has become within the space of 50 years the most fruitful exploration technique of the moment and above all the most promising. Its application prospects are such that a race against the clock has started across the globe. The United States are one of the leaders in NMR for liquids and do not hesitate to poach the best NMR " brains ". And yet Europe is defending its position well and doing more than just resisting. It has succeeded for instance in making its presence felt in the NMR field for proteins and solids. One of the best French researchers into NMR of solids is Professor Jean - Paul Amoureux of the Laboratory of Crystallochemistry and Physical Chemistry of Solids at the University of Lille I. In 1993, a few years after the " general public " beginnings of NMR of solids, he proposed a new concept (Multi - Quanta) which accelerated the development of this matter.
The Lille Conference, the symbol of a Europe ready to defend its research
Today, this first joint AMPERE - EENC conference, with the presence of two Nobel prize winners and 650 researchers from 35 different countries throughout the world, is the symbol of this leading edge Europe wishing to assert its presence on the world scene. This Conference is also the opportunity to bring together the various European NMR associations and extend an open hand to the former countries of Eastern Europe, since the Conference entry charge is deliberately very low (100 EUR for students) so as to enable all researchers to take part. The Crous and the Tourist Office have been mobilised for the provision of accommodation (500 CROUS student rooms have made available and 350 hotel rooms booked).
The most powerful NMR spectrometer in its category in Lille
The French and European NMR is also preparing its future with the purchase for Lille from the Bruker Company, the world leader in the NMR field, of the most powerful spectrometer in its category : a new system of 18.8 Teslas which will enable the study of liquid and solid environments, and in particular of " heavy " nuclei. Lille will have the benefit of the latest developments in solid phase NMR probes for a period of 5 years, which will enable it to build up a decisive lead over its international counterparts in the field of NMR of solids. This investment of 4 million would not have been possible without the determination of the Nord Pas de Calais region.
A Region and a European metropolis which are banking on their researchers
In a context in which French and European researchers continue to ask themselves questions about their future and ogle at the salaries and working conditions of their American colleagues, the Nord- Pas-de-Calais region has never " abandoned " its researchers. Quite the contrary, it has been working for decades on a strategy of job creation that puts them right in the heart of the process. The Region is in fact firmly convinced that investment in research is the best way of attracting firms and creating state-of-the-art activities that will generate employment. 12 years ago, at a time when NMR was not yet at the forefront of the scientific scene, the Region invested over a million euros in it. Here, in the North of France, researchers have never remained in their ivory towers. They have a close relationship with the elected representatives and the captains of industry. They have all been working together in close collaboration for years to make Lille into a Mecca of NMR. The symbol of this collaboration is the Nord-Pas-de-Calais NMR/EPR Scientific Group (GS). This GS brings together scientifically, technically and humanly all the researchers (Chemists, Biologists, Physicians and Pharmacists) working on liquids and solids in Nord-Pas-de-Calais in the NMR or EPR fields, mainly in the universities of Lille 1, Lille 2 and the Pasteur Institute. The common seminars are weekly and the collaborations are very many. The best reward for the existence of this GS and its level of scientific prowess was the naming of Lille and Orleans as the official NMR research centres for solids in France. A way also for Lille of compensating for the abandonment of Synchrotron's " Sun " Project.
In a wider context, Lille Metropolis and the Nord-Pas-de-Calais Region are providing some answers to the question that is bothering the whole of the research field in Europe. How in this global context of the "brain drain", do you keep your researchers, the only true guarantors of future jobs ? Whatever the case, the development players in Lille Metropolis and Nord-Pas-de-Calais have made the employment of grey matter one of their core priorities.
Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, how does it work ?
To sum up, we take a big magnet that creates a stable magnetic field. We place a sample in this magnetic field (liquid, solid, human body). The particles of the atoms will be oriented in a certain way depending upon this magnetic field, according to their spin (spin is a characteristic of particles which gives an idea of the excitation and its " orientation " - a little like a needle in a compass). Next a second field is transmitted, this time electromagnetic (of the radio type) that can be controlled and the frequency varied. Photons are thus sent on to our sample. This will either absorb the photons or it will not (we say that the atoms are excited), then the transmission is stopped. For some time the atoms will re-transmit the photons and then take up their original orientation. This time is measured for each element of the sample, and this enables us to deduce the chemical nature and the environment of the elements. Roughly speaking, this is tantamount to producing a spring effect. An object is forced into an unstable state, and then released again to see how long it takes to return to its original place.
APIM - Lille Metropolitan Development Agency
The world match United States versus Europe
Nuclear Magnetic Resonance has become within the space of 50 years the most fruitful exploration technique of the moment and above all the most promising. Its application prospects are such that a race against the clock has started across the globe. The United States are one of the leaders in NMR for liquids and do not hesitate to poach the best NMR " brains ". And yet Europe is defending its position well and doing more than just resisting. It has succeeded for instance in making its presence felt in the NMR field for proteins and solids. One of the best French researchers into NMR of solids is Professor Jean - Paul Amoureux of the Laboratory of Crystallochemistry and Physical Chemistry of Solids at the University of Lille I. In 1993, a few years after the " general public " beginnings of NMR of solids, he proposed a new concept (Multi - Quanta) which accelerated the development of this matter.
The Lille Conference, the symbol of a Europe ready to defend its research
Today, this first joint AMPERE - EENC conference, with the presence of two Nobel prize winners and 650 researchers from 35 different countries throughout the world, is the symbol of this leading edge Europe wishing to assert its presence on the world scene. This Conference is also the opportunity to bring together the various European NMR associations and extend an open hand to the former countries of Eastern Europe, since the Conference entry charge is deliberately very low (100 EUR for students) so as to enable all researchers to take part. The Crous and the Tourist Office have been mobilised for the provision of accommodation (500 CROUS student rooms have made available and 350 hotel rooms booked).
The most powerful NMR spectrometer in its category in Lille
The French and European NMR is also preparing its future with the purchase for Lille from the Bruker Company, the world leader in the NMR field, of the most powerful spectrometer in its category : a new system of 18.8 Teslas which will enable the study of liquid and solid environments, and in particular of " heavy " nuclei. Lille will have the benefit of the latest developments in solid phase NMR probes for a period of 5 years, which will enable it to build up a decisive lead over its international counterparts in the field of NMR of solids. This investment of 4 million would not have been possible without the determination of the Nord Pas de Calais region.
A Region and a European metropolis which are banking on their researchers
In a context in which French and European researchers continue to ask themselves questions about their future and ogle at the salaries and working conditions of their American colleagues, the Nord- Pas-de-Calais region has never " abandoned " its researchers. Quite the contrary, it has been working for decades on a strategy of job creation that puts them right in the heart of the process. The Region is in fact firmly convinced that investment in research is the best way of attracting firms and creating state-of-the-art activities that will generate employment. 12 years ago, at a time when NMR was not yet at the forefront of the scientific scene, the Region invested over a million euros in it. Here, in the North of France, researchers have never remained in their ivory towers. They have a close relationship with the elected representatives and the captains of industry. They have all been working together in close collaboration for years to make Lille into a Mecca of NMR. The symbol of this collaboration is the Nord-Pas-de-Calais NMR/EPR Scientific Group (GS). This GS brings together scientifically, technically and humanly all the researchers (Chemists, Biologists, Physicians and Pharmacists) working on liquids and solids in Nord-Pas-de-Calais in the NMR or EPR fields, mainly in the universities of Lille 1, Lille 2 and the Pasteur Institute. The common seminars are weekly and the collaborations are very many. The best reward for the existence of this GS and its level of scientific prowess was the naming of Lille and Orleans as the official NMR research centres for solids in France. A way also for Lille of compensating for the abandonment of Synchrotron's " Sun " Project.
In a wider context, Lille Metropolis and the Nord-Pas-de-Calais Region are providing some answers to the question that is bothering the whole of the research field in Europe. How in this global context of the "brain drain", do you keep your researchers, the only true guarantors of future jobs ? Whatever the case, the development players in Lille Metropolis and Nord-Pas-de-Calais have made the employment of grey matter one of their core priorities.
Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, how does it work ?
To sum up, we take a big magnet that creates a stable magnetic field. We place a sample in this magnetic field (liquid, solid, human body). The particles of the atoms will be oriented in a certain way depending upon this magnetic field, according to their spin (spin is a characteristic of particles which gives an idea of the excitation and its " orientation " - a little like a needle in a compass). Next a second field is transmitted, this time electromagnetic (of the radio type) that can be controlled and the frequency varied. Photons are thus sent on to our sample. This will either absorb the photons or it will not (we say that the atoms are excited), then the transmission is stopped. For some time the atoms will re-transmit the photons and then take up their original orientation. This time is measured for each element of the sample, and this enables us to deduce the chemical nature and the environment of the elements. Roughly speaking, this is tantamount to producing a spring effect. An object is forced into an unstable state, and then released again to see how long it takes to return to its original place.
APIM - Lille Metropolitan Development Agency
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