International Conference on Horizons in Nuclear Physics (HINP 2026)

International Conference on Horizons in Nuclear Physics (HINP 2026)

We are pleased to announce the first edition of the biennial International Conference on Horizons in Nuclear Physics (HINP 2026), to be held from September 21-23, 2026, at the Department of Physics, School of Natural Sciences, Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence, Delhi-NCR, India. HINP 2026 will bring together leading scientists, international experts, researchers, and students to exchange ideas, discuss recent advances, and explore new directions across nuclear physics and its applications.

The scientific programme is designed to span the remarkable breadth of modern nuclear physics — from its fundamental questions to its interdisciplinary connections and technological applications. At the fundamental level, the meeting will explore how we probe the shape, structure, and dynamics of atomic nuclei, with topics including nuclear collectivity and deformation, nuclear isomerism, shape coexistence, shell effects and pair correlations, exotic and weakly bound nuclei, transfer reactions, fusion, fission and quasifission, clustering phenomena, and nuclear reaction mechanisms.

The programme also extends naturally to the interdisciplinary frontiers of nuclear astrophysics and cosmology, where nuclear reactions and nuclear properties provide essential input for understanding astrophysical nucleosynthesis, primordial nucleosynthesis, and nuclear matter in extreme astrophysical environments. In this way, laboratory studies of nuclei connect to broader questions concerning stellar evolution, the origin of the elements, and the nuclear processes operating in the universe.

Simultaneously, HINP 2026 will highlight the wider applications of nuclear physics, including its role in energy technologies, medical physics and medical-isotope production, radiation detection and imaging, instrumentation, materials studies, and related devices. The conference thus seeks to connect fundamental nuclear science with areas in which nuclear techniques have an increasingly important technological and societal impact. The programme already includes, for example, talks on medical-isotope production and advanced digitizer-based acquisition technologies.

Across these themes, the meeting will showcase progress on both the theoretical and experimental frontiers, including advances in nuclear models and computational approaches, precision measurements, detector and data-acquisition technologies, and accelerator-based nuclear physics at major facilities in India and around the world. The programme ranges from rare-isotope and relativistic-beam studies to digital gamma-ray spectroscopy and solenoidal spectrometers, reflecting this strong connection between new physics questions and new experimental capabilities.

An important aim of HINP 2026 is also to create a lively meeting ground for young researchers and students to interact with established scientists and international experts. Through poster presentations, selected oral presentations, and scientific discussions, early-career researchers will have opportunities to present their work, exchange ideas, receive feedback, and develop new connections and collaborations.

As the inaugural meeting of a biennial series, we hope HINP 2026 will grow into a sustained platform connecting different communities within nuclear physics — from the structure of the nucleus and the dynamics of nuclear reactions to the nuclear history of the universe and applications in medicine, energy, and technology.

We look forward to welcoming the nuclear physics community to Shiv Nadar IoE for three days of engaging science, discussions, new ideas, and collaborations.