Jacques Curie's mineralogy between Paris and Montpellier; experimental sciences under the Third Republic

Jacques Curie was a forgotten physicist and mineralogist who, together with his younger brother Pierre, discovered and first described the piezoelectric effect, which allows certain types of crystals to convert mechanical stress, such as compression, into electrical current. The piezoelectric effect is used in many areas of everyday life: gas lighters, sensors, microphones, quartz watches, etc. Most mobile phones contain piezoelectric components.

Jacques Curie (1855, Paris – 1941, Montpellier) was professor of mineralogy at the University of Montpellier between 1883 and 1925, with the exception of the years 1887-1889, during which he taught at the School of Sciences in Algiers. He discovered the piezoelectric effect in 1880 at the age of 25 while working as a laboratory assistant at the Faculty of Sciences in Paris with his brother Pierre, who was 21 at the time. Jacques continued to refine the determination of the piezoelectric constant until 1910 with a device initially designed by the two brothers in Paris. This instrument, the piezoelectric quartz, was also used by Pierre and Marie Curie to measure the natural radioactivity of a substance placed in an ionization chamber. In particular, it made it possible to measure extremely low electrical currents.

Jacques Curie will be honored at the public conference of the French Crystallography Association symposium in Montpellier on Wednesday, July 3, 2024, at 8 p.m. at the Centre Rabelais (27 Boulevard Sarrail, Montpellier). The lecture will be given by Pierre Teissier, Associate Professor of History of Science and Technology at the University of Nantes:Jacques Curie's mineralogy between Paris and Montpellier; experimental sciences under the Third Republic (1870-1940). Thelecture will be followed by a round table discussion on current research in the field of piezoelectricity. The round table will be moderated by Michel Robert, former president of the University of Montpellier 2, in the presence of Emmanuel le Clézio (Institut Électronique du Sud, Montpellier), Lionel Torres (Laboratory of Computer Science, Robotics and Microelectronics of Montpellier, Polytech Montpellier) and Jean-Michel Marin (Dean of the Faculty of Sciences of Montpellier, Alexander Grothendieck Institute).

The event is sponsored byNUMEV, the Laboratory of Excellence (LabEx) at the University of Montpellier focused on the interaction between computer science and engineering, and life and environmental sciences.