Jules Guéron was a French chemist and atomic scientist, who helped develop atomic energy in France.
Guéron was born in Tunis on June 2, 1907. He earned his Ph.D. in physical sciences at the University of Paris- Sorbonne in 1935. Here he was also awarded the Adrian Prize of the French Society of Chemistry. In 1938 he became a lecturer at the University of Strasbourg.
In 1940, he went to Great Britain to enlist in the Free French Forces. In 1941, he then began to work on the Tube Alloys team at the Cavendish Laboratory in Cambridge. In 1943, Guéron went to Montreal Laboratory. Here he worked with Bertrand Goldschmidt, Hans Halban, Pierre Auger, and Lew Kowarski.
After the war, Guéron continued to work as a scientist. In 1945, he became the Head of the Chemistry Unit of the newly formed French Atomic Energy Commission (CEA). He went on to become the first director of the CEA’s nuclear research center in Saclay. In 1958, the European Atomic Energy Community appointed him to be the Director of Research and Education.
Before retiring, he was a professor at the University of Paris. Throughout his career he wrote many articles on atomic energy. On October 11, 1990, Guéron passed away at the age of 83.
For more information click here to read Guéron’s interview with AIP.