New Member
IFAE appoints Jordi Núñez Freixa as the institute’s new General Manager
December 2, 2025
IFAEThe Governing Board of the Institute for High Energy Physics (IFAE), after a selection process, has appointed Jordi Núñez Freixa as its new General Manager. Núñez will take up the position on 1 December 2025.
An industrial engineer from UPC, Jordi Núñez has developed his career in public administration and strategic management. Until now, he has served as General Manager of the City Council of Rubí, where he has led projects related to urban and sustainable transformation, the promotion of energy self-consumption, and the development of the local industrial and business ecosystem.
This background brings together institutional management, team coordination, and strategic planning—skills especially relevant for a research centre such as IFAE.
“IFAE conducts world-class research and my goal is to ensure that the center’s administration provides excellent support to the research staff in achieving their goals,” Núñez says.
With his appointment, IFAE aims to continue strengthening its administrative and management capabilities in support of a growing scientific activity spanning particle physics, astrophysics, cosmology, quantum technologies, and medical physics.
New facility
New Thermal Vacuum Chamber inaugurated at IFAE
June 23, 2026
A new Thermal Vacuum Chamber (TVAC) has been inaugurated at the Institut de Física d’Altes Energies (IFAE) on the campus of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB). The facility will enable satellites and space technologies to be tested under conditions representative of Earth’s orbit, expanding the capabilities available to the research and space technology communities. The TVAC is a joint project of the Institute of Space Studies of Catalonia (IEEC) and IFAE, made possible through funding from the CERCA Ginys III programme, together with additional support from the Government of Catalonia, the IEEC and IFAE.