Table of contents

Physics is the oldest of the formal sciences and is the basis upon which many other sciences are founded. Its applications cover a wide range of disciplines ranging from medical to nuclear sciences, from mining to industrial engineering, and from space to telecommunications technology.

The industrial revolution of the 18th and 19th centuries was to a great extent spurred on by the many developments in the physical sciences that were taking place at the time. Classical physics was at the forefront of technological development well into the 20th century. The advent of quantum mechanics then gave physics a huge and unforeseen impetus, resulting in breakthroughs in nuclear technology, lasers and semiconductors.

However, recent technological developments have seen a shift away from hard technologies to the soft technologies that are the foundation of the information age. The application of physics, for example in information and communication technologies, is now the primary focus, perhaps at the expense of the generation of new scientific knowledge.

Pure physics has as a result lost its central role in industrial development. The challenge is, therefore, for physicists from around the world to engage with each other and with industrialists in order to review and redefine the role of physics in industrial development in this new paradigm. Quantum computing is one area which looks promising in this regard.

I hope that this report will stimulate further dialogue on the role of pure physics in the support of industrial and technological development, and indeed of socio-economic development, particularly in the context of developing countries.

Developing economies are beset with multifarious challenges and barriers in meeting goals of socio-economic development. Science and technology have been identified as key instruments of change that could add value to resources, which in turn will lead to growth and prosperity. The scientific and technological knowledge-based interventions required for socio-economic development are complex and Physics forms one of the cornerstones of such interventions. However, the development of an appropriate and adequate Research and Development base of a developing country is often rendered difficult by various impediments.

In realising the importance of Physics as a key element in the development of appropriate technology for socio-economic development, the Commission on Physics for Development of the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP) initiated a biennial conference series: Conference on Physics for Industrial Development: Bridging the Gap (COPID). The first conference in this series was held in 1994 in Bangalore, India. This was followed by a conference in 1996 in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. This publication presents a record of the proceedings of the third conference in this series that was held in September 2000 in Durban, South Africa.

By means of these contributions by the participants, this conference endeavoured to develop a programme of action for Physics with the following objectives: to strengthen the scientific and technological capacities of the developing countries, to strengthen the international scientific and technological co-operation among nations, to encourage nations to develop appropriate national policies that would build an appropriate scientific and technological capacity, and to demonstrate that Science and Technology are the key to sustainable development of all countries of the world. As Abdus Salam, the Nobel Laureate in Physics in 1979 observed, "in the final analysis it is basically mastery and utilisation of modern science and technology that distinguishes the developing nations from the developed nations".

Physics, or science and technology in general, can play a role in development only when the integrity of the whole enterprise is preserved. This requires well funded research and training institutions, active research programmes, and the education of creative scientists. The four themes of the conference were therefore selected to explore the facets of the enterprise required for development and authors were invited to submit oral and poster papers for presentation in the following categories:

• Developments in Physics

• Education and curricula in Physics

• Research and partnerships

• Role of Physics in developing countries

These themes were also used to develop arguments for the position paper that was developed during the conference. The Editor in Chief and the Management of Physica Scripta have been enormously generous to provide an opportunity for the papers to be published and circulated to a wide audience, not withstanding the limited Physics content in some of the papers. These proceedings also provide an opportunity to demonstrate the varied quality of presentations and publications which originate from countries with varying levels of technological development.

We trust that the readers of these papers will also look beyond the Physics represented here and benefit from the intriguing success stories of development told in many of the papers, and applicable in both developed and developing countries. The reward for the efforts of the authors will be in the change that the conference would have effected in the socio-economical development of nations by bridging the gap.

It has been a tremendous challenge to participate in the organising of the COPID 2000 conference. It has been an even bigger challenge to oversee the publishing of the papers. Our sincere appreciation is acknowledged to the organising committee, to the various sponsors and to the reviewers of the papers. These proceedings are a credit to the participants who presented papers and, after numerous iterations in response to the referees' comments, eventually completed their papers for submission to Physica Scripta. The four days of the conference were rewarding in many respects and we all derived benefit from the many stimulating discussions. We trust that the friendships that were established through this conference will continue and develop into long term relationships across geographical barriers that will contribute to the industrial development of all nations and bridge the gap that divides us.

The Commission on Physics and Development (C13) of the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP):

• Recognising that there is a need for action on Physics and Industrial Development;

• Conscious of the fact that international conferences could serve the purpose of developing a better understanding of the technology revolution;

• Hopeful that such conferences would enhance the role that physics can play to build new partnerships;

• Convinced that such conferences will empower physicists in developing countries to foster physics and technology in developing countries,

therefore initiated a series of biennial conferences on Physics and Industrial Development: Bridging the Gap (COPID) in 1994, including the third of these conferences held in Durban, South Africa in 2000.

The participants at the third conference on Physics and Industrial Development, Bridging the Gap, gathered at Durban on 4–7 September 2000, noted that:

1. Throughout the 20th century, physicists, because of their direct involvement in technology development and their skills in problem solving, have played a leading role in technological breakthroughs (for example the transistor, the laser, the internet etc.), which in turn have led to a major impact on our lives.

2. In the twenty-first century, the main impact of technology is expected to be the replacement of skills by the knowledge to create skills.

3. Basic research is receiving diminishing support from local industries and is no longer driven by the Cold War.

It is therefore evident that the nurturing of physics in any developing country is essential for its socio-economic development. The participants therefore resolved that:

1. Appropriate national policy should be implemented in developing countries to facilitate the creation of linkages to build matching scientific and technological capacity through regional innovation hubs and substantial funding input from national and regional sources that will demonstrate the benefit of a supporting national policy.

2. Significant efforts should be made to adapt imported technology to local conditions and for that purpose expertise in physics is required.

3. A requirement for technological development in the developing countries would be the accelerated transfer of technology from the developed to the developing world; strengthening the international scientific and technological cooperation among nations; ensuring an unhindered flow of information, exchange of experience and expertise in the field of Science and Technology.

4. The awareness and appreciation of the methodology of science in general should be driven by the natural wonder and curiosity prompted by a popular interest in fields of physics such as astronomy.

5. A positive attitude towards science subjects should be encouraged in rural schools, aided by business supported Science Centres.

6. Career focused curricula should be developed for tertiary educational institutions, including the introduction of applied programs in Physics through collaboration with, instead of competing with, the disciplines of engineering, computer science and medicine.

7. The appreciation of Science and Technology would be ensured by rural communities if S&T provides appropriate solutions to their subsistence activities.

8. Academic research should be driven by innovation that will lead to economic growth. This would be sustained financially by recognising and exercising the value of collaboration between academia and industry.

9. A national bureau of standards is required to set performance norms and provide measurement facilities.

10. Mechanisms (state or private) for funding science and technology and strong political support for physics in particular, are required.

The influence of physics in the enhancement of old technologies, and the development of new ones is reviewed. It is emphasised that, both the methods and the subject matter of physics are vital to technological development, leading to increased productivity in the economy. The need for greater cooperation between physics and other sciences in the solution of environmental and industrial problems is urged, in view of the interdisciplinary nature of economic growth.

Some Universities and Research Centres in Nigeria have, over the years, been extensively involved in both research and education in Astronomy and Space Sciences. However, they appear to be trading in an unwanted commodity as modern astronomy appears to continue to lack any serious public appreciation. This paper examines the challenges and problems confronting the development of Astronomy in the country.

This paper outlines some of the problems of science education in some developing countries, especially those in Africa. The bias against the introduction of Education and Training in space related activities in some of these countries is also highlighted. The process of establishing Centres for Space Science and Technology Education in different regions of the world as a joint venture between those regions and the Office of Outer Space Affairs in Vienna, is described along with a discussion of the long- and short-term mandates of the centres. The essential aspects of the curricula for Space Science and Technology Education are examined in relation to their possible impact on industrial development in those regions.

In 1992–93 the Department of Physics decided that there was a need for physicists to participate in the industrial development in Zimbabwe. The idea of a Master of Science in Applied Physics programme was conceived. Before designing the programme, a postal survey was conducted to discover the needs of industry particularly in relation to industrial processes. There was a 20% response to our survey with many indicating the area of specialisation required in Zimbabwe. Based on their response, the programme was drawn up and was launched in 1994. The programme has optional specialisations in Industrial Physics, Medical Physics, Laser and Plasma Physics and Environmental Physics. Most of the candidates choose the Industrial Physics option. The programme includes courses in Workshop Practice, Computer Applications Software, Theory of Devices, Computer Interfacing, Instrumentation Physics, Metrology (which includes Quality Control), Digital Signal Processing and Data Communications and Networks, Industrial Applications of Laser and Plasma Physics, Biomedical Instrumentation, and many others. Nearly 30 Zimbabweans and some foreign students have thus far graduated with this degree. On graduation, they have, with relative ease, found employment in industry. In two cases, graduates were appointed as Research Officers with firms who set up research divisions specially for them. Many are now teaching at universities and technical colleges throughout the country where they continue to promote an industrial approach to the teaching of physics.

The National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) is Nigeria's supervisory agency and coordinating body for all aspects of technical education taught outside the universities in Nigeria. It is therefore responsible for curriculum development in the polytechnics and technical colleges. The Higher National Diploma (HND) in Science Laboratory Technology (Physics-with-Electronics) is one of the academic programmes developed by the Board, and offered by many polytechnics throughout the country. This programme is designed to produce laboratory technologists capable of applying all common physics equipment and instruments in analytic, teaching and research work, and are also able to maintain them. In this paper, the main features of the programme are discussed with a view to sharing experience with physics teachers from different parts of the world on more effective curriculum delivery using modern techniques.

Physics is an excellent foundation on which to build a career. Many PhD physicists spend their working lives conducting basic research. However, such careers are the exception rather than the norm. In fact, physicists work in a remarkable array of diverse careers. A framework will be presented for identifying the strengths and weaknesses of a physics program as well as for how to conceptualize the revitalization of that program. Examples will be presented of physics programs that attract the best students and prepare them effectively both for research careers and for the broad range of opportunities commonly pursued by physicists. Examples will also be presented that address the needs of small physics departments as well as those that address the needs of larger universities. In short, you can design physics programs that further the knowledge of physics while also serving the needs of economic development.

Past results have indicated that pupils in rural schools fare poorly in the Sciences and Mathematics. Reasons for this range from financial constraints to political and social influences. The introduction of renewable energy resources has the potential to equip pupils with the theoretical forte of being able to at least compete with their urban counterparts. Technology provides the mechanism to develop new and effective ways of bringing modern education facilities and techniques to those who would not have had access to it. The implementation of a Renewable Energy Technology (RET) system at Myeka High School overcame many logistical problems, indicating that education and technology, and all the role-players involved could successfully make a meaningful contribution to rural development. Indications are that the technology and rural environment can form a working combination; in which the technology provides the opportunities for learners and the community to explore the world from a desktop computer. The effect that this technology has had on the learning of Science was analysed, using previous test and examination scores. The influence of the technology could then be appraised.

The South African Nuclear Energy Corporation (NECSA) owns and operates the SAFARI-1 20 MW Research Reactor. In fulfilling its mandate from government to apply radiation technology for scientific purposes, NECSA is constantly exploring opportunities to employ the neutrons from its beam line facilities to benefit both academia and industry in research and technological development. This goal is approached through joint ventures with industry and academia. This paper outlines the facilities available at SAFARI-1 and their application to various fields.

Industry hires thousands of engineers and technicians both as permanent employees and as expert consultants. They are the technical experts who are essential to keeping the wheels of industry rolling. Their foundation skills are built on physics and mathematics. In this country Technikons and Technical Colleges do not teach physics and do not have physics departments. Physics Departments at Universities are threatened with closure. This is no renaissance. Actual case histories will be presented where physicists played pivotal roles in solving industrial problems. The conclusion is made that trained physicists are vital to the technological health of any country planning real growth.

A conceptual framework for partnerships between University and Industry emphasizing the need for Ngumzo (i.e. dialogue with harmony) is presented. This framework is based on the model of a microprocessor. Inputs that encompass University–Industry collaboration when processed lead to different outputs. It is being proposed that national policy and delivery of inputs to our national institutions are not sufficient to change the University–Industry relationships or partnerships. The alternative is that it will be the central role of each individual institution, in all its complexity, to pay more attention in the planning, management and evaluation of its technical education among other inherent activities. The experiences of assembling and marketing of the NUN^TM PC at the Institute of Nuclear Science will be presented.

The Technology and Human Resources for Industry Programme (THRIP) is a partnership programme funded by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and managed by the National Research Foundation. On a cost-sharing basis with industry, THRIP supports science, engineering and technology research collaborations focused on addressing the technology needs of participating firms. THRIP also encourages and supports the development and mobility of research personnel and students among participating organisations. The programme was established in 1992 with a budget of around R5 (US$0.6) million and is currently supporting in excess of 400 projects, to the tune of R250 (US$31.25) million (industry plus Government). It is considered to be one of DTI's most successful "supply side" support initiatives which boasts some impressive success stories. One of these is a research project co-funded (THRIP and de Beers) to the value of R300,000 (US$37,500) which has led to a body scanning machine, which is the only one of its kind in the world and is expected to earn de Beers R1.2 (US$0.15) billion.

Academics are not generally interested in the application of the results of their research but a simple idea can sometimes give rise to a multi-billion dollar industry as a spin-off. Hence there is an urgent need for developing good links between academia and industry for a symbiotic relationship. An institutional linkage, a departmental linkage and an individual linkage with special reference to a developing country like India are presented. This model may successfully be adopted in other developing countries.

India's research base rests on its more than 260 universities and about 2500 recognized research and development (r&d) laboratories. Most of them, representing diverse science disciplines have linkages, both formal and informal with academia and industry. These linkages, established primarily because of increasing global competition, burgeoning research costs and rapid technological changes, have helped in synergisation of intellectual efforts, sharing of r&d results, pooling of resources, and availability of trained manpower. This case study details institutionalization of one such cooperative effort in which a laboratory of India's Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in a multilateral linkage with industrial units and government agencies has embarked upon a programme which integrates the technology upgradation and management needs of a cluster of small enterprises. Initiated under the Government of India's Upgradation of Technology (UPTECH) scheme this cooperative effort involving four major agencies, with one of them being the nodal one, is to be implemented in three phases over a two year period. It has well set goals and agreed output norms. The programme, which started six months ago, has already given results which do generate hope for the success of this large multilateral linkage programme. It also heralds a promise for hundreds of small industrial enterprises, which need to modernize in terms of process upgradation, environmental friendliness and reaching out to global markets by following cluster and participative management approaches.

The undergraduate programmes at South African Technikons have been integrally linked to commerce and industry through the experiential learning component of the curriculum. Since 1993 Technikons have been permitted to offer Masters and Doctoral degree programmes, as a result of which the partnership has expanded into the postgraduate domain. This paper reports on recent developments in this extended partnership.

Transition from the Industrial to the Information Age is creating a paradigm shift for business, education, and research and development. The entrenched culture of corporate R&D groups in developed countries is increasingly complemented by innovative and nimble small and medium high-tech enterprises, dramatically changing many economies. Entrepreneurial trends amongst research students, able to exploit modern information technology for networking, collaboration and business, are increasing. South Africa has emerged into this global economy without these trends being well established. This paper will describe and contrast developments and detail initiatives such as The Innovation Hub.

The paper describes an initiative by the Institute for Plasma Research (IPR), India in establishing links with the Indian industry for developing and commercialising advanced plasma-based industrial technologies. This has culminated in the creation of a self-financing technology development, incubation, demonstration and delivery facility. A business plan for converting the knowledge base to commercially viable technologies conceived technology as a product and the industry as the market and addressed issues like resistance to new technologies, the key role of entrepreneur, thrust areas and the necessity of technology incubation and delivery. Success of this strategy is discussed in a few case studies. We conclude by identifying the cost, environmental, strategic and techno-economic aspects, which would be the prime drivers for plasma-assisted manufacturing technology in India.

Solar energy is found to be the best source of energy for the rural poor. It is cheap and environmentally friendly. However its potential application in Tanzania is not well researched and documented. This paper describes a prospect on solar radiation distribution and available solar energy potential. Modelling of solar energy systems requires knowledge of incoming solar radiation. An empirical model based on meteorological data collected between 1965 and 1990 in Tanzania has been developed to estimate global solar radiation on horizontal surfaces. Meteorological parameters such as sunshine hours, relative humidity, air temperature and atmospheric conditions were used in the model. The values of global solar radiation predicted by the model are in close agreement with those measured for all locations and zones where the model has been tested. The deviation was found to lie between -5% and 5%. Measured and predicted mean monthly and mean annual global solar radiation values as observed from the developed radiation maps and graphs indicate that Tanzania has high solar power potential. The lowest annual average radiation value in the country is found to be 15 MJ m^-2 day^-1, while the maximum value is 24 MJ m^-2 day^-1. The lowest radiation value in the country is obtained in July (winter), which should be sufficient to satisfy the needs of rural family demands.

A system, consisting of a parabolic reflector mounted on a polar axis tracker, has been designed and built. Air at atmospheric pressure is heated by the concentrated solar radiation to temperatures of up to 400 °C as it is sucked through the receiver and into the pebble-bed heat storage unit, by means of a fan at the bottom of the storage. The stored heat is recovered by the reversal of the fan and the resulting hot air can be used in a convection oven and other appliances. This report discusses practical aspects, as well as preliminary test results, of such a system.

Wind energy development in Tanzania started about 3 decades ago when some windmills were installed at several locations in the country to pump water for human and animal consumption and in a few cases for irrigation. There were some attempts to manufacture the windmills locally but these were never successful. In 1980 there were some attempts to generate electricity from wind but these also were unsuccessful.

The analysed wind speed data revealed that the wind energy potential in Tanzania is fairly high. The analysis also showed that the windy season coincides with the dry season. The available wind energy at one prospective site called if harvested for the purpose of electricity generation could help to alleviate the shortage of hydroelectricity that prevails during the dry season. Wind energy experts are involved in analysing the available wind speed data and also measuring wind speed in small intervals of time at the sites that are believed to have high wind energy potential. It is also planned to draw a wind map for Tanzania.

In Eritrea, the cooking of traditional yeast-leavened flat bread (injera or taita) is responsible for over 50% of the household's energy consumption. However, no literature exists in international journals, which reviews or analyses the efficiency or energy intensity of injera production.

Injera is the product of baking a fermented mixture of water and flour for about three days. The mogogo, a clay-cooking plate, is the traditional stove for baking injera. Utton (intradiameter of around 60 cm) is a local name given to the three stoves for mogogo, tsahli and moklo, and are built adjacent to each other. The product of cooking is, respectively, injera, tsebhi (sauce) and kicha (hard bread). Adhanet is the name given to the improved mogogo.

Recent research and developing efforts by the Energy and Training Center of the Department of Energy, has shown that an improved stove efficiency of 23% has been achieved, in contrast to the efficiency of the traditional stove of 6 to 8%.

The development of hard ceramics based on mixtures of the two sialon (Si–Al–O–N) phases α and β which are suitable for a variety of industrial applications such as cutting tools, rotary seals for water pumps, nozzles, etc. is presented. The study has been focused on the procedures of controlling α/β phase ratio to obtain the desired combination of sintering and initial compositions. The constitution of the α and β phases were predicted by balancing the compositions using a computer programme. A range of α/β sialons with different compositions were fabricated and properties such as hardness, fracture toughness and wear resistance were investigated.

This paper reviews a number of Applied Physics Group projects that involve the use of Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) to solve industrial problems. Wavelet and Fourier transforms are used to reduce the dimensionality of the input data set. For the past 2 years, Richards Bay Coal Terminal has been using high speed video imaging and neural techniques to automatically classify damages on critical conveyor belt which transport 60 million tons of coal per annum. A second project has involved the installation of 3 Cyclops Coastal Imaging Stations in Durban and Cape Town which use an RGB based MLP neural network to extract waterlines on a short timescale. This would otherwise involve expensive manual surveys and is presently being used by the Durban municipality to manage the dumping of dredged sand to maintain optimal beach widths. Neural based techniques are also being developed for the agricultural industry to extract soil and crop characteristics from natural radionuclide gamma spectra and image data.

Technology is more and more becoming the fundamental wealth creation mechanism of any country. Therefore national skill in technology application is essential for competition in the international economy.

The speed of technological changemakes control of technology all the more difficult particularly for developing countries. However, an important consideration is that technology is not only a technical discipline, but relies heavily on the marketability and social acceptability of the final product. This concept demands a multidisciplinary approach across widely divergent disciplines. Scientists should be at the forefront of promoting and driving multidisciplinary technology decision-making and implementation.

Physics provides essential support to industrial development through metrology, the science of physical measurements. All developed and a considerable number of developing countries have national metrology institutes (NMIs) supported by their governments which exploit a wide range of physics. These have the role of ensuring that industry, academia, trade and government agencies responsible for health, safety, communications and the environment can make measurements of an appropriate accuracy. NMIs exploit a wide range of exciting physics to ensure that they can continue to respond to the ever increasing demands for higher accuracy of measurement on which economic development so critically depends.

Optical diffraction patterns yield valuable information on structural symmetry, and can therefore provide immediate checks of production quality in manufacturing processes. A simple, robust and relatively cheap arrangement for rapid, in situ recording of diffraction patterns will be described. The light source consists of a He–Ne laser of appropriately chosen spectral region (green, yellow, orange or red), fitted with a spatial filter, while the CCD detector consists of a linear array of 2048 pixels with 14 µm/pixel spacing and 6 µs/pixel readout time to a Tektronix TDS 210 digital oscilloscope connected to a computer for signal analysis. As proof-of-principle, we have recorded a number of "classical" diffraction patterns (knife-edge, wire, rectangular aperture, and occluding sphere), which yield excellent agreement with standard Fresnel diffraction theory. This comparison shows the versatility and general reliability of the apparatus for determining unknown patterns.

There has been considerable interest in the accurate determination of void fractions in flow-boiling liquids as such voided systems exist in industries and have important effects on their operations. Penetrating radiation such as gamma rays and neutrons are widely used to measure the voids but there could be non-instrumental errors in the measurements. These errors are studied in this work and are shown to increase with the dimension of the void along the radiation beam while it decreases with the dimension across the beam. For a given void, the error is larger when the void fluctuates. Conditions under which the error is minimized are discussed.

Monitoring large (underwater) surfaces, with strongly varying composition, requires a sampling density, exceeding the capabilities of standard techniques. These techniques involve sample collection and a number of treatments and measurements in laboratory; both steps are laborious, tedious and costly. This paper shows that a trailing detector system of natural γ-rays provides quantitative information on the dynamics at and around a waste disposal site. In this paper the technique is applied to monitor dumpsites of gold mines from an aircraft and the dispersal of dredge spoil from Rotterdam harbour dumped at the North Sea by vessel. The sea-floor monitoring has been conducted in detail, including the derivation of sediment composition and assessing by means of a mass-balance equation the transport directions and quantities in time.

A microcontroller is sometimes described as a "computer on a chip" because it contains all the features of a full computer including central processor, in-built clock circuitry, ROM, RAM, input and output ports with special features such as serial communication, analogue-to-digital conversion and, more recently, signal processing. The smallest microcontroller has only eight pins but some having 68 pins are also being marketed. In the last five years, the prices of microcontrollers have dropped by 80% and are now one of the most cost-effective components in industry. Being software-driven, microcontrollers greatly simplify the design of sophisticated instrumentation and control circuitry. They are able to effect precise calculations sometimes needed for feedback in control systems and now form the basis of all intelligent embedded systems such as those required in television and VCR remote controls, microwave ovens, washing machines, etc. More than ten times as many microcontrollers than microprocessors are manufactured and sold in the world in spite of the high profile that the latter enjoys because of the personal computer market. In Zimbabwe, extensive research is being carried out to use microcontrollers to aid the cost recovery of domestic and commercial solar installations as part of the rural electrification programme.

The cost-effective measurement of the velocity flow fields in breaking water waves, using particle and correlation image velocimetry, is described. The fluid velocities are estimated by tracking the motion of neutrally buoyant particles and aeration structures. Results of the phase-ensemble-averaged velocity flow fields, time-averaged horizontal velocities and turbulence results are presented for laboratory waves breaking on a beach of slope 1:20 and for waves breaking over a submerged bar. A comparison of measurements using video and LDA techniques is also presented. The measurement of water levels and wave roller structures is accomplished by generating a video time series of the wave at a given horizontal position, from which the water levels and rollers structures are extracted.

Oxynitride glasses in the system VN–PbO–TeO₂ with different compositions were fabricated and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) of these glasses were studied. The glasses were melted, using VN, PbO, and TeO₂ reagent chemicals, in flowing N2 atmosphere at 750°C for 1 h, and the melt was then rapidly press quenched.

X-ray diffraction (XRD) and differential thermal analysis (DTA) indicated amorphous nature of these glasses. The XPS analysis revealed presence of VN, V⁴⁺, V⁵⁺, Pb²⁺, Pb⁴⁺, Te⁴⁺, and Te in the glasses. The presence of VN containing 8–10 atomic percent (at.%) VN confirmed vanadium–lead–tellurous oxynitride glasses. These VN contents corresponded to an equivalent content of 1–2 at.% N in the glasses. Values of Cv = [V⁴⁺]/([V⁴⁺] + [V⁵⁺]) were calculated from areas of separated XPS peaks corresponding to V⁴⁺ and V⁵⁺ for different glass compositions. Some redox reactions assumed in the glass melts explained qualitatively changes in the Cv value.

Science and technology are the keys to modern economic development. But, it has often been argued that poor countries cannot really afford to support research, or that they should at most devote their efforts to applied science only. The scientific knowledge necessary for development would then be partly or wholly obtained from other countries. In this paper, the case will be argued that developing countries cannot afford to leave research, both pure and applied, to the developed countries and that the only way the developing world is going to solve its problems is through development driven by their own research activities. With reference to physics, the importance of research by researchers in poor countries is explained. Lastly, it is outlined how the logistics of doing research under the difficult conditions prevailing in poor countries can be managed.

Physics departments in many universities especially within the Commonwealth, still look to Britain for substantial academic advice and validation. However, the venerable pattern of the "Oxbridge" model has not been an outstanding success in developing countries despite the international nature of physics. The paper urges physics departments to stand on their own feet academically and design their degree programme to make it more relevant to the local needs of the community in the context of a developing country situation.

Physicists working in industry in the western world have contributed enormously to innovation, but this technological wave is yet to pass through the developing world. In this paper, it is argued that for physics to survive and grow in the developing world there has to be greater alignment between physics, industrial and developmental needs.

List of Participants

Lists detailing the members of the International Advisory and Local Organising Committees, Conference Administration, and Overseas and South African Sponsors.