Klapisch completed his secondary studies at
Lycée Lakanal in
Sceaux, before attending
Lycée Louis-le-Grand in
Paris and Collège Lavoisier. He obtained an engineering degree from
ESPCI Paris in 1952, and a doctorate at
Paris-Sud University in 1966. Klapisch began working at the
French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) in 1956, after his graduation from ESPCI. He interrupted his research between 1960 and 1962 to perform his military service in the
Algerian War. Between 1968 and 1969 Klapisch had a sabbatical leave, which he spent at
Princeton University. He also conducted research at the
Curie Institute in Paris, employed alongside Jean Teillac and René Bernas. Klapisch was one of the original members of the
Institut national de physique nucléaire et de physique des particules (IPN), founded in 1956. After Bernas' premature death at age 50, in 1971, Klapisch directed the laboratories at IPN. Klapisch held the position as director of research at the European Council for Nuclear Research (
CERN) from 1981 to 1986. In this role he supervised the research program for the
Super Proton–Antiproton Synchrotron, which resulted in the award of the
Nobel Prize in Physics in 1984 to
Carlo Rubbia and
Simon van der Meer "
for their decisive contributions to the large project, which led to the discovery of the field particles W and Z, communicators of weak interaction." As a strong supporter of the
Low Energy Antiproton Ring, Klapisch went on to be one of the pioneers of the antiproton programme. He also played an instrumental role in the development of the heavy-ion research program at CERN, which opened the possibilities to study
quark–gluon plasma. From 1994 to 2000, Klapisch was involved in a group, led by Rubbia, devoted to an
innovative approach to nuclear energy. In 2002, President
Jacques Chirac and Prime Minister
Roselyne Bachelot assigned
Yves Coppens with creating the French
Charter for the Environment. Klapisch accepted Coppens' invitation to join the scientific committee. Klapisch served on a number of scientific committees in
Europe, the
United States, and
Canada. In 1982,
Jean-Pierre Chevènement asked him to write a report on the future of nuclear science in
France. This report earned him a spot in the
Ordre des Palmes académiques. In 2002, Klapisch organized a series of lectures, called
Partage du Savoir en Méditerranée, carried out under the direction of the Association for the Advancement of Sciences. The conferences were finally held on 1 through 3 March 2010 in
Jordan, 6 May 2011 in
Malta, 17 to 20 May in
Tunis, and 7 through 9 May in
Rabat. From January 2010 until his death, Klapisch was an elected member of the Institute for Advanced Studies on Sustainability based in
Potsdam, of which
Klaus Töpfer is the Director. == Honours, decorations, awards and distinctions ==