Paris-Sud University (), also known as the University of Paris — XI (or as the Orsay Faculty of Sciences, University of Paris before 1971), was a French research university distributed among several campuses in the southern suburbs of

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, including

Orsay Orsay () is a Communes of France, commune in the Essonne Departments of France, department in Île-de-France in northern France. It is located in the southwestern suburbs of Paris, France, from the Kilometre Zero, centre of Paris. A fortifie ...

Cachan Cachan () is a commune in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. The prestigious École Spéciale des Travaux Publics is located there. Name During the Middle Ages, Cachan was referred to in Medieval ...

Châtenay-Malabry Châtenay-Malabry () is a commune in the southwestern suburbs of Paris. It is located from the center of Paris. The French writer Chateaubriand lived in the estate at Châtenay-Malabry. The Garden City in the Butte Rouge, the , is one of t ...

, Sceaux, and Kremlin-Bicêtre campuses. In 2019, the university was replaced by the

Paris-Saclay University Paris-Saclay University (, ) is a combined technological research institute and public research university in Orsay, France. Paris-Saclay was established in 2019 after the merger of four technical ''grandes écoles,'' as well as several technol ...

History

Paris-Sud, as the

Orsay Faculty of Sciences The Paris-Saclay Faculty of Sciences or Orsay Faculty of Sciences, in French : ''Faculté des sciences d'Orsay'', is the mathematics and physics school within Paris-Saclay University, founded in 1956. It offers undergraduate and graduate degrees ...

, was originally part of the

University of Paris The University of Paris (), known Metonymy, metonymically as the Sorbonne (), was the leading university in Paris, France, from 1150 to 1970, except for 1793–1806 during the French Revolution. Emerging around 1150 as a corporation associated wit ...

, which was subsequently split into several universities. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the rapid growth of nuclear physics and chemistry meant that research needed more and more powerful accelerators, which required large areas. The University of Paris, the and the looked for space in the south of Paris near

. Later some of the teaching activity of the Faculty of Sciences in Paris was transferred to Orsay in 1956 at the request of

Irène Joliot-Curie Irène Joliot-Curie (; ; 12 September 1897 – 17 March 1956) was a French chemist and physicist who received the 1935 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with her husband, Frédéric Joliot-Curie, for their discovery of induced radioactivity. They were ...

and

Frédéric Joliot-Curie Jean Frédéric Joliot-Curie (; ; 19 March 1900 – 14 August 1958) was a French chemist and physicist who received the 1935 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with his wife, Irène Joliot-Curie, for their discovery of induced radioactivity. They were t ...

. The rapid increase of students led to the independence of the Orsay Campus on 1 March 1965 (sometimes called "Faculté des sciences d'Orsay" thereafter). The institution became the "University of Paris-Sud (Paris XI)" in 1971. Paris-Sud hosted a great number of laboratories on its large (236 ha) campus. Many of the top French laboratories were among them especially in

particle physics Particle physics or high-energy physics is the study of Elementary particle, fundamental particles and fundamental interaction, forces that constitute matter and radiation. The field also studies combinations of elementary particles up to the s ...

nuclear physics Nuclear physics is the field of physics that studies atomic nuclei and their constituents and interactions, in addition to the study of other forms of nuclear matter. Nuclear physics should not be confused with atomic physics, which studies th ...

astrophysics Astrophysics is a science that employs the methods and principles of physics and chemistry in the study of astronomical objects and phenomena. As one of the founders of the discipline, James Keeler, said, astrophysics "seeks to ascertain the ...

atomic physics Atomic physics is the field of physics that studies atoms as an isolated system of electrons and an atomic nucleus. Atomic physics typically refers to the study of atomic structure and the interaction between atoms. It is primarily concerned wit ...

and

molecular physics Molecular physics is the study of the physical properties of molecules and molecular dynamics. The field overlaps significantly with physical chemistry, chemical physics, and quantum chemistry. It is often considered as a sub-field of atomic, mo ...

condensed matter physics Condensed matter physics is the field of physics that deals with the macroscopic and microscopic physical properties of matter, especially the solid and liquid State of matter, phases, that arise from electromagnetic forces between atoms and elec ...

theoretical physics Theoretical physics is a branch of physics that employs mathematical models and abstractions of physical objects and systems to rationalize, explain, and predict List of natural phenomena, natural phenomena. This is in contrast to experimental p ...

electronics Electronics is a scientific and engineering discipline that studies and applies the principles of physics to design, create, and operate devices that manipulate electrons and other Electric charge, electrically charged particles. It is a subfield ...

nanoscience Nanotechnology is the manipulation of matter with at least one dimension sized from 1 to 100 nanometers (nm). At this scale, commonly known as the nanoscale, surface area and quantum mechanical effects become important in describing propertie ...

and

nanotechnology Nanotechnology is the manipulation of matter with at least one dimension sized from 1 to 100 nanometers (nm). At this scale, commonly known as the nanoscale, surface area and quantum mechanical effects become important in describing propertie ...

. University of Paris-Sud comprised some 104 research units.

Pierre-Gilles de Gennes Pierre-Gilles de Gennes (; 24 October 1932 – 18 May 2007) was a French physicist and the Nobel Prize laureate in physics in 1991. Education and early life He was born in Paris, France, and was home-schooled to the age of 12. By the age of ...

and

Albert Fert Albert Fert (; born 7 March 1938) is a French physicist and one of the discoverers of giant magnetoresistance which brought about a breakthrough in gigabyte hard disks. Currently, he is an emeritus professor at Paris-Saclay University in Orsay ...

, two

Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; ; ) are awards administered by the Nobel Foundation and granted in accordance with the principle of "for the greatest benefit to humankind". The prizes were first awarded in 1901, marking the fifth anniversary of Alfred N ...

winners of physics, were affiliated to the University of Paris-Sud. A number of the most renowned French mathematicians were affiliated with the University of Paris-Sud as well. Among them are the Fields medalists

Pierre Deligne Pierre René, Viscount Deligne (; born 3 October 1944) is a Belgian mathematician. He is best known for work on the Weil conjectures, leading to a complete proof in 1973. He is the winner of the 2013 Abel Prize, 2008 Wolf Prize, 1988 Crafoor ...

Laurent Lafforgue Laurent Lafforgue (; born 6 November 1966) is a French mathematician. He has made outstanding contributions to Langlands' program in the fields of number theory and Mathematical analysis, analysis, and in particular proved the Langlands conjecture ...

, Jean-Christophe Yoccoz,

Wendelin Werner Wendelin Werner (born 23 September 1968) is a German-born French mathematician working on random processes such as self-avoiding random walks, Brownian motion, Schramm–Loewner evolution, and related theories in probability theory and mathematic ...

and

Ngô Bảo Châu Ngô Bảo Châu (, born June 28, 1972) is a Vietnamese-French mathematician at the University of Chicago, best known for proving the fundamental lemma for automorphic forms (proposed by Robert Langlands and Diana Shelstad). He is the first Vie ...

. Paris-Sud also comprised

biology Biology is the scientific study of life and living organisms. It is a broad natural science that encompasses a wide range of fields and unifying principles that explain the structure, function, growth, History of life, origin, evolution, and ...

and

chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...

laboratories,

engineering Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and the engineering design process to Problem solving#Engineering, solve problems within technology, increase efficiency and productivity, and improve Systems engineering, s ...

and

technology Technology is the application of Conceptual model, conceptual knowledge to achieve practical goals, especially in a reproducible way. The word ''technology'' can also mean the products resulting from such efforts, including both tangible too ...

schools and had established partnerships with many of the surrounding

centres and

Grandes Ecoles Grandes may refer to: *Agustín Muñoz Grandes, Spanish general and politician *Banksia ser. Grandes, a series of plant species native to Australia * Grandes y San Martín, a municipality located in the province of Ávila, Castile and León, Spain ...

. It also included Schools of Law, Economics and Management. In 2019, University Paris–Sud was replaced by the

University of Paris-Saclay Paris-Saclay University (, ) is a combined Research institute, technological research institute and Public university, public research university in Orsay, France. Paris-Saclay was established in 2019 after the merger of four technical ''grandes ...

Notable people

Fields Medal

(Fields Medal, 1978) * Jean-Christophe Yoccoz (Fields Medal, 1994) *

(Fields Medal, 2002) *

(Fields Medal, 2006) *

(Fields Medal, 2010)

Nobel Prize

(Nobel Prize in physics, 1991) *

(Nobel Prize in physics, 2007) *

Alain Aspect Alain Aspect (; born 15 June 1947) is a French physicist noted for his experimental work on quantum entanglement. Aspect was awarded the 2022 Nobel Prize in Physics, jointly with John Clauser and Anton Zeilinger, "for experiments with Quantum e ...

(Nobel Prize in Physics, 2022)

Others

Aristides Baltas Aristides Baltas (; born 9 February 1943) is a philosopher of science and physicist who served as the Minister of Culture and Sports of Greece and as the Minister of Culture, Education and Religious Affairs in the cabinet of Alexis Tsipras from ...

, philosopher of science, physicist, and former Minister of Culture and Sports of Greece, as well as Minister of Education and Religious Affairs * Katarina Barley, German politician and lawyer, current Federal Minister of Justice and Consumer Protection in the fourth Cabinet of

Angela Merkel Angela Dorothea Merkel (; ; born 17 July 1954) is a German retired politician who served as Chancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021. She is the only woman to have held the office. She was Leader of the Opposition from 2002 to 2005 and Leade ...

* Agnès Barthélémy, physicist, expert on nanostructures *

Étienne-Émile Baulieu Étienne-Émile Baulieu (; 12 December 1926 – 30 May 2025) was a French biochemist and endocrinologist who was best known for his research in the field of steroid hormones and their role in reproduction and aging. He has been nicknamed the “ ...

, chemist * Louis-Marie de Blignières, Traditionalist Catholic priest * Charles Édouard Bouée, CEO of Roland Berger Consulting * Olivier Bohuon, Chief Executive of Smith & Nephew plc * Marielle Chartier, physicist * Jean-Louis Colliot-Thélène, French

mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, mathematical structure, structure, space, Mathematica ...

* Monique Combescure, French mathematical physicist * Michel Davier, physicist *

Adrien Douady Adrien Douady (; 25 September 1935 – 2 November 2006) was a French mathematician born in La Tronche, Isère. He was the son of Daniel Douady and Guilhen Douady. Douady was a student of Henri Cartan at the École normale supérieure, and initi ...

, mathematician * Cornelia Druțu, Romanian mathematician, professor of mathematics at the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

* Anne Dambricourt-Malassé, paleoanthropologist *

Jean-Marc Fontaine Jean-Marc Fontaine (13 March 1944 – 29 January 2019) was a French mathematician. He was one of the founders of p-adic Hodge theory. He was a professor at Paris-Sud 11 University from 1988 to his death. Life In 1962 Fontaine entered the Éco ...

, mathematician *

Erol Gelenbe Sami Erol Gelenbe (born 22 August 1945, Istanbul) is a Turkish and French computer scientist, electronic engineer and applied mathematician, renowned for pioneering work in computer system and network performance. His academic career spans sever ...

, Professor Univ. Paris-Sud (1979-1986), Computer Scientist, Fellow of the

French Academy of Technologies The National Academy of Technologies of France (''Académie des technologies'') is a learned society, founded in 2000, with an emphasis on technology, and the newest of French academies. In 2007 it acquired the status of ''établissement public'', ...

, the

Royal Academy of Science, Letters and Fine Arts of Belgium The Royal Academy of Science, Letters and Fine Arts of Belgium ( , sometimes referred to as ' ) is the independent learned society of science and arts of the French Community of Belgium. One of Belgium's numerous academies, it is the French-speak ...

The Science Academy Society of Turkey The Science Academy Society () is an independent, private, self-governing association founded on November 25, 2011 in Istanbul, Turkey. The Association, henceforth known as the Science Academy Society, serves as an independent institution dedicated ...

and other academies,

Mustafa Prize The Mustafa Prize is a science and technology award, granted to top researchers and scientists from the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) member states. The prize is granted to scholars of the Islamic world as one of the symbols of scienti ...

2017. * Jean Ginibre, mathematician * Kawtar Hafidi, physicist * Henri B. Kagan, chemist, winner of the

Wolf Prize in Chemistry The Wolf Prize in Chemistry is awarded annually by the Wolf Foundation in Israel. It is one of the six Wolf Prizes established by the Foundation and awarded since 1978; the others are in Agriculture, Mathematics, Medicine, Physics and Arts. The Wo ...

(2001) * André Lagarrigue, physicist * Serge Latouche, economist *

Jean-Yves Le Gall Jean-Yves Le Gall (born 30 April 1959) is an engineering graduate from the École supérieure d'optique (1981) and holds a doctorate in engineering from the University of Paris-Sud (1983). He began his career in 1981 as a researcher at the Astron ...

, President of National Centre for Space Studies (CNES) * Carlos Moreno, urbanist, academic and author * André Neveu, physicist * Véronique Newland, CEO, New Vision Technologies * François Olivennes, physician and fertility specialist * Siamak Mohammadi, professor of electrical and computer engineering at the University of Tehran * Bernadette Perrin-Riou, mathematician and recipient of the

Satter Prize The Ruth Lyttle Satter Prize in Mathematics, also called the Satter Prize, is one of twenty-one prizes given out by the American Mathematical Society (AMS). It is presented biennially in recognition of an outstanding contribution to mathematic ...

Bertrand Serlet Bertrand Serlet (; born 1960) is a French software engineer and businessman; he worked first at the ''Institut national de recherche en informatique et en automatique'' (INRIA) before leaving France for the United States in 1985. He was the Seni ...

, former Senior Vice President of

Software Engineering Software engineering is a branch of both computer science and engineering focused on designing, developing, testing, and maintaining Application software, software applications. It involves applying engineering design process, engineering principl ...

Apple Inc. Apple Inc. is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, in Silicon Valley. It is best known for its consumer electronics, software, and services. Founded in 1976 as Apple Comput ...

* François Baccelli, mathematician and engineer

Rankings

* Paris-Sud was ranked 1st in France, 9th in Europe and 37th worldwide by the 2019

Academic Ranking of World Universities The ''Academic Ranking of World Universities'' (''ARWU''), also known as the Shanghai Ranking, is one of the annual publications of world university rankings. The league table was originally compiled and issued by Shanghai Jiao Tong Universi ...

(ARWU). (5th in Mathematics, 9th in Physics worldwide). * In October 2015, The University of Paris Sud has been ranked 10th best university worldwide in the

Times Higher Education ''Times Higher Education'' (''THE''), formerly ''The Times Higher Education Supplement'' (''The THES''), is a British magazine reporting specifically on news and issues related to higher education. Ownership TPG Capital acquired TSL Education ...

Under 50 which is a ranking of the world top 100 universities under 50 years old. * QS Ranking has ranked the University 262nd in the world, 97th in Natural Science, 101-150th in Medicine and 285th in Engineering and Technology.

Points of interest

* Parc botanique de Launay

References

External links

Paris-Sud University official website
(in English)
Paris-Sud University official website
(in French) {{DEFAULTSORT:Paris 11, University of Paris-Sud Defunct universities in Paris Buildings and structures in Essonne Universities and colleges established in 1971