On the verge of Millennium Nuclear Physics entered a new regime of investigations. Experimental studies of the high energy central heavy ion collisions at CERN indicated closing to the regime of deconfinement and chiral symmetry restoration in nuclear matter.
     Creation and characterization in the laboratory conditions such a new phase of nuclear matter, the Quark-Gluon Plasma (QGP), which according to the modern scenario of the Universe evolution existed in the first few microseconds following the Big Bang, are listed in the Long-Range Plan for Nuclear Physics as the highest priority studies (PHENIX, STAR, PHOBOS, BRAHMS) at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) in BNL(USA), at the Ultrarelativistic Heavy Ion facility (ALICE) of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) in CERN and at the future High Energy Ion Facility (FAIR Project, experiment CBM) in GSI (Germany).
     The Relativistic Nuclear Physics Laboratory (RNPL) of the PNPI High Energy Physics Division actively participates in the ambitious projects:   PHENIX, ALICE, CBM.
For more details see the section "Current projects".