The death of Dr. Jozef Kusz

It is with deep sadness that we inform you that Dr. Józef Kusz, professor at the University of Opole, a long-time employee of the UO Institute of Physics, passed away on 02.02.2025.

Jozef Kusz was born in 1938 in Płużnica Wielka, to a peasant family. He initially attended elementary school in his hometown, after which he moved to Toszek. He graduated from elementary school in 1951, and then continued his education at the High School in Strzelce Opolskie. He graduated from this school in 1955 with a diploma of science foreman. He began studying geophysics at the AGH University of Science and Technology in Cracow. However, due to social problems, after the first year he transferred to the Higher School of Pedagogy in Opole, where he received a place in the Mrowisko dormitory and all social benefits. He completed his studies in 1959.year. In the same year, he left with his wife, Jadwiga Tarchała, a classmate, for Jelenia Gora, where he became a teacher of physics at the local Mechanical Technical School. There he organized a physics laboratory from scratch and achieved teaching successes.

In 1961, at the encouragement of Professor Rościsław Oniszczyk, he returned to the WSP in Opole, taking up an assistantship. He received his doctoral degree in 1969. He wrote a habilitation thesis, which he defended in 1992 at the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun, and received his doctoral degree. Shortly thereafter, he was given the position of associate professor at the University of Opole.

He specialized in experimental physics, particularly in the study of low-temperature stain. He led a research group on electrical discharges at the surface of ferroelectric materials. He participated in a Polish-American research project, in which he conducted research for six months at the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Gaithersburg, Maryland. At the University of Opole, he held many organizational positions, including director of the Institute of Physics and, in 1999-2002, dean of the UO Faculty of Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry. For many years he co-organized Inter-school Physics Tournaments, creating interesting tasks for high school students. He always provided advice and was a long-time member of the Jury of the Tournaments.

Thank you for all the discussions, valuable comments and ideas.

Colleagues from the UO Institute of Physics