P2IO teams involved in nuclear energy-related research primarily work in the following scientific fields: nuclear physics, radiochemistry, materials science, modeling, numerical simulation, experimental simulation, instrumentation, accelerator and magnet conception and expertise. The primary objective of these teams is the further development of nuclear (I.E. fission but also fusion) energy research thanks to radiation transport software for reactor core physics, radiation protection and shielding, nuclear instrumentation, or the development and the experimental simulation with ion accelerators of the radiation tolerance of materials to be used in fission and fusion reactors.

The foci of these studies is the future of electricity production, recycling and waste management, and the evolution of the energy mix, as part of France's energy transition strategy. The results of this research will benefit the fields of reactor physics, nuclear structures (nuclear data), and material physics research, and also lead to technical developments (such as improvements to neutron sources or instrumentation), and developments in numerical simulations associated with HPC. An important goal for the next phase is to improve the integration of nuclear energy into global energy discussion within Paris-Saclay, and to increase the synergy between research on nuclear energy and the more fundamental themes of P2IO, in particular nuclear physics.