Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman FRS BR |
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Born |
Thiruvanaikoil, Tiruchirappalli, Madras Presidency, British India, Presently Tamil Nadu |
7 November 1888
Died | 21 November 1970 Bangalore, Karnataka, India |
(aged 82)
Nationality | Indian |
Fields | Physics |
Institutions |
Indian Finance Department University of Calcutta Banaras Hindu University Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science Indian Institute of Science Raman Research Institute |
Alma mater | Presidency College, University of Madras |
Doctoral students |
G. N. Ramachandran Vikram Ambalal Sarabhai Shivaramakrishnan Pancharatnam |
Other notable students |
Kariamanickam Srinivasa Krishnan K. R. Ramanathan |
Known for | Raman effect |
Notable awards |
Knight Bachelor (1929) Hughes Medal (1930) Nobel Prize in Physics (1930) Bharat Ratna (1954) Lenin Peace Prize (1957) Fellow of the Royal Society |
Spouse | Lokasundari Ammal (1907–1970) |
Signature |
Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman (7 November 1888 – 21 November 1970) was an Indian physicist born in the former Madras Province in India presently called as Tamil Nadu, who carried out ground-breaking work in the field of light scattering, which earned him the 1930 Nobel Prize for Physics. He discovered that when light traverses a transparent material, some of the deflected light changes in wavelength. This phenomenon, subsequently known as Raman scattering, results from the Raman effect. In 1954, India honoured him with its highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna.
Raman's father initially taught in a school in Thiruvanaikaval, became a lecturer in mathematics and physics in Mrs. A.V. Narasimha Rao College, Visakhapatnam (then Vishakapatnam) in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, and later joined Presidency College in Madras (now Chennai).
At an early age, Raman moved to the city of Visakhapatnam and studied at St. Aloysius Anglo-Indian High School. Raman passed his matriculation examination at the age of 11 and he passed his F.A. examination (equivalent to today's Intermediate exam, PUCPDC and +2) with a scholarship at the age of 13.
In 1902, Raman joined Presidency College in Madras where his father was a lecturer in mathematics and physics. In 1904 he passed his Bachelor of Arts examination of University of Madras. He stood first and won the gold medal in physics. In 1907 he gained his Master of Sciences degree with the highest distinctions from University of Madras.
In the year 1917, Raman resigned from his government service after he was appointed the first Palit Professor of Physics at the University of Calcutta. At the same time, he continued doing research at the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS), Calcutta, where he became the Honorary Secretary. Raman used to refer to this period as the golden era of his career. Many students gathered around him at the IACS and the University of Calcutta.