Chandre Dharma-wardana is a Sri Lankan-born academic and scientist. A former president of Vidyodaya Campus (now the University of Sri Jayewardenepura), he is currently a professor of theoretical physics at the Université de Montréal. He has retired and continues as a principal research scientist at the National Research Council of Canada.

Education

Educated at Aluthgama Vidyalaya,

Ananda College ''Appamādo Amathapadan'' (Buddhist quote from the Apramada Vagga in the Dhammapada) , motto_translation = Heedfulness, Punctuality leads to Nirvana , location = P De S Kularatne Mawatha , city = Colom ...

and at

Royal College, Colombo Royal College, Colombo is a selective entry boys' school located in Cinnamon Gardens, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Started as a private school by Rev Joseph Marsh in 1835, it was established as the Colombo Academy by Sir Robert Wilmot-Horton in Janua ...

Dharma-wardana earned a BSc (Hon.) from the University of Ceylon in 1961, and a doctorate from the University of Cambridge, ( Corpus Christi College) for a thesis on quantum calculations on atoms and molecules, and the Heisenberg model of magnetism.Whose Who, Canada (University of Toronto Publication, updated annually)

Academic career

Dharma-wardana joined Vidyodaya University in 1969 as a senior lecturer, and was later appointed as professor of

chemistry Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions ...

.Nuclear Plants in Sri Lanka and the Indian subcontinent
/ref> He was appointed as president of the Vidyodaya Campus by Badi-ud-din Mahmud in 1974. During his tenure as the academic head of the institution Dharma-wardana attempted to move the academic programs to a course unit system, introduce mandatory basic standards in English competency, developed curricula for teaching science in Sinhala to students who had little or no English, and streamline academic departments. Opposition to the latter by older academics, and the opposition of the student unions (led by student leaders S. B. Dissanayake and Mahinda Wijesekera) to mandatory English learning were factors that led to his resignation in 1975. He returned to the University of Paris, Orsay in 1975 and to Canada in 1978. During his period as a member of the Vidyodya science faculty (1969-1975) he also held associate appointments with the

Université de Paris , image_name = Coat of arms of the University of Paris.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of Arms , latin_name = Universitas magistrorum et scholarium Parisiensis , motto = ''Hic et ubique terrarum'' (Latin) , mottoeng = Here and a ...

, Orsay via the CECAM institute, associated with the

French Atomic Energy Commission The French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission or CEA ( French: Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives), is a French public government-funded research organisation in the areas of energy, defense and securit ...

, and the

CNRS The French National Centre for Scientific Research (french: link=no, Centre national de la recherche scientifique, CNRS) is the French state research organisation and is the largest fundamental science agency in Europe. In 2016, it employed 31,637 ...

. Currently, he is affiliated with the National Research Council of Canada ( NRCC) and the Université de Montréal, and works on various topics in the quantum theory,

nanotechnology Nanotechnology, also shortened to nanotech, is the use of matter on an atomic, molecular, and supramolecular scale for industrial purposes. The earliest, widespread description of nanotechnology referred to the particular technological goal o ...

warm dense matter Warm dense matter, abbreviated WDM, can refer to either equilibrium or non-equilibrium states of matter in a (loosely defined) regime of temperature and density between condensed matter and hot plasma. It can be defined as the state that is too ...

and laser fusion.

Fields of research

Dharma-wardana has worked on a wide variety of scientific topics, where the unifying theme is the application of the quantum theory, usually to many-body problems. His work focused on

quantum field theory In theoretical physics, quantum field theory (QFT) is a theoretical framework that combines classical field theory, special relativity, and quantum mechanics. QFT is used in particle physics to construct physical models of subatomic particles and ...

statistical mechanics In physics, statistical mechanics is a mathematical framework that applies statistical methods and probability theory to large assemblies of microscopic entities. It does not assume or postulate any natural laws, but explains the macroscopic be ...

, and

solid state physics Solid-state physics is the study of rigid matter, or solids, through methods such as quantum mechanics, crystallography, electromagnetism, and metallurgy. It is the largest branch of condensed matter physics. Solid-state physics studies how the l ...

associated with

Raman Raman may refer to: People * Raman (name) *C. V. Raman (1888–1970), Indian Nobel Prize-winning physicist Places * Raman, Punjab (India) * Raman, Rawalpindi, Pakistan * Raman District, Yala Province, Thailand ** Raman Railway Station * Ra ...

scattering, energy-relaxation and phonons in nanostructures, quantum Hall effect, the physics of nanotubes and graphene. He worked on a variety of topics such as surface passivisation, quantum dots, organic light-emitting diodes and related nanostructures, energy-relaxation etc., in collaboration with researchers at the NRC, Universities or research institutions in Montreal, Toronto, British Columbia, Livermore, Los Alamos and Paris. A main area of Prof. Dharma-wardana's research has been in many-body theory and plasma physics, often in collaboration with François Perrot of the French Atomic Energy commission. The neutral-pseudo atom model (NPA) for

is one of their main contributions of great practical value where finite-temperature density functional theory has been used to formulate a rigorous quantum mechanical approach to hot ionized matter. Subsequently, the construction of the classical-map scheme for quantum systemsClassical maps: Physical Review Letters, vol 84, p. 959 (2000) is a ground-breaking work, leading to the formulation of the classical-map hyper-netted chain method ( CHNC). This method has led to a new approach for the evaluation of properties of

Fermi liquid Fermi liquid theory (also known as Landau's Fermi-liquid theory) is a theoretical model of interacting fermions that describes the normal state of most metals at sufficiently low temperatures. The interactions among the particles of the many-bod ...

s and warm-dense matter. His previous work on the density-functional theory of dense plasmasDensity Functional Theory, Ed. E. K. U. Gross and R. M. Dreizler, Plenum, New York, 1995, p635 is now well-established in the NPA model. It has led to the development of methods for the first-principles evaluation of the equation of state, and the transport properties of dense plasmas. His contributions to the energy-relaxation of hot electrons in semiconductors and also in plasmas, ''Density functional and non-equilibrium methods for unusual states of matter produced using short-pulse lasers'', in Laser Interactions with Atoms, Solids, and Plasmas (NATO ASI, series B vol. 327), p 331 Edited by R.M.More (Plenum, N.Y) 1994. have presented a new direction in the theory of non-equilibrium states of two-temperature charged fluids. His paper elucidating the unusual thermal conductivity of clathrates still attracts many citations. His contributions to surface science (e.g. reconstruction of the sulphur-passivated InP surface), nanotechnology, phonons in semiconductor structures, quasi-periodic systems etc., are well known and are contained in over 200 research publications. Dharma-wardana currently serves as a principal research scientist at the National Research Council of Canada, and is a professor of theoretical physics at the Université de Montréal. His most recent book on physics is entitled ''A Physicist's View of Matter and Mind'', published in 2013 by World Scientific. See also ''Whose Who, Canada''.

Contributions to development studies and Sri Lankan studies

Dharma-wardana has also contributed to development studies in Sri Lanka, and founded the 'Bachelor of Development Studies (''B. Dev.'') degree during his tenure as the President of

Vidyodaya University Vidyodaya School is a private college-preparatory combined-grades school located in Thevakkal, Kochi, India. It provides comprehensive school education from lower primary to grade 12. About Established in 1990-91 the school conducts classes fr ...

. He was invited to talk about a web site of place names maintained by him, at a conference organised by the

Royal Asiatic Society of Sri Lanka The Royal Asiatic Society of Sri Lanka (RASSL) is based in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It is one of the oldest learned societies in Sri Lanka with a history of over 160 years. It was established on 7 February 1845, paralleling the Royal Asiatic Societ ...

.Royal Asiatic Society(RAS) lecture on place-names in the North and East of Sri Lanka, Nov 2010
/ref> He also maintains a website dealing with the

ethno-botany Ethnobotany is the study of a region's plants and their practical uses through the traditional knowledge of a local culture and people. An ethnobotanist thus strives to document the local customs involving the practical uses of local flora for m ...

of plants in Sri Lanka, where the Sinhala, Sanskrit and Tamil names of the systematic botanical (i.e., Latin) names are followed up with details of ethnographic interest. Prof. Dharmawardana heads a project (''WC4SL'') for delivering free wheel chairs to rural hospitals and disabled people of Sri Lanka; it has operated since the end of the Eelam wars in 2009. At Vidyodaya University, Dharma-wardana held the title of a professor of chemistry, and was instrumental in establishing studies in polymer science in association with the Rubber Research Institute of Sri Lanka. He also initiated academic programs and course units in food technology and environmental science. These were pioneering areas of study for a Sri Lankan university. Today, food science has grown into a full department and plays a vital national role. He has continued his interest in various aspects of environmental science. Professor Dharma-wardana has recently engaged himself in trying to unravel the origins of the mysterious kidney disease that has appeared (since 1992) in the North Central Province (NCP) of Sri Lanka, and now rising to near epidemic proportions, killing thousands of people. The disease has similarities to Danubian endemic familial nephropathy or DEFN. The cause of the disease is unknown and hence it is called ''

chronic kidney disease Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a type of kidney disease in which a gradual loss of kidney function occurs over a period of months to years. Initially generally no symptoms are seen, but later symptoms may include leg swelling, feeling tired, vo ...

of unknown aetiology'' (CKDu) by medical scientists. A paper authored by him and three other well-known Sri Lankan scientists appeared in the journal ''Environmental Health and Geochemistry'' setting the trend for a new paradigm regarding CKDu and multiple interactions among ions and their effect on toxicity. He has been a frequent writer on

sustainable food A sustainable food system is a type of food system that provides healthy food to people and creates sustainable environmental, economic and social systems that surround food. Sustainable food systems start with the development of sustainable agr ...

production, energy sources, environmental matters, publishing in Sri Lankan newspapers and peer-reviewed journals.Environmental Geochemistry and Health, Fertilizer usage and cadmium in soils, crops and food
/ref>

Contributions to industry

Dharma-wardana was a director of the LankaSam Leather Products corporation from 1970 to 1974, which took over the "DI" brand of shoes, and ran a tannery, and has been a technical advisor to the Sri Lankan Ministry of Industries under

Tikiri Banda Subasinghe Subasinghe Mudiyanselage Tikiri Banda Subasinghe (14 August 1913 – 10 August 1995) was a Sri Lankan statesman. He was the 7th Speaker of the Parliament of Sri Lanka and Sri Lankan Ambassador to the Soviet Union He also served as Parliamentary S ...

References

External links

Descriptive page at the National Research Council of Canada

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dharma-Wardana, Chandre Sri Lankan academics Sinhalese people Sri Lankan physicists Canadian chemists Canadian people of Sri Lankan descent Canadian physicists Alumni of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge Alumni of Ananda College Alumni of Royal College, Colombo Living people Alumni of the University of Ceylon (Colombo) Academic staff of the University of Sri Jayewardenepura Year of birth missing (living people)