Professor Ramamoorthy Ramesh ForMemRS

Ramesh is the Purnendu Chatterjee Chair Professor in the Departments of Physics and Materials Science and Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. He pursues key materials physics and technological problems in complex multifunctional oxides. Using conducting oxides, he solved the 30-year enigma of polarization fatigue in ferroelectrics. He pioneered research into manganites coining the term, Colossal Magnetoresistive (CMR) Oxides. His work on multiferroics demonstrated electric field control of ferromagnetism, a critical step towards ultralow power memory and logic elements.

His extensive publications on the synthesis and materials physics of complex oxides are highly cited (over 65,000 citations, H-factor =110). He is a fellow of APS, AAAS & MRS and an elected member of the U.S. National Academy of Engineering. His awards include the Humboldt Senior Scientist Prize, the APS Adler Lectureship and McGroddy New Materials Prize, the TMS Bardeen Prize and the IUPAP Magnetism Prize and Neel Medal. He was recognized as a Thomson-Reuters Citation Laureate in Physics for his work on multiferroics.

He served as the Founding Director of the successful Department of Energy SunShot Initiative, envisioning and coordinating the R and D funding of the U.S. Solar Program, spearheading the reduction in the cost of Solar Energy. He also served as the Deputy Director of Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Associate Lab Director at LBNL.

Professional position

  • Purnendu Chatterjee Chair, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley
  • Faculty Senior Scientist, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Subject groups

  • Astronomy and Physics

    Magnetism, Condensed matter incl softmatter, liquids, nano-materials, Crystallography

  • Chemistry

    Chemistry, materials

  • Engineering and Materials Science

    Materials science (incl materials engineering)

  • Other

    Public engagement, Science policy

  • Computer Sciences

    Artificial intelligence, machine learning, vision

Professor Ramamoorthy Ramesh ForMemRS
Elected 2020
Committees Participated Role
Faraday Discovery Fellowships Committee A July 2024 - December 2027 Member
International Committee February 2024 - November 2026 Member
Sectional Committee 4: Engineering and Materials Science November 2020 - October 2023 Member