Raman Research Institute (RRI) is an institute of scientific research located in

Bangalore, India. It was founded by Nobel laureate C. V. Raman. Although it

began as an institute privately owned by Sir C. V. Raman, it is now funded by the
government of India.

Contents [hide]
1 Research
2 History
3 Achievements
3.1 Collections
3.2 Liquid crystals
3.3 Astronomy and astrophysics
3.4 Theoretical physics
4 External links
Research[edit]
The main areas of research are:

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Theoretical Physics
Light and Matter Physics
Soft Condensed matter physics
History[edit]
Much before Raman thought about founding a research institute of his own, he
had approached the then Maharaja of Mysore seeking land to build office and
conference premises for the Indian Academy of Sciences (IAS), which was again a
brainchild of Raman's. The Maharaja readily acceded to Raman's request and a
10-acre (40,000 m2) plot of land in the posh Malleshwaram suburb of Bangalore
was allotted to the Indian Academy of Sciences in 1934. However, the Academy
(headed by Raman) made no use of the land for seven years. According to the
terms of the allotment, the land could be resumed by the government of Mysore
at the end of 1941, if it remained unused. Therefore, in 1941, Raman as
President of the IAS held an extraordinary meeting of the academy and proposed
that a research institute (to be named after himself) be build on the land. This
proposal was sanctioned and a stone was laid on the ground, signifying that the
land was now in use. However, it was not until 1948 that the institute could be
inaugurated. Raman had planned the institute much before he retired as the
head of the Physics Department of the Indian Institute of Science. His idea had
been to walk straight into his newly founded institute when he retired from IISc.
This happened in 1948.

Thus, the Raman Research Institute began under the umbrella of the Indian
Academy of Sciences. During Raman's own time, the presidency of the Indian
Academy of Sciences and the directorship of the Raman Research Institute (RRI)
were both vested in him and he was the undisputed supreme authority at both
places. This highly personal style suited the temperament of the founder.

Another major facet of Raman's temperament was his hatred for writing project
reports, or for that matter giving periodic status reports to those who fund
projects. For this reason, Raman refused to accept any funds from the Indian
government and other sources. "He was of the firm belief that science could not
be done that way." says Prof. N. V Madhusudana, Dean of Research at RRI and a
leading liquid crystal scientist. As a Nobel laurate, Raman enjoyed a monumental
standing in Indian public life and was able to raise funds for the institute through
private donations and fund-raisers which did not involve any governmental
authority. "Till Raman's death, this was his private research institute. He had a
very small group of research students working with him and a very few
administrative staff" says Prof. Madhusudana.

Raman was clear that after his death, when the Presidency of the IAS and
Director of the RRI could devolve upon different individuals, his beloved RRI
should not remain subordinate to the IAS but should enjoy autonomy and have a
distinct statutory identity of its own. Just before his death, therefore, Raman
chartered out a framework for running the institute, separating it completely
from the Indian Academy of Sciences and giving it statutory autonomy. The
Institute adopted the change immediately after Raman's death in 1971, with the
consent of the government, and stepped into a new era as a statutory body,
functioning since 1972 on annual grants received from the Department of
Science and Technology (DST), Government of India.