Hometown: Galle, Southern Province, Sri Lanka
Undergraduate Study: B.Sc in Electrical Engineering, University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka (2010)
Graduate Study: MS Lighting, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (2015)
Department:  Lighting Research Center, School of Architecture
Faculty Advisor: Nadarajah Narendran

Describe your graduate research and its purpose/applications.

I am studying real-time performance monitoring and prognostics for LED lighting systems. The main idea of this study is to develop a system that monitors performance parameters such as instantaneous power demand, LED junction temperature, forward voltage and current through the LEDs and also assesses the time to failure of the system in real-time and informs users via a remote dashboard.

What are your hobbies and interests?

Playing cricket, designing novel electrical toys with Arduino and Raspberry Pi.

What made you decide to attend Rensselaer?

After receiving my Bachelor’s degree, I worked for the Regional Center for Lighting in Sri Lanka, which was established through an initiative with Rensselaer’s Lighting Research Center (LRC). During that period, I came to the U.S. for a short-term training program at the LRC. There, I got to know several faculty members and researchers, including, Prof. Narendran, who is my current faculty advisor, and about the prestigious university, Rensselaer, and the world renowned LRC. This inspired me to apply for graduate studies in Lighting at Rensselaer.

What are some benefits of being part of the Graduate Community at Rensselaer?

The faculty members and fellow students are very helpful. The graduate community of RPI is very diverse, which has helped me to build a good professional network that will come in very handy in the future.

What would you tell a prospective student about choosing Rensselaer?

If you are looking for an excellent school where you can balance academics, extracurricular activities, and social events, Rensselaer should be your first choice.

What are your plans following graduation?

I would like to apply my knowledge in lighting for the betterment of society while gaining more industry exposure. I am looking forward to working with lighting professionals and other relevant professionals to understand their views of lighting. I am planning to develop a better solution for prognostics of LED lighting systems for use in intelligent buildings.