Research Chairs

Canada Excellence Research Chair Laureates

The Canada Excellence Research Chairs (CERC) Program recruits world-leading scientists to establish Canadian universities as centres of excellence and secure Canada’s reputation as a global leader in research and innovation.

The Faculty of Science is proud to host two of Canada's initial chairholders.

CERC Chairholder Professor David Cory
David Cory
Canada Excellence Research Chair Laureate in Quantum Information Processing

A physical chemist by training, David Cory is developing the tools needed to navigate, control and exploit the quantum world. These tools will form the building blocks of a quantum computer that will outperform today’s supercomputers in speed and computing capacity.

CERC Chairholder Professor Philippe Van Cappellen
Philippe Van Cappellen
Canada Excellence Research Chair Laureate in Ecohydrology

By combining fieldwork, laboratory experiments and theoretical modeling, Philippe Van Cappellen’s research examines the effect of natural and human activity on water quality and ecosystems at local, regional and global levels.


Canada Research Chairs

The Canada Research Chairs (CRC) Program stands at the centre of a national strategy to make Canada one of the world's top countries in research and development.

Nandita Basu
Nandita Basu
Canada Research Chair in Global Water Sustainability and Ecohydrology

As Canada Research Chair in Global Water Sustainability and Ecohydrology, Nandita Basu aims to improve water resource management practices in Canada and globally. Her research team are investigating why water quality degrades and developing the first scalable water-quality models that consider both current land use and accumulated nutrient legacies.

Brian Dixon.
Brian Dixon
Canada Research Chair in Fish Environmental Immunology

Brian Dixon examines the effect of climate change on fish immune systems and health. Higher water temperatures have been linked to increased disease from pathogens and parasites. His research will inform policy, preserve fisheries and protect threatened fish species.

Michel Gringas
Michel Gingras
Canada Research Chair in Condensed Matter Theory and Statistical Mechanics

Impurities and vacancies, no matter how small, can drastically affect a material's magnetic and superconducting properties. Michel Gingras investigates the effects of this random disorder at low temperatures, expanding our fundamental knowledge of condensed matter physics.

Prof. Laura Hug
Laura Hug
Canada Research Chair in Environmental Microbiology

Laura Hug seeks to define microbial diversity and function at contaminated sites using culture-based and culture-independent methods, generating a blueprint of which species are there and which pathways are active.

Brian Kendall
Brian Kendall
Canada Research Chair in Redox-Sensitive Metal Isotope Geochemistry

Recent advances in geochemical methods have provided exciting new insights into how the Earth has evolved over nearly 4.6 billion years to become a habitable planet with plentiful natural resources.

Using these new geochemical methods, Brian Kendall is trying to increase our understanding of how the Earth became capable of hosting complex life. His research will also help find and manage the natural resources that are critical to sustaining civilization.

Linda Nazar
Linda Nazar
Canada Research Chair in Solid State Energy Materials

Solid state electrochemist Linda Nazar has improved lithium-ion battery electrode materials and discovered new classes of materials suited for fuel cells and solar cell energy conversion devices. Her discoveries are set to transform our energy economy.

Janusz Pawliszyn.
Janusz Pawliszyn
Canada Research Chair in New Analytical Methods and Technologies

Recognized as one of the greatest analytical inventions of the last decade, Janusz Pawliszyn's Solid Phase Microextraction technique is revolutionizing the health, food and environment sectors by making on-site analyses faster, less invasive, and more accurate.

Pierre-Nicholas Roy
Pierre-Nicholas Roy
Canada Research Chair in Quantum Molecular Dynamics

Pierre-Nicholas Roy is developing new methods, theories and software to solve the quantum mechanical equations governing the movement of confined molecules, leading to new materials with very interesting quantum properties.

Derek Schipper.
Derek Schipper
Canada Research Chair in Organic Material Synthesis

Organic-based materials will enable the advancement of flexible, lightweight, low-cost electronic devices. Derek Schipper is exploring novel ways to synthesize this class of materials to unlock new properties and investigate their exciting applications.

Crystal Senko

Crystal Senko
Canada Research Chair in Trapped Ion Quantum Computing

Quantum computers have the potential to revolutionize computation by taking just seconds to solve problems that normal computers currently cannot solve. One of the many challenges involved in building a quantum computer is finding a way to overcome the fragility of quantum information. Crystal Senko aims to overcome this important challenge.

Mark Servos

Mark Servos
Canada Research Chair in Water Quality Protection

Using innovative approaches to model and predict the effects of emerging contaminants on aquatic ecosystems, Mark Servos aims to enhance the scientific basis for risk assessment and the management of emerging contaminants in the context of multiple stressors in watersheds. .


University Research Chairs

University of Waterloo recognizes exceptional achievement and pre-eminence in a variety of fields through its University Research Chairs Program.

David Blowes (Earth and Environmental Sciences)
Andrew Doxey (Biology)
Zoya Leonenko (Physics Astronomy)
Juewen Liu (Chemistry)
Colleen Maxwell (Pharmacy)

Christine Muschik (Physics Astronomy)
Josh Neufeld (Biology)
Carol Ptacek (Earth and Environmental Sciences)
Ben Thompson (Optometry Vision Science)
Chris Yakymchuk (Earth and Environmental Sciences)


NSERC Industrial Research Chairs

The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) Industrial Research Chairs (IRC) Grants are designed to develop research programs within high-demand industries and provide enhanced training for researchers through interactions with industry.

Janusz PawliszynNSERC Industrial Research Chair in New Analytical Methods and Technologies

A Senior Chairholder since 1995, Janusz Pawliszyn is partnering with industry to further refine applications of his Solid Phase Microextraction (SPME) technique. Industry partners include Supelco (Sigma-Aldrich), Gerstel, Unilever, TeknoScan, P&P Optica, PAS Technology, Biofont, and Convergent Bioscience.


University Professor

Since 2003, the University of Waterloo has been recognizing its most internationally preeminent faculty through the title "University Professor". Once appointed, faculty retain this rare and prestigious designation until retirement. This title is administered by the Office of the Provost and presented annually at Spring Convocation. Current University Professors from the Faculty of Science include: