Biographical sketch
Professional:
I graduated with a B.Tech. degree in Chemical Engineering securing University Rank 1 from Sri Venkateswara University in Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh. Further, I completed M.Tech. degree in Materials Science and Engineering (Polymers) from IIT Kharagpur. After M.Tech. I had a brief tenure at CEAT Ltd. in Bhandup, Mumbai prior to moving to USA for doctoral studies. I got enrolled at Cornell University for a Ph.D. program initially but later transferred to Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas from where I received my Ph.D. degree in Materials Science and Engineering. My Ph.D. research was primarily focused on controlling the dispersion state of nanoparticles using stimuli-responsive polymers. After Ph.D., I worked for Intel Corporation in U.S.A as a Technology Development Process Engineer for about three and half years and decided to relocate to India due to personal reasons. At Intel, my work spanned in the areas of reactive ion etching and materials development for high density interconnect applications. After moving back to India, I took up a temporary assignment with IIT Madras in terms of Institute Post- Doctoral Fellowship and later joined as a faculty member (Associate Professor Grade) in the department of Chemical Engineering in the Vignan’s University in Guntur, Andhra Pradesh. At Vignan, I served as both Head, Chemical Engineering and Dean, Academics during 2016-2018. Since March 2018, I am working as a faculty member in the department of Chemical Engineering at BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus. My research group at BITS Pilani is working on developing advanced materials and characterization methodology for tackling current engineering challenges. I am passionate about materials research and I strongly believe that innovations at this end will make this world a great place to live.
Personal:
I grew up in the northern parts of India and spent most of my childhood inside army cantonments. I did my basic schooling in several different schools spread across India, thanks to the transferable nature of my father's job. This gave me an opportunity to learn about different cultures within India. During the nine plus years that I lived in the U.S., I learnt about the cultural diversity prevailing around the world. My wife, Kiranmayee is a medical doctor and holds a M.B.B.S and M.D. (Pathology) degrees from Osmania Medical College, Hyderabad. After working as a Consultant Pathologist for more than decade with leading hospitals, Kiran decided to undertake an entrepreneurial path and currently runs her own advanced medical diagnostic lab (i.e., Hi-Care Diagnostics) in Pilani. Kiran and I are blessed with a sweet angel (Smiti) who is attending Birla School Pilani. Recently, we have adopted a pet and named him Dobby (Doberman Breed). In our leisure time, we like to watch movies, shop, dine out or talk about various aspects of medicine and science.