Curriculum vitae

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• Doctor of Philosophy in Chemical Engineering, IIT Jodhpur (2020 - 2026)
• Master of Science in Polymer Science and Sustainable Materials, Albert-Ludwigs Universität, Freiburg, DE (2016 - 2019)
• Bachelor of Technology in Chemical Engineering, MIT Manipal (2012 - 2016)

• Epoxy adhesives for semiconductor packaging.
• Structure-property relations in polymers.
• Polymer science and characterisation.

• Differential scanning calorimetry.
• Thermogravimetric analysis.
• FTIR Spectroscopy.
• Rheology (basic)
• Dynamic light scattering
• Scanning electron microscopy

• Helped set up the Polymers for Advanced and Sustainable Manufacturing Lab headed by Dr. Deepak Arora. Aided the procurement of various materials and equipment.
• Fundamental research as well as product development by exploring structure-property relations in epoxy resins relevant to semiconductor packaging.
• Proficiency in characterisation techniques such as differential scanning calorimetry, thermogravimetric analysis, IR spectroscopy and basic rheology.
• Mentored 5 undergraduate and graduate students from the department of chemical engineering and 1 undergraduate student from the department of electrical engineering on their research and projects.
• Teaching assistant for the following graduate level courses: Packaging of Electronic Devices and Structure-Property of Polymers.
• Teaching assistant for the following undergraduate level courses: Polymers and Chemical Reaction Engineering (Lab).

Fundamental research and product development by exploring structure-process-property relations in epoxy resin blends and studying nanofillers for epoxy composites in semiconductor packaging. Key studies and results include: 

1. Controlling the glass transition temperature of a resin blend by manipulating the heating rate during curing. Glass transition was shown to be controlled by competitive dynamics between cure duration, cure temperature and network heterogeneity. Glass transition temperature (Tg) increased with degree of cure and could be modulated within a large window by only changing the heating rate during curing. 
2. Cure kinetics showed that crosslinking reactions could be uncatalysed or autocatalysed, but autocatalysis dominated the cure reaction. The physical state of the hardener also controlled the cure kinetics. The optimum heating rate during curing that resulted in a high Tg had high curing rates as well as the highest pre-exponential factor and autocatalysed reaction order in the Kamal-Sourour model, signifying very efficient autocatalysed crosslinking reactions that led to a high degree of crosslinking.
3. Improving nanosilica dispersion using solvents and studying the gelation behaviour of nanosilica colloids in the dispersing solvents. 
4. A novel method of studying and quantifying hydrophobic surface modification of silica nanoparticles using thermogravimetric analysis. 

These studies aim to contribute towards cure process optimisation, dispensing and underfill flow behaviour, and the development of epoxy/nanosilica composites for high-density interconnect substrate dielectrics with smooth surfaces and very fine features.

Thesis supervisor: Dr. Angan Sengupta

My task was to encapsulate various types of DNA in lipid vesicles and to determine a cut-off length for DNA encapsulation. Fluorescence microscopy was used to observe encapsulation. A mechanism of DNA capture within vesicles was also proposed. This research would act as a stepping stone towards artifical cells.

The thesis was titled "Mechanism of DNA Release from PVA Gel to form DNA Encapsulated Giant Unilamellar Vesicles", which was a continuation of the internship titled "Encapsulation of DNA in Giant Unilamellar Vesicles". 

Thesis supervisor: Dr. Tatiana Schmatko.

I explored the blood filtration capabilities of polymeric hollow fibre membranes and their use as dialysers. The efficiency of the membrane in filtering urea, creatinine and other metabolites was measured and compared to commercially available membranes.

The thesis was titled "Use of Hollow Fibre Membranes in Hemodialysis", which was a continuation of the internship titled, very plainly, "Hollow Fibre Membranes". 

Thesis supervisor: Prof. Jayesh Bellare.

As part of the mandatory industrial experience during my bachelor's degree, I studied and documented the workings of a formulation plant for Unichem, a pharmaceutical company and identified various chemical engineering-related processes at the plant.

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