In 1959, in his famous talk 'There is plenty of room at the bottom', physicist Richard Feynman had envisaged a new era of science where one could build electronic systems which would sense and interact with a world only a few atoms in size. To build such systems we not only need new materials but also new transduction strategies. Low dimensional nanomaterials possess structural, electronic, optical and mechanical properties perfect for building fast, robust and sensitive nano-systems. However, there still is a lack of understanding of the fundamental interactions between nanomaterials and the surrounding environment, which has hampered building high-fidelity systems critical for practical applications. My research interests lie in understanding and tailoring the behavior of nanomaterials to develop next generation nano-electronic and nano-photonic devices, chemical and biological sensors, and nano-electro-mechanical systems.
Biography: I am currently a Research Fellow at University of Michigan, supported by Tech Transfer Talent Network Fellowship through State of Michigan and University of Michigan. My research interests include 1-D and 2-D nanoelectronic and nanophotonic devices, and developing nano-biochemical sensor platforms. I have also co-founded a company, Arborsense, Inc., based on my dissertation work. I received my BE degree in Electronics and Electrical Communication from Punjab Engineering College, Chandigarh (India) in 2008, MS degree and Ph.D. from University of Michigan in 2010 and 2014, respectively. Apart from research, I enjoy movies, traveling, playing tennis and squash.
Funding: As a Principal Investigator (PI), I have received grant support from National Science Foundation and State of Michigan to continue research and development of graphene sensors for wearable healthcare applications. My funding includes NSF SBIR Phase I, NSF SBIR Phase IB, and Michigan ETF grants totaling $200,000.