Group Members

The success of our laboratory is anchored by a driven and passionate team of students who form the backbone of our research outcomes. Their unwavering dedication, curiosity, and hard work are the driving forces behind our scientific achievements. As emerging scientists, they bring fresh perspectives and innovative ideas to our research projects, continuously pushing the boundaries of what is possible in the realm of nanoscience and nanotechnology.

Dr. Bhanu Prakash

Scientist & Group Leader

Microfluidics Research Laboratory

INST, Mohali

Heading the microfluidics research laboratory at INST, Dr. Bhanu Prakash completed his bachelor degree in Physics from Hans Raj College of Delhi University. He pursued his master degree from IIT Kanpur. Later, he finished his PhD from Panjab University. He joined INST as a Scientist in the year 2014. His research interest is in the area of microfludic devices for various applications under the broad umbrella of nano science and nanotechnology. His group has been instrumental in working on the controlled synthesis of nanostructures for light sensitive applications & drug delivery, lab-on-a-chip & µTAS, low-powered sensors & devices using piezo-enabled microfluidic platform, paper based/flexible devices for multi analyte sensing, cell sorting & high throughput screening and sensors for food safety & biomedical applications. In their pursuit of excellence, Dr. Prakash's group leverages microfluidic device simulation and, more recently, the application of AI/ML techniques, further enhancing their capabilities and pushing the boundaries of microfluidic research.

Editor: PLOS One (since March 2024)

Vibhav Katoch

(Ph.D. Student)

Research Area: Working on the fabrication of microreactors for continuous and droplet-based flow applications. The as-fabricated microreactors are incorporated for the room-temperature synthesis of nanomaterials. We opt for fine tuning the microfluidic parameters such as flow rate, channel architecture, etc to bring about variation in the shape and size of nanomaterials. Application of synthesized nanomaterials and fabricated microreactors for environmental applications such as inline photocatalytic dye degradation and photoreduction. I am extending my work on design and fabrication of flow reactors for inline photooxidation applications such as benzaldehyde to benzyl alcohol.

Romy Garg

(Ph.D. Student)

Research Area: Romy is working jointly with me and Dr. Kaushik Parida from IIT Roorkee. She is currently working on Energy Harvesting application using perovskite composites.

Alisha Rohal

(Ph.D. Student)

Research Area: Currently working on fabrication of microfluidic piezoelectric energy harvesting devices for applications like pressure and viscosity sensors. Also, working on droplet-based microfluidics to develop polymer droplets by tuning various microfluidic parameters in order to obtain different shapes and sizes. Apart from sensing and energy harvesting systems, I am exploring the domain of piezo-photocatalyic microfluidic systems as well. My future work aims at fabricating microfluidic triboelectric and hybrid piezo-tribo energy harvesting devices for diverse sensing and bio-medical applications.

Prakhar Singh

(Ph.D. Student)

Research Area: My research focuses on the development of flexible devices for sensing applications. Currently, I am synthesising MXene based composite in order to fabricate a smart throat sensor. Simultaneously, perovskite-based composites for chemiresistive and colorimetric gas sensing of toxic gases. My future research will focus on the development of smart devices for environmental monitoring and food additive detection.

Kruthi K. Rao

(Ph.D. Student)

Research Area: Current work aims at fabrication of different electrode materials to incorporate in the microfluidic devices for the electrochemical detection of neurotransmitters and other biomolecules at very low concentration. This work will be followed by integration of these fabricated devices with the cell culture for the real time monitoring of the biomolecules of interest for better understanding their role in the diseases and biological systems.

Karanveer Singh

(Ph.D. Student)

Research Area: Currently work aims at designing and developing, rapid and economical microfluidic devices for food and environment safety applications. This includes the synthesis of highly selective, sensitive, and specific nanoparticles, MOFs, COFs, and their nanocomposites for the detection and abatement of food and environmental pollutants.