Profile

The logical coherence and path in science fascinated me since my early school days. The experimentation with simple but beautiful things was one of my favourite hobbies during my childhood. I used to be delighted at the sight of my self-made fire-crackers blazing to produce a range of spectacular colours. The fun was not only due to the colours but also due to the fact of being able to create such stuff on my own. This passion for doing small experiments on my own with locally available low-cost materials made me one of the regular candidates to represent my school in science fairs. Those science fairs helped me in polishing the very basic concepts in science in my school days and motivated me to continue with science for my studies. After completing my studies, I am using same passion and knowledge to solve real world problems such as finding the bugs in water.

I am investigating optical interconnects based on photonic crystal (PhC) cavity resonators for efficient data transfer at Cork Institute of Technology and University of St Andrews. In particular, I am working on the vertical integration of photonic and electronic circuits. I am also developing a wafer scale testing platform for PhCs, in collaboration with Helia Photonics and Stanford University.

During my PhD at the University of Exeter, I investigated theoretically Polaritonic Photonic Crystals (PPCs) under the supervision of Dr Stavroula Foteinopoulou. We achieved near-perfect absorption in the Reststrahlen band of the polaritonic materials. In addition, I studied ultra-refractive properties of PPCs. I employed self-written TMM codes and Lumerical FDTD solutions for these theoretical investigations.

Before joining the University of Exeter, I pursued an experimental project at Technical University, Berlin, as a master thesis student. During this time, I constructed a confocal microscope to fabricate waveguides inside a photopolymer by direct beam photo-lithographic technique. Later I expanded the setup for characterization of these waveguides.

I simulate how light waves go through complex structures. I build experimental set-ups to detect bugs in the water. This includes testing of many types of equipment for the job. For that, I request demonstration units from the suppliers. I make circuits on Silicon wafers. These circuits are similar to electronic circuits we have in smartphones and computers. I typically make them in Tyndall National Institute in Cork. For making these components, I need to work in ultra-clean rooms, which has very few dust particles. For this purpose, we wear cleanroom dress, similar to what you see doctors use sometimes.

I also spend time reading other scientists work. I generate scientific ideas and discuss with my colleagues for feedback. I write these ideas on for funding bodies such as government authorities to ask money to execute my ideas. I help my students in their projects.