Monthly Colloquia
CREST is dedicated to advancing semiconductor research and innovation in India, with a vision to establish BITS Pilani as a leading academic institution in this field. We believe that your insights and expertise would be invaluable to our attendees, and your participation in this event would be a significant contribution to our mission. Under CREST, a monthly series of online colloquia is being launched where eminent semiconductor researchers and innovators will be invited to speak.
VI Colloquia [April 22]
Keynote Speaker: Dr. Mukesh V. Khare, General Manager
of IBM and Vice President of IBM Research.
Title of the Talk: Inventing what’s next in Semiconductors
Date: Monday, April 22, 2024
Time: 5:30 PM IST
V Colloquia [March 21]
Keynote Speaker: Dr. Prith Banerjee, CTO at Ansys Inc.
Title of the Talk: Future of Simulation Driven Product Innovation
Date: Wednesday, March 21, 2024
Time: 6:00 PM IST
PAST EVENTS
I Colloquia [November 28]
Keynote Speaker: Prof. Krishna Saraswat (Stanford University)
Title of the Talk: 75 Years of Semiconductor Integration
Prof. Krishna Saraswat, a distinguished researcher in the School of Engineering at Stanford University, was the esteemed speaker. Prof. Saraswat, a Ph.D. graduate of Stanford University and a distinguished alumnus of BITS Pilani, has made significant contributions to the study of new and innovative materials, structures, and process technology in the realm of silicon, germanium, and III-V devices and interconnects for VLSI and nanoelectronics. His current research interests include novel device structures for scaling MOS transistors, advancements in DRAMs and flash memories to the nanometer regime, 3-dimensional ICs with multiple layers of heterogeneous devices, metal and optical interconnections, and high-efficiency, low-cost solar cells.
II Colloquia [December 22]
Keynote Speaker: Prof. Thomas Thundat, Professor, University at Buffalo
Title of the Talk: Microfabricated Chemical and Biological Sensors
Prof. Thomas Thundat, SUNY Distinguished Professor in Chemical and Biological Engineering at the University at Buffalo, will be our esteemed speaker. Prof. Thundat, holds PhD from State University of New York at Albany. He is also the SUNY Empire Innovation Professor at Research and Education in Energy, Environment and Water (RENEW). A lot of work has been done by him tin the areas of novel physical, chemical, and biological detection using micro and nano mechanical sensors and electrical power delivery using the single wire concept. He has published over 400 publications in refereed journals, 45 book chapters, and 40 patents. Dr. Thundat is an elected Fellow of the American Physical Society (APS), the Electrochemical Society (ECS), the American Association for Advancement of Science (AAAS), the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), the SPIE, and the National Academy of Inventors (NAI).
He is currently working on the following aspects:
Nanostructured functional materials for sustainable energy technologies
Electrocatalysis for energy conversion (metal-air batteries, fuel cells, and water splitting)
Advanced energy storage materials (batteries and supercapacitors)
Environmental electrochemistry (electrochemical advanced oxidation, electrochemical sensors, materials corrosion & prevention)
III Colloquia [January 17]
Keynote Speaker: Dr Suraj Rengarajan
Title of the Talk: Materials Engineering: Atomic level Materials Engineering Innovations at Industrial scale
Dr.Suraj Rengarajan is a distinguished professional in the field of materials science and technology, currently serving as the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at Applied Materials India. He holds a Ph.D. in Materials Science from The University of Texas at Austin.
With a career spanning over two decades, Dr. Rengarajan has been an integral part of Applied Materials Inc. since February 1997. His journey within the company has been marked by continuous growth and impactful contributions. He began his career as a Process Engineer, where he demonstrated his expertise in handling intricate materials-related processes.
Over the years, Dr. Rengarajan's leadership and technical prowess have earned him the role of Group Head for Dielectric Systems and Modules at Applied Materials India. In this capacity, he has been instrumental in driving innovation and advancements in the dielectric systems domain, contributing significantly to the company's success.
With a unique blend of academic achievements and hands-on industry experience, Dr. Suraj Rengarajan stands as a prominent figure in the realm of materials science and technology. His role as CTO at Applied Materials India underscores his commitment to pushing the boundaries of technological innovation and shaping the future of materials engineering.
IV Colloquia [February 21]
Keynote Speaker: Prof. Muhammad Ashraful Alam, Jai Gupta Distinguished Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering at Purdue University
Title of the Talk: Reliable Sensing on Unreliable Sensors
Date: February 21, 2024
Time: 6:00 PM IST
Related content shared by Prof. Alam post-talk:
Here are four papers related to the presentation. The first paper gives the big picture.
Alam et al. - 2022 - Reliable sensing with unreliable sensors Rethinki.pdf
Saha et al. - 2023 - A new paradigm of reliable sensing with field-depl.pdf
Saha et al. - 2023 - In Situ Drift Monitoring and Calibration of Field-.pdf
Saha et al. - 2022 - Temperature Self-Calibration of Always-On, Field-D.pdf
neuman-reliable-from-unreliable-original-paper.pdf