Research Fellows

Anil Kumar, Ph.D.

Anil Kumar received his PhD (2013) in Nanoscience from the National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing, China. He worked as a research scientist at the Beijing Institute of Nanoenergy and Nanosystems (BINN), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China. Before joining Handa Lab he worked as a Postdoctoral Research Associate in Department of Chemistry, at the University of Georgia. Currently he working as as a senior research associate at Handa Biomaterials Research Lab, School of Chemical Materials and Biomedical Engineering.

His main research interests include development of Nano-based portable devices for rapid detection of disease biomarkers as well as fabricating nanoscale materials to build specific and adaptable catheters for early detection of infectious disease with the use of special optical, electronic and magnetic properties of nanomaterials.


Manjyot Kaur Chug, Ph.D.

Manjyot Kaur Chug obtained Integrated MSc in Biological Sciences from BITS Pilani, India, and her Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Georgia in December 2022. She worked as a Graduate Research Assistant at Harvard Medical School and the Indian Institute of Science before joining Handa Lab. Currently, she is working as a Postdoctoral Research Associate at Handa Biomaterials Research Lab, School of Chemical, Materials, and Biomedical Engineering. Manjyot’s research interest lies in the translational aspect of nitric oxide-releasing materials for clinical applications. She is currently involved in developing antibacterial and hemocompatible surface strategies with a desire to test their efficacy in animal models.

Arpita Shome, Ph.D.

Dr. Arpita Shome joined as a post-doctoral associate in the Handa Biomaterials lab in January 2023. She completed her PhD in August 2022 from the Department of Chemistry, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, India under the guidance of Prof. Uttam Manna. Her PhD thesis revolved around the strategic use of natural components such as cellulose, protein, aloe vera for the fabrication of bio-inspired anti-wetting materials for its utility in environmental remediation and biomedical applications. During her PhD, she has published 16 research articles and patents. She has experience in translational research which involves the scale up of laboratory research to the industrial level. She is an avid writer and also enjoys playing badminton, singing and dancing. She has published review articles in journals such as Chemical Society Reviews, Chemistry of Materials and Journal of Materials Chemistry A. In recognition to her scientific writing skills, her science story revolving around her PhD work was awarded the ‘Augmented Writing Skills for Articulating Research Award’ by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India in 2019. As a post doc under Prof. Handa, she aspires to use her expertise in liquid wettability to develop novel hemo-compatible and anti-microbial surfaces for medical devices.

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