Barun Das

Current Designation: Assistant Professor
Centre for Interdisciplinary Sciences, JISIASR
(Since August 2023)
Group Web Page: https://bdemrlabs.com/
e-mail ID: barundas@jisiasr.org / barundas84@gmail.com
Google Scholar Link: https://scholar.google.co.in/citations?user=ACq8H6EAAAAJ&hl=en

Ph.D. position available: Highly motivated NET/GATE qualified or self- funded candidates with Inorganic or Physical Chemistry/Physics/Materials Science/Nano-science or technology background are encouraged to contact Dr. Barun Das for persuing Ph.D on full-time or part-time basis in the exciting areas of Materials Science.
Post-doctoral position: Self-funded (NPDF or similar self-funded position) candidates interested to explore different exciting areas of Materials Science are also encouraged to apply directly to the above e-mail ID.

Professional Engagements:

Assistant Professor (Centre for Interdisciplinary Sciences at JIS Institute of Advanced Studies & Research, Kolkata) (August 2023-Till Date)
Visiting Faculty (Ramakrishna Mission Vidyamadira, Belur) Howrah, India Teaching Undergraduate & Post-Graduate Chemistry courses (July 2023)
Visiting Faculty (Scottish Church College, Kolkata)                Kolkata, India Teaching Chemistry for P.G (Hons.) course (February 2023-June 2023)
Visiting Faculty (Ramakrishna Mission Vidyamadira, Belur) Howrah, India Teaching Post-Graduate Chemistry (September 2022- January 2023)
R & D Mentor (Writebox)
Research & thesis guidance of masters and Ph.D students in the relevant areas in freelancing role (September 2021- August 2022)
R & D Scientist III at Macdermid Alpha Electronic  Solutions (MAES), MAES India Research Center; Bangalore, India  (https://www.macdermidalpha.com)
(Jan 2014 – August 2021)
Post-doctoral Research Associate (Advisor: Prof. Don Seo), Department of Chemistry and Bio-Chemistry, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
(August 2012- August 2013)
Research Associate (Advisor: Prof. C.N.R. Rao), Solid State and Structural Chemistry Unit, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India (January 2012- July 2012)

Academic Background:

Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India
Ph.D, (Advisor: Prof. C.N.R. Rao), Solid State and Structural Chemistry Unit, May 2012.
Thesis: “Investigations of Graphene, noble metal nano- particles and  related  nano-materials.” (2009 – 2012)

Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India
Masters of Science (Chemistry), (Advisor: Prof. C.N.R. Rao), Solid State and Structural Chemistry Unit, July 2009.
Thesis: “Investigations of Graphene and nano-crystalline Au-Ag films”. (2006 – 2009)

Jadavpur University, Kolkata, India
Bachelor of Science (Chemistry Hons.), Department Of Chemistry, July 2006. (2003 – 2006)

Achievements:

1. Selected to attend the “ICONSAT-2012”, Hyderabad, India, January (2012)
2. Selected to attend the “JSPS-DST Asia Academic Seminar-2009”, Yokohama, Japan, December (2009)
3. Excellent grade (8/8) for M. S. project & 2nd Rank holder in M. S. (Chemistry) (2009)
4. Best poster award, JNC Research Conference on Chemistry of Materials,Allepy, India, September (2008)

Key Research Interests:

1. Structure-property-co-relationship of Graphene-based composite materials for energy research:
   Graphene, the two-dimensional (2D) nano-allotropes of carbon consisting of single-layer of sp2 carbon atoms have drawn tremendous attention in academic as well as industrial R & D in last more than one decade or so; due to its’ unique properties such as high surface area, excellent electrical conductivity, superior thermal & mechanical strength and related properties. Interestingly, in recent days assembly of 2D graphene sheets into high-surface area hollow spheres has drawn again significant attraction of this wonder material due to its’ potential eligibility in the broader application areas ranging from catalyst support to drug-delivery and specially major emphasis in the field of energy storage where fabricating electrode materials with graphene for energy storage devices such as super capacitors and batteries has become a major thrust in this research area and great amount of attentions have been employed in this particular research field is also on the possibility of assembly of 2D graphene sheets into hollow spheres for developing core/shell structure composites also for this particular applications. In this proposed research plan; micro-structural, functional aspects as well as potential usage of these Graphene-based composite materials in energy storage devices will be explored in great details.
2. Metal-organic/organo-metallic precursor based electronics materials development:
   Availability of conventional metallic particle based pastes such as Silver (Ag) and Copper (Cu) based pastes in sinterable electronics paste market have come out one of the excellent alternatives for Sn-based traditional die-attach materials suitable for Wide Band-gap Semi-conductor (WBG) devices. Submicron/nano Cu particle based sintering pastes have certain advantages such as lower cost and better electrochemical migration reliability than the corresponding Ag particle pastes although their corresponding sintered joints possess similar mechanical, electrical and thermal properties. But, the major drawback of Cu particle based pastes is the intrinsic oxidation tendency of Cu particles in ambient condition; hence hindering the effective sintering of Cu particles. Performing die-attachment with particle based Cu sintering paste at high sintering temperature such as 400 °C with high pressure under reducing forming gas either inert argon, nitrogen or formic acid environment might lead to higher shear join strength; unacceptable for practical application due to these harsh and complicated sintering conditions. This proposed research strategy would give a solution to this above mentioned challenges which involves a metal-organic or organo-metallic precursor based printable Cu paste/ink which should eliminate most of the obstacles encountered during the electronics assembly process using conventional market available Cu based printable electronics paste.
3. Fabrication of Graphene & allied 2-D advanced materials based product development for electronics industry:
   Commendable mechanical properties namely Elastic modulus, Hardness along with superior in-plane thermal conductivity of Graphene & related 2-D advanced materials can be potentially leveraged for the development of flexible, mechanically strong polymer composite materials for effective heat dissipation while electronics gadgets are in use. These advanced materials-polymer composite based thermal management materials has certain assembly and end-user usage advantages over conventional metallic thermal management materials used for this purpose in electronic gadgets; will be explored and studied in great detail in this proposed research sketch.

Publications:

Total no. of publications:14
Sum of the times cited: 1957
Average citations per item: 140
h-index: 12 (Google Scholar)

1. Synthesis of Nanoporous Delafossite CuAlO2 from Sol–Gel Preparation of Interpenetrating Inorganic/Organic Networks. Barun Das, Adele Renaud, Alex M. Volosin, Lei Yu, Nathan Newman and Dong-Kyun Seo. Inorganic Chemistry, 2015, 54 (3), 1100.
2. Interaction of CdSe and ZnO nanocrystals with electron-donor and –acceptor Molecules. Sunita Dey, Barun Das, Rakesh Voggu, Angshuman  Nag,  D.D. Sarma and C.N.R. Rao. Chemical Physics Letters. 2013, 556, 200.
3. Factors affecting laser-excited photoluminescence from ZnO nanostructures. Barun Das, Prashant Kumar, and C. N. R. Rao.  Journal  of Cluster Science.  2012, 23, 649.
4. Novel Radiation-induced Properties of Graphene and Related Materials. Prashant Kumar, Barun Das, Basant Chitara, K. S. Subrahmanyam, K. Gopalakrishnan, S. B. Krupanidhi and C. N. R. Rao. Macromolecular Chemistry & Physics. 2012, 213, 1146.
5. Ferromagnetism Exhibited by Nanoparticles of Noble Metals. Urmimala Maitra, Barun Das, Nitesh Kumar, A. Sundaresan and C. N. R Rao, Chem Phys Chem, 2011, 12, 2322.
6. Interaction of Inorganic Nanoparticles with Graphene. Barun Das, Biswajit Choudhury, A. Gomathi, Arun. K Manna, S. K. Pati and C. N. R Rao, Chem Phys Chem, 2011, 12, 937. (Appeared as the inside cover image: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cphc.201190025/abstract)
7. A study of the synthetic methods and properties of graphenes. C. N. R. Rao, K. S. Subrahmanyam, H. S. S. Ramakrishna Matte, B. Abdulhakeem, A. Govindaraj, Barun Das, Prashant Kumar, Anupama Ghosh and Dattatray J. Late, Science and Technology of Advanced Materials., 2010, 11.
8. XPS evidence for molecular charge-transfer doping of graphene. Debraj Choudhury, Barun Das, D. D. Sarma and C. N. R Rao, Chemical Physics Letters, 2010, 497, 66.
9. Surface-enhanced Raman scattering of molecules adsorbed on nanocrystalline films of Au and Ag formed at the organic-aqueous interface. Barun Das, Urmimala Maitra, Kanishka Biswas, Neenu Varghese and C. N. R. Rao, Chemical Physics Letters, 2009, 477, 160.
10. Extraordinary synergy in the mechanical properties of polymer matrix composites reinforced with 2 nanocarbons. K. Eswar Prasad, Barun Das, Urmimala Maitra, U. Ramamurty and C.N.R. Rao, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 2009, 106 (32), 13186.
    This paper got a lot of attention from the press. (The Telegraph, The Deccan Herald, The Techno-preneur and Down To Earth)
11. Nano-indentation studies on polymer matrix composites reinforced by few- layer graphene. Barun Das, K. Eswar Prasad, U. Ramamurty and C. N. R. Rao, Nanotechnology. 2009, 20, 125705. (Appeared as the Nanotechnology highlights, 2009)
12. Effects of charge transfer interaction of graphene with electron donor and acceptor molecules examined using Raman spectroscopy and cognate  techniques. Rakesh Voggu, Barun Das, Chandra Sekhar  Rout  and  C.  N.  R.  Rao,  J.  Phys.: Condens. Matter. (Fast Track Communication). 2008, 20, 472204.
13. Changes in the electronic structure and properties of graphene induced by molecular chargetransfer. Barun Das, Rakesh Voggu, Chandra Sekhar Rout and C. N. R. Rao, Chem Comm. 2008, 5155.
14. Growth kinetics of ZnO nanorods: capping-dependent mechanism and other interesting features. Kanishka Biswas, Barun Das and C. N. R. Rao, J. Phys. Chem. C, 2008, 112 (7), 2404.

Patents:

1. Engineered polymer-based electronic materials; US10682732B2; Filed by Alpha Assembly Solutions. (Granted)
2. Production of Graphene; US20180072573A1; Filed by Alpha Assembly Solutions.
3. Graphene Enhanced and Engineered Materials for  Membrane  Touch Switch And Other Flexible Electronics Structures; US20200087528A1; Filed by Alpha Assembly Solutions. (Granted)
4. Applications of engineered graphene; US20210061664A1, Filed by Alpha Assembly Solutions.
5. Sintering composition; WO2021058133A1, Filed by Alpha Assembly Solutions.

Conferences, Schools and Workshops Attended:

1. Joint Indo-US workshop on scalable nanomaterial for enhanced energy transport, conversion and efficiency, August, 2008, Bangalore, India. Poster presented.
2. JNC Research Conference on Chemistry of Materials, Allepy, India, September 2008. Poster presented. Best poster award.
3. Molecules and Materials: New Directions, Bangalore, India, December, 2008. Poster presented.
4. ICMS-ICMR Winter school on the chemistry and physics of materials, Bangalore, India, December, 2008. Poster presented.
5. Chemistry of Materials symposium organized by the International Centre for Material Science & Molecular Frontiers foundation, Bangalore, India, February, 2009. Poster presented.
6. Chemistry of functional materials, Goa, India, August 2009. Poster presented.
7. India-US joint Conference on Advanced Material Research, Bangalore, India, September, 2009. Poster Presented.
8. India-Japan Conference on Graphene, Bangalore, India, November, 2009. Poster Presented.
9. The  JSPS-DST  Asia  Academic  Seminar-  2009,  Yokohama,  Japan,  December. Poster Presented.
10. Winter School on Chemistry and Physics of Materials, Bangalore, India, December 2009. Poster Presented.
11. Advances in Magnetism: Phenomena and Materials, Manali, India, June 2010. Poster Presented.
12. A  JNCASR-Purdue  Workshop  on  “Basics  of  Nano-materials  and  Applications  in Energy Conversion, Transport and Storage”, Bangalore, India, August 2010. Poster Presented.
13. Winter School -2010 on Chemistry and Physics of Materials, Bangalore, India, December 2010. Poster Presented.
14. Meeting on Chemistry and Physics of Advanced Materials, Kolkata, India, October, 2011. Poster Presented.
15. ICONSAT-2012, Hyderabad, India, January (2012). Poster Presented.
16. North American Solid State Chemistry Conference-2013, Corvallis, Oregon, USA, June (2013). Poster Presented.
17. Horiba Optical School-2017, Bangalore, India. May (2017). Attended on invitation.
18. National Symposium on Nano-Science & Technology (NSNST), IISc, Bangalore, India. July (2017). Attended on invitation.
19. GW INSTEK Test & Measurement Seminar – 2017, Bangalore, India. July (2017). Attended on invitation.
20. DST-SERB workshop on “Graphene Nanotechnology: Civil Engineering Applications, Coimbatore Institute of Technology, Coimbatore, India. June (2018). Delivered an invited lecture.
21. National Seminar on “Graphene – Nanotechnology in Civil  Engineering”, Vel Tech Management and the Department of Civil Engineering, Avadi, Chennai, March (2019). Delivered an invited lecture as Chief Guest and Resource Person.
22. National Seminar on Nanoscience & Nano-Technology, Department of Physics, Bhairab Ganguly College, Belgharia, Kolkata, June (2021). Delivered an invited lecture as Resource Person.

Professional Skills:

1. Synthesis of different types of few-layer graphene, single-walled carbon nanotubes (S.W.N.T) and their derivatives.
2. Synthesis of thiol-functionalized Graphene (“Reduced Graphene Oxysulfide” (RGOS)) through a new solvothermal route.
3. Preparation of polymer matrix composites with different nano-carbon as filler.
4. Synthesis of different noble metal nanoparticles (e.g. Au, Ag, and Pt), oxide nanoparticles and ZnO nanostructures by chemical as well as solvothermal routes.
5. Bulk, easy and facile synthesis of nano-porous transparent conducting oxide (TCO) powder through sol-gel technique.
6. Fabrication of thin-films of nano-porous transparent conducting oxide on FTO coated glass substrates for its utilization in dye-sensitized solar cells as transparent conducting electrode.
7. Highly experience in routine analytical tools like PXRD, Raman, Laser Light Scattering (DLS), Abbe Refractometer, Oxygen Analyzer, TGA-DSC, TEM, FESEM, XPS, ICP, AFM, EPR, routine optical spectroscopies (UV-Vis, PL), IR and magnetic measurements. (PPMS, Quantum Design, San Diego, CA, USA)
8. Nano-indentation technique for measurements of mechanical properties.
9. Two and four-probe method for electrical measurements.
10. Experience in BET surface area and BJH pore distribution analysis.
11. Handled high-resolution optical microscope (3000X), optical profilometer and DektakXT.

Membership: Life-time member of Indian Science Congress Association, Kolkata, West Bengal