Host Institution India: Georgia Institute of Technology

Shailina Srivastava

Ms. Shailina Srivastava is a PhD scholar in the Aerosol Group of the Department of Civil Engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras, Chennai. Under the mentorship of Prof. Sachin S. Gunthe, her research focuses on the intricate interactions between aerosols from diverse regions across the Indian subcontinent, water vapor, and UV radiation under subsaturated conditions. She has conducted extensive measurement campaigns, ranging from southern India to the Himalayan region, collecting ambient aerosol samples to investigate how variations in aerosol properties influence cloud formation, precipitation processes, and the atmospheric evolution of these particles.

Shailina holds a master’s degree in environmental sciences (Environmental Technology) from Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, and a bachelor’s degree in Botany and Industrial Microbiology from Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gorakhpur University, Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh. The unique climatic conditions of India inspired her to delve into this critical area of research, contributing to a better understanding of the nation’s climate dynamics. Beyond her academic pursuits, she enjoys reading and traveling.

As a Fulbright-Kalam Fellow, Shailina is conducting experimental work at the Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, under the supervision of Dr. Pengfei Liu. Her experiments focus on generating atmospherically relevant organic aerosols from various precursors and examining their interactions with water vapor and UV radiation. She employs advanced techniques and instruments, including the quartz crystal microbalance, to gain deeper insights into these processes.

Atanu Betal

Dr. Atanu Betal is a postdoctoral fellow at the Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. He earned his BSc in 2014 from Garhbeta College, affiliated with Vidyasagar University, West Bengal, and completed his MSc in 2017 at Guru Ghasidas Vishwavidyalaya, Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh. In September 2023, he was awarded a PhD from the Indian Institute of Technology, Jodhpur. He was a Senior Research Fellow from January 2024 to March 2024 at IITJ.

Dr. Betal’s research interests are in the field of experimental condensed matter physics, primarily focused on the fabrication of resistive memory, neuromorphic synaptic devices using organic materials, and scanning tunneling microscopy of low-dimensional materials. He has published 34 research articles (eight as the first author and 26 as a co-author) in reputable international journals.

As a Fulbright-Nehru Postdoctoral Research Fellow at GIT, Georgia, Dr. Betal is focusing on the fabrication of vertical FETs and their application in neuromorphic synaptic devices — an area of growing interest among scientists for advancing artificial intelligence hardware. During his fellowship, Dr. Betal aims to explore different organic semiconducting materials for the FET with sub-nanometer channel length.

Abhishek Dixit

Dr. Abhishek Dixit is a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Earth Sciences at the Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar, Gujarat. He earned his BTech in 2015 from JSS Noida, affiliated to Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Technical University, and completed his MTech in 2018 at IIT Guwahati. In March 2024, he was awarded a PhD from IIT Guwahati. As part of his doctoral research, he worked as a guest PhD student at the University of Goettingen, Germany, under the NAMASTE+ program funded by DAAD and the German Ministry of Education and Research.

Dr. Dixit’s research spans fluvial sedimentology, groundwater, glaciers, and oceans, with publications in leading international journals. He has also visited the University of Leeds under the BRAINSTORM project, funded by the university’s International Strategy Fund, to advance collaborations on Himalayan research.

As a Fulbright-Nehru Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Georgia Institute of Technology, Dr. Dixit is studying the impacts of large mass-wasting events, such as landslides and ice-rock avalanches, on river dynamics and flooding risks in the Brahmaputra River basin. His work combines geochronology, remote sensing, and numerical simulations to evaluate the consequences of these events in a warming Himalayan environment.

Samriddhi Saxena

Ms. Samriddhi Saxena is a PhD candidate in the Department of Metallurgical Engineering and Materials Science at the Indian Institute of Technology Indore, focusing on the development of oxide cathodes for sodium-ion batteries. Her doctoral research focuses on designing efficient and eco-friendly alternatives to lithium-ion batteries, addressing the critical need for sustainable and scalable energy storage systems. She has expertise in synthesizing and characterizing air-sensitive materials using various structural and electrochemical techniques.

Samriddhi holds a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from R.V. College of Engineering, Bengaluru, and a master’s degree from IIT Indore, where she received the Institute Silver Medal for her work on biphasic layered oxide cathodes. She has been awarded the Prime Minister’s Research Fellowship and has presented her research at various conferences, publishing in top journals. She has also worked as a Process Engineer at Hindustan Zinc Limited, leading a Six Sigma project on magnesium removal from ZnSO4 solutions.

As a Fulbright-Nehru Doctoral Research fellow at Georgia Institute of Technology, Samriddhi is hoping to develop technologically relevant sodium-ion-based solid-state cells by employing melt infiltration of solid-state electrolytes into electrodes. Her research seeks to achieve performance metrics comparable to liquid electrolyte-based cells at practical charge/discharge rates, addressing key challenges in solid-state energy storage. This work contributes to global advancements in renewable energy technologies by tackling the scalability and performance barriers of sodium-ion-based solid-state batteries. Samriddhi is passionate about teaching and enjoys traveling, cooking, and gardening.