mithunc-AT-iitb.ac.in
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Research
These are some research topics (potential research projects) I am currently interested in.
Role of interface in nanoscale polymers and composites
Polymers in the vicinity of nanoscale heterointerfaces (e.g, nanosized thin film atop a silica substrate or silica nanopartcle inside polymer matrix) are interesting subject of research due to their distinctly different thermal/ mechanical properties that further contribute to detrimental roles defining stability and performance in functional polymers. We want to explore this problem both from the fundamental and technological applications standpoint. (Figure taken from Sanat Kumar et al. Macromolecules, 2017, ACS)
Structure-property relations in semi-crystalline polymers
Polymer crystals distinctly different than small molecules (including metals) due to the existence of amorphous (entangled polymer chains) regions within relatively ordered folded chains (lamallae). Properties of many functional polymers (e.g., conjugated polymers for electronic applications, polyethylene for making ultrastrong fibers, polyvinyledene fluoride for piezoeletric applications) could be tuned by appropriate control of processing methods, which we aim to do via techniques that incorporates positive contribution of geometrical confinement to finally establish a role by the non-equilibrium properties of polymer chains.
Supramolecular responsive polymer dynamics
Development stimuli responsive smart and self-healing polymers is one of the focus agenda in modern day materials science due to its enormous applications. Supramolecular polymers are a unique
class of non-conventional polymer those are held together by non-covalent secondary interactions (e.g. H-bonding) those are reversible in nature in presence of appropriate stimuli. It is important to know the thermo-mechanical properties of those materials for suitable application and fundamental studies. How the molecular level dynamics is affected by external stimuli on such polymers is an interesting and fundamental question we want to explore.
Stability of glassy polymer thin films
Thermal and mechanical stability in nanoconfined thin glassy polymer films is a well explored yet highly debated topic. Depending on the geometric confinement, processing and quality of interface(s), thermal and mechanical strength including glass transition, stiffness and non-equilibrium properties of polymer chains get highly perturbed. That's why whether smaller makes polymer weaker or stronger is not yet fully clear. We will use combined optical microscopic and spectroscopic techniques to answer these questions in a larger picture, e.g, via exploring tunable functional additives.