Postdoctoral Associates
Dr. Mohammad Ali Eslamisaray
Ali obtained his B.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering from Iran University of Science and Technology, followed by his M.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering from Sharif University of Technology. In 2016, he joined the High Temperature and Plasma Laboratory (HTPL) at the University of Minnesota and worked with Professor Uwe Kortshagen on the design of non-thermal plasma reactors, leveraging their potential for the synthesis of nanoparticles and thin films with novel optical, electrical, and thermal properties. After receiving his Ph.D. in 2023, Ali joined Professor Mohan Sankaran’s lab at UIUC, where he now focuses on scaling up plasma-liquid systems aimed at sustainable synthesis of ammonia via a catalyst-free nitrogen fixation process at ambient conditions.
Email: maeslami@illinois.edu
Dr. Vivek Pachchigar
Vivek received his bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Gujarat Technological University in 2014 and his master’s degree in Nuclear Engineering from Pandit Deendayal Petroleum University in 2017. He pursued his Ph.D. at the Institute for Plasma Research (IPR) in Gandhinagar, India where he worked with Prof. Mukesh Ranjan and focused on the development of hydrophobic and superhydrophobic surfaces using plasma processing for self-cleaning and water harvesting applications. After receiving his Ph.D. in 2023, Vivek joined UIUC in November 2023 where he is currently conducting experimental investigations using the IGNIS facility, exploring Ti-H plasma material interactions for nuclear fusion applications.
Email: vivekp22@illinois.edu
Dr. Prashant Barnwal
Prashant received his B.Sc. in Physics in 2011 and M.Sc. in Physics in 2013 from Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gorakhpur University. He completed his Ph.D. in 2022 at the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi where he worked with Prof. Ashish Ganguli and Prof. Ramesh Narayanan on the effect of plasma-boundary interactions and electrode asymmetry in planar DC discharges. Following his Ph.D., he joined the Institute for Plasma Research Gandhinagar as a Postdoctoral Fellow, studying constricted anode fireball and RF plasma-based surface modification. In November 2024, Prashant joined Prof. Sankaran’s lab at UIUC where he is currently working on developing an atmospheric-pressure, microwave-powered, hydrogen plasma for the reduction of iron oxide.
Email: pbarnwal@illinois.edu
Graduate Students
Souvik Bhattacharya
Souvik received his B.Tech and M.Tech in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology at Kharagpur in 2019. His Master’s thesis was on the synthesis of aligned carbon nanotubes (CNTs) by chemical vapor deposition. His Ph.D. research is focused on the non-equilibrium conversion of layered materials from solution-printed molecular precursors.
Email: souvikb2@illinois.edu
Daniel Ellis
Danny earned his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Brigham Young University in 2021 with an emphasis in Aerospace Engineering. In collaboration with Prof. David Ruzic, his Ph.D. research is focused on using atmospheric pressure plasmas to clean or prevent rust, oil, and salt corrosion on steel surfaces. He is also interested in space technology, including using plasmas to mine celestial bodies.
Email: dsellis3@illinois.edu
Brandon Kamiyama
Brandon received his B.S. in Nuclear Engineering from Oregon State University in 2021. During his undergraduate studies, he worked on numerous projects with national laboratories and industry involving thermal-fluid sciences, advanced reactor design, material degradation in extreme environments, nuclear core design, and the future energy portfolio. He also spent two years in Dr. Wade Marcum’s group working on experimental thermal hydraulics. His Ph.D. research is focused on plasma-liquid processes for nitrogen fixation.
Email: bek3@illinois.edu
Robert Pierrard
Robert graduated from Georgia Tech in 2022 with a B.S. in Physics and a minor in Computing and Artificial Intelligence. As an undergrad, he worked on simulating high-energy particle collisions with data from the CMS collaboration, and silicon photomultiplier detector development for the EUSO-SPB2 telescope. His Ph.D. research focuses on the optical and chemical characterization of plasma-based nitrogen fixation processes.
Email: robertp7@illinois.edu
Sean Peyres
Sean received his B.S. in Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering, with a minor in Physics, from UIUC in 2022. As an undergrad, he worked with Prof. Mohan Sankaran and Prof. Davide Curreli on modeling and experiments of reaction-diffusion in atmospheric-pressure plasmas. His Ph.D. research focuses on studying reaction-diffusion in plasma-liquid systems with non-aqueous solvents.
Email: speyres2@illinois.edu
Angie Tomita
Angie received her B.S. and M.S. in Biomedical Engineering with a graduate minor in Computational Engineering from Drexel University in 2019. Her Ph.D. research focuses on the application of plasma-based nitrogen fixation processes to microbial utilization, and optimization of microbial biosynthesis.
Email: atomita@illinois.edu
Hassan Bhukari
Hassan received his B.S. in Aerospace Engineering from King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals in 2015. He then worked as an aircraft engineer before joining the graduate program in Aerospace Engineering at UIUC where he worked on particle-laden flows and received his Master’s in 2022. His Ph.D. research focuses on plasma chemistry for the growth of doped diamond.
Email: hassanb3@illinois.edu
Feray Buyuktopcu
Feray received her B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the Middle East Technical University in 2023. There she conducted undergraduate research on methane dissociation kinetics in low-temperature plasmas with Dr. Necip Uner. Co-advised by Prof. Xiao Su in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, her Ph.D. research focuses on water remediation, especially for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), by coupling plasma and electrochemical methods.
Email: fzb2@illinois.edu
Tanishka Kucheria
Tanishka received her B.S in Chemical Engineering from Northeastern University in 2024. As an undergraduate, she conducted research under Professor Magda Barecka on carbon capture and conversion technologies, focusing on enhancing mass transfer efficiency. Currently, she is pursuing her Ph.D. in the SPEC group at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, where her research focuses on the hydrogen plasma reduction of iron oxide.
Email: tk32@illinois.edu
Mohamed Maher Ibrahim
Mohamed received his B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the Middle East Technical University in 2023. Co-advised by Prof. Paul Kenis in the Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering department, his Ph.D. research focuses on investigating non-thermal plasma-assisted reactions to electrify industrial chemical processes that can open the door for modular and agile manufacturing.
Email: mmi3@illinois.edu
Undergraduate Students
Piper Fernau
Piper is currently pursuing a B.S. in Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering. Her research is focused PFAS degradation by plasma and electrochemical methods.
Email: pfernau2@illinois.edu
Emily Gillmore
Emily is currently pursuing a B.S in Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering, with a minor in Earth, Society and the Environment. Her research is focused on plasma-liquid processes for nitrogen fixation.
Email: emilyeg4@illinois.edu
Samuel Hart
Samuel is currently pursuing a B.S in Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering, with a minor in Physics and Computer Science. His research involves experiments using the IGNIS Facility, and focuses on studying ion beam irradiation of titanium.
Email: svhart2@illinois.edu
Adam Rousseau
Adam is currently pursuing a B.S. in Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering. His research is focused on hBN growth by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition.
Email: adampr2@illinois.edu
Kailey Frangella
Kailey is currently pursuing a B.S in Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering. Her research is focused on developing semiconductor applications for a large-area atmospheric pressure plasma tool.
Email: klf@illinois.edu