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
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
Branden Bodner
Branden received his B.S in Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering, as well as a minor in Electrical and Computer Engineering, from UIUC. As an undergrad, he worked on the synthesis of layered materials such as molybdenum disulfide by atmospheric-pressure plasma conversion. He is now pursuing a Master in Plasma Engineering and working on developing semiconductor applications for a large-area, low-temperature atmospheric-pressure plasma tool.
Email: bbodner2@illinois.edu
Undergraduate Students
Nitika Purohit
Nitika is currently pursuing a B.S in Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering, with a minor in Mathematics. Her research is focused on synthesizing ammonia for fertilizer production using low-temperature plasmas.
Email: nitikap2@illinois.edu
Harrison Brosius
Harrison is currently pursuing a B.S in Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering. His research is focused on reducing iron oxides using an atmospheric-pressure microwave-powered plasma torch.
Email: brosius4@illinois.edu
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