Arun mannodi kanakkithodi

I am a computational materials scientist currently plying my trade as an assistant professor at Purdue University. My research involves using quantum mechanical simulations and machine learning to design new materials efficiently. When I'm not doing research, I am engrossed in watching European soccer and cheering for Manchester United, or exploring one of my other interests: popular culture, science fiction, and hiking the great American outdoors.

My research

From the summer of 2017 until the end of 2020, I worked as a postdoctoral researcher in the field of computational materials science at Argonne National Laboratory. I got a bachelors in materials engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee in 2012 and a PhD in materials science and engineering from University of Connecticut in 2017. My research has largely been focused on using density functional theory and machine learning based approaches to accelerate the design of new materials for energy related applications. During my PhD, I developed a predictive model for the electronic and dielectric properties of polymers, which led to the synthesis and successful discovery of novel polymers for capacitor dielectrics. As part of my research at Argonne, I developed computational datasets and design models for compositional and point defect engineering in semiconductors for optoelectronic applications. At the moment, I am involved in building a research group for computation and AI-driven design of materials at Purdue University. I believe materials science has benefited tremendously from the advent of high performance computing and AI based learning approaches, and hope to continue using such advanced techniques to design new and improved materials on a computer.

more about me

I live in the campus town of West Lafayette in central Indiana with my wife, Danielle Heichel. Moving from Chicago—the best city in the country—to WL has been a big adjustment for me, just as it was moving from India to the United States as a 22 year old in 2012 (which seems a full lifetime ago). I have a special affection for the great American outdoors, in particular the sprawling wilderness and the quickly switching desert-mountain-canyon-river landscape of the southwest. Although our biggest quibble about the midwest remains the lack of easy access to mountainous terrain, Danielle and I immensely enjoy hiking in the wild forest plains and make it a point to go on long road trips to explore as many national and state parks across the country as possible—it is perhaps the thing we most look forward to each year. During the weekends, if we aren’t out braving the elements and photographically documenting our adventures, you will find me on my couch, taking in the best available American telecast of European soccer leagues and the English premier league in particular. I’ve been following Manchester United as closely as someone living halfway across the world possibly can since as far back as I can remember. I care deeply about the fortunes of this little known sporting giant and expect to do so for the rest of my life. When I am not occupied with research, hiking, or MUFC, I am likely trying to read some science fiction or fantasy the way I used to for hours on end as a teenager, or I am sat on my couch binge watching media content the way all millennials are in this blessed age.

Links

Purdue MSE, Google Scholar, Linkedin, Researchgate, Publons, Twitter, Github

Email: mannodiarun@gmail.com