Sridhar Rajaram

Biography

Sridhar Rajaram has completed his: 1996 - 1998 M. Sc. (Chemistry) Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, India; Advisor: Prof. M. V. Sangaranarayanan 1998 - 2000 M. S. (Chemistry) Cornell University, Ithaca, USA. Advisor: Prof. J. Meinwald 2000 - 2005 Ph. D. (Chemistry) University of Utah, Salt Lake City, USA. Advisor: Prof. M. S. Sigman 2006 - 2009 Post doctoral researcher, University of California, Berkeley, USA. Advisor: Prof. J. M. J. Fréchet.

Research Interest

Sridhar Rajaram research interest include: Organic Materials The high cost associated with the production of inorganic semiconductors has been a barrier for the development of low cost electronic devices. Solution processable organic semiconductors provide a cost effective alternative mainly due to the reduction in processing costs. However, in order to realize the promise of low cost electronics, the performance of organic electronic devices has to be improved. In our group, this will be addressed using the toolkit of synthetic chemistry. The approaches we will utilize are: (i) The synthesis of patternable polymers for applications in Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED), Field Effect Transistors (FET), and in Solar cells. (ii) The development of novel polymeric materials that can self assemble into nanoscale domains. (iii) Synthesis of novel organic-inorganic hybrid materials. Organo Catalysis Conventional asymmetric catalysis has relied on the use of chiral organometallic catalysts. Inspired by enzymes, a number of groups have recently developed small molecules that effect enantioselective transformation in the absence of metals. Our group will focus on the development of simple catalytic systems to explore novel reactivity patterns. Mechanistic studies will be conducted to evaluate the role of catalysts and guide the development of new catalysts.