Atharva was born and brought-up in India and obtained his Integrated BS-MS degree in Chemical Sciences at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research-Kolkata. Atharva’s undergraduate research was centered around functional inorganic materials and spanned the fields of supramolecular polyoxometalate chemistry, colloidal quantum-dot chemistry, QD-photovoltaics and electrocatalysis. His Masters’ thesis was focused on understanding the interfacial carrier recombination dynamics and tuning the electrode-electrolyte interface for efficient quantum-dot solar cells. Fascinated by the idea of utilizing optoelectronic devices for understanding how the brain functions, Atharva switched fields and joined the Bioelectronics group at MIT as a graduate student in the fall of 2017. Currently his research is broadly focused on design, fabrication and validation of multifunctional fiber-based “Optoelectrofluidic” devices, developed using the thermal drawing technology for monitoring and modulating the neural circuits in the brain, spinal cord and the gut. He is also excited about expanding the suite of functional features in flexible fibers by incorporating new modalities such as chemical sensors, stimulation electrodes, μ-electrochemical cells and programmable wireless operation, among others.

When not in lab or thinking about his next experiments, Atharva enjoys cooking, catching up with friends and running around the Charles.