Members

Naik Gururaj Naik is an associate professor at Electrical & Computer Engineering, Rice University. He received an M.E. from the Indian Institute of Science, India, and a Ph.D. from Electrical & Computer Engineering, Purdue University. During his Ph.D. with Shalaev and Boltasseva groups, he developed new plasmonic materials for nanophotonic applications. After pursuing postdoctoral research at Stanford University, Guru joined Rice University in 2016. His research group focuses on topics at the interface of quantum, nanophotonics, and materials. Guru’s research has attracted high citations, many invited talks, and won the MRS 2020 best oral presenter and poster awards. Guru is a senior member of Optica (formerly OSA), a recipient of the IEEE Photonics Society Graduate Student Fellowship, an Outstanding Graduate Research Award from Purdue University, and a Gold Medal from the Indian Institute of Science.

Google Scholar profile
Contact details:
Email: guru [at] rice [dot] edu
Phone: 713 348 2528
Office: Brockman Hall 337

Graduate Students

CirilPrasadCiril S. Prasad (ciril.s.prasad [at] rice [dot] edu) joined the Applied Physics Program at Rice in Fall 2020. He received his BS and MS degrees in physics from IISER-TVM, India. At Rice, He is interested in studying nanophotonic systems for selective thermal emission and enhanced sensing.

 

ZhichaoLi Zhichao Li (zhichao.li [at] rice [dot] edu) graduated from Peking University in 2020 with a bachelor’s degree in Physics. He joined the applied physics Ph.D. program at Rice in Fall 2020. He is interested in studying nanophotonic phenomena.

 

 

 

DingZhang Ding Zhang (ding.zhang [at] rice [dot] edu) joined the Physics PhD Program at Rice in Fall 2020. He received MS and BS degrees in physics from Lehigh University. He is interested in the study of 2D quantum materials.

 

 

 

XielinWangXielin Wang (xielin.Wang[at]rice[dot]edu) graduated from the University of Science and Technology of China in 2021 with a bachelor’s degree in Physics. She joined the applied physics program and the Naik group in Fall 2021. Her research interests lie in 2D materials.

 

 

Bharadwaj Peela (bharadwaj.peela [at] rice [dot] edu) received his bachelor’s in Materials Science and Metallurgical Engineering from IIT Hyderabad in 2022. He joined the ECE department at Rice in the Fall of 2022. His research interests lie in ultrafast optics and energy applications. Outside the lab, he likes to play badminton and discuss football.

Undergraduate Students


Chacko Mathai  (chacko.mathai [at] rice[dot] edu) is an undergraduate student at Rice University studying electrical engineering with a concentration in photonics. He is interested in nanophotonics and quantum materials.

 

 

Group alumni

Greshma Nair (postdoctoral scholar 2017-18); Research Associate at Louisiana State University

Graduate students

Chloe Doiron, Ph.D. (2016-2020); Postdoctoral Fellow at Sandia National Laboratories

Sakib Hassan M.S. (2017-19); Ph.D. in the Robinson lab

Yuning Wang M.S. (2018-2019)

Weijian Li, Ph.D (2017-2021)

Undergraduate researchers

Rosemary Lach (2020-2022)

Sam Raphaelson (Summer 2022)

Frank Yang (2017-2021); Graduate studies at Caltech

Alex Hwang (2016-19); Master’s at Cambridge University, Graduate studies at Stanford University

Junzhe Bao (2019-2020); Researcher in Kono lab

Pranita Nalluri (Summer 2020); Researcher in Mech.Engg.

Nolan Bitner (Summer 2020); Researcher in Kono lab

Cameron Gutgsell (2018-19); Graduate studies at Johns Hopkins University

Matthew Disiena (Fall 2017); Graduate studies at UT, Austin