Good day, Kanike Rajesh. I'm Arjun. I've had a look through your background and your professional record. I'm interested in hearing more about your work and how you see yourself fitting in here with our faculty. Ready to start?

Please start by introducing your professional journey in academia.

Yeah, myself is a doctor, Kanika Rajesh, I completed my.

Take your time, Professor Kanika. Please continue.

Yeah, am I audible?

Yeah.

Yes, you are audible, Professor Kanika. Please go ahead.

Yeah, as I said, uh, I completed my Bachelor of Technology in mechanical engineering from Rajiv Gandhi University of Knowledge Technology of Andhra Pradesh and after that I complete, I have written the grade and I qualified the accordingly, based on the rack, I got selected for a masters program at National Institute of Technology, Warangal in the field of materials in the specialization of.

Various technology for pursuing for master studies.

In the Department of Metallurgical Engineering and Materials. Uh, science.

And during my M tech, I carried out a project called studies on Energy absorption capability of cellular Forms. And basically it is for improving the energy absorption characteristics of the cellular phones. And then based on my ANTEC thesis work, I even participated in international conference called CGCRI where I got the best postal best paper presentation award at this conference and then. After that, my masters.

I went for working as a assistant professor at the VFSTR Foundation for Science and Technology and Research, which is a DMD team to be university where I worked as a student professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering for an Around six months later, I thought that pursuing the PSD is a good option to stay in the academic field, so I went for pursuing my PhD at IIT Roorkee in the Department of Medical and Materials Engineering and the guidance of.

Professor Devrupal Nahri and under the professor under the supervision of Larry. Professor Larry.

And we, I have worked on developing the drug lifting orthopedic implant and basically in this we will be we had worked on surface engineering of metallic implant. Basically we will be quoting by active porous ceramic coating and then in this porous structure and we are incorporating some antibiotic text so that it will provide as a platform for integrating with the bone as to integration as well as to provide antibacterial properties for the implant system.

And then successfully we have a developed, uh, an drug elifting orthopedic implement. Basically it is we can call the surface modified metallic orthopedic implant for sustained drug delivery. And uh, during my tenure of PhD, I, uh. I uh, given my research work, my presented my research work at various national international conference and which in turn, uh recognized me with the best paper presentation awards in the.

Several conferences and the latter I applied even uh, I got the international travel support from a science and engineering research board and the Department of Science and Technology from the Government of India and then.

Yeah, I went to participate present my research in Emrs based on the award at from the ITSTST and I presented my research at European Material Research Society. And then after that my defense PhD, I got selected for Indian Institute of Information Technology Design and Manufacturing that is stability DM kernel where I worked as assistant professor at a temporary basis for a almost around 7 months.

Which is a typically F1 contract. It is a temporary basis position where selected for one year contract. I worked on an average of seven months and then I went for a passing my post doctoral studies due to the passion towards the research. So I went to the pursuing my postdoctoral service at IIT Bombay and I have been avoided the institute post doctoral fellowship for pursuing the postdoctoral research during academic of 2526. So currently I'm working on to expand. 5 research beyond the biomaterials and biomedical application fields I.

We extended my uh, field to the studying the composite, uh, hydrothermal effect on the surface modified carbon fiber epoxy composites. So how the typical environmental uh, conditions will affect the, uh, carbon fiber composites. So currently I'm staying at as a post-doc researcher at IIT Bombay. So this I'll just brief about me.

Thank you, Professor Kanika, for sharing your extensive journey in academia and research. I appreciate the depth and breadth of your experiences. Let's move forward.

Thank you. Thank you.

Yeah, please.

Yeah, basically it's, uh, the foundation lied during my childhood only basically I used to go schools, I used to inspired, get inspired from the teachers. So that's where the the foundation has been started to become an academician in, in, in academics. So I love teaching, first of all, and I love teaching. I love the things to explain all the things. I love the. Interact with the peoples and to, you know, enrich our knowledge and to share the knowledge.

Professor Rajesh, let us begin your interview. To start, could you tell us about your academic journey and how you became interested in the field of Mechanical and Materials Engineering?

As well as it will enrich our knowledge as well. So, so continuously interacting with the bright minds of the people. So it always gives a good another level of pleasure. So that so I love sharing of knowledge that that's the main and explaining and telling something with a good passion in the sense of teaching as a teacher, as a lecturer or a professor. It it, it literally started the foundation from the childhood itself. And then from during my graduation, I used to feel that I want to become an.

Like a professor in a while, uh, in the very, in the good institutions. So that I use, uh, that's where it started and keep motivating me to pursue my masters. And then there are lot of professors are, has recognized the gene and into, into for teaching and to become a professor. So they told also, uh, you pursue the part of the PhDs and then I like, uh, to, due to their motivation, I went for PhD. At IIT Rootkey, where Professor Devri Balahari has given a lot of.

Uh, during my apps and down during my PhD and she see was the one, uh, behind my backbone to bring my PhD uh, to make me to complete the PhD successfully. So then I keep on finishing my PhD again, uh, to due to the interest, due to the into in teaching and passion again, it dragged me towards the uh teaching where uh, I went for teaching a AAA team. It is also one of the Institute of national importance comes under the.

Uh, encouragement. She's always, uh, motivated me.

Yeah, and coming and interacting with them, they're also bright minds of the young generation of these people and coming through cracking the JE and interacting with them and enriching, sharing knowledge with them and enriching the knowledge, enriching the knowledge to me as well as the institutional growth wise. So I always feel very satisfied, very comfortable and very, you know more most.

All this thing I can say that it's very into into energy, passion, the love towards teaching that never ends me. So the main that passion only brings to me to this level that I can say that. So even I started my Mtech after immediate after Mtech also pursued my career in academics. Even after PhD also pursued my career in academics even I'm also currently looking for pursuing the career in as academician.

Yeah. So these are all things as motivated to me to take the career of academician in academics. Thank you.

Thank you, Professor Rajesh, for sharing that deeply rooted journey and passion for academia and teaching. It’s clear that your motivation and dedication have been consistent throughout your career. Next, could you briefly summarize how your research aligns with the role of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, particularly in areas like metallic biomaterials or developing indigenous implants for orthopedic or dental applications?

Yes, yes, sure, sure. See my actually my during my PhD research I can say that I carried my expensive research and surface modified metallic implants. Basically we have worked on the metallic implant basically titanium 6AL4P alive where we have developed, we engineered that surface through advanced manufacturing methodology that is plasma spray coating that is high temperature method of coating to develop the bio active.

Recording So what the metallic implants so and this will promoted the you can say that one of the rivalries revolutionary thing in orthopedic field because current markets developing an implant system which can exist which can give the properties of St. integration as well as antibacterial properties. The very least either a metallic implant is giving the.

Infection, antibacterial properties or either it is giving the.

RC integration with the phone, but uh, even the combination of the games with the antibacterial pair proteins are very compromised and mechanical properties as as well compromised. So developing an implant which can sustain both of these property that is integration as well as antibacterial and also minimizing the compromise on the thermal uh, sorry mechanical property. That's where our implant metallic implant will uh win win over the existed current orthopedic implants. So as you know.

Connected the my PhD topic is definitely I can say they're completely aligned with the current.

Requirement of uh, meta uh, for the applications of dental as well as uh, we can, uh, for orthopedic applications, uh, also. So I can say that you can further, you can even there is a titanium screws which which are used for dental application as well. They were providing some coating over the titanium screw which which are used to implant in the dental case so that it can integrate with the bonus. So, so by seeing my current research.

Aligned with the current requirement of the role and considering my qualification as I has the mechanical background in the bachelors and I have pursued my Masters in materials as well as my PhD in materials and moreover my total research topic completely. It's perfect match for the current require current demand for that current position so that considering and further my interdisciplinary ability to expand my research to other research.

When that would be provide another good advantage for the academics. So that considering all this thing, my educational background, mechanical materials and combination will give a perfect match for this as well as and also my perfect PhD total work is aligning with the current existed requirement of the position. So based on these two combinations will make me to. Be a perfect person for the current role of this.

Uh, work, uh, sorry of this post. So that's what. Thank you.

Yeah, yeah. Basically when we are searching the literature, when we are keep going on the literature what it happens that there are the, there are other coding methodologies which are used to develop a porous coating on the methodic implant. But the problem with them that whether that porous the coating strength was very little, very little there and also. The drug releasing that is antibacterial capability were very short duration.

Thank you for explaining, Professor Rajesh. It’s evident that your extensive work in surface modification and metallic implants aligns closely with the interdisciplinary demands of this position, both in research and application. Building on that, can you share any key challenges or breakthroughs during your work on plasma spray coating or achieving both antibacterial and osseointegration properties in implants? How did you approach

So both of these things are given a gap created a gap for to advancing the reset or accelerating the research for that's where we find out. So that we have to select a fabrication, advanced fabrication method where the coating strength should be relatively high and simultaneously it has to produce good mechanical properties as well as it has to retain the mechanical as well as addiction strength between the coating as well as the implant surface so that.

We have seen that USA, if you say the United States, the FTB approved plasmas reporting was standardized, but that is that is mainly intended for making the RTO integration with the poll. That's where to actually to actually the titanium is a bio inert thing. So to develop there is a coating which has a good addition thing to develop the integration with the board. So for that they developed a method of plasma strike working.

For coating the implants to make attached to the cortical bone of the femur. So but we have recognized that there is a porous nature is generating during the plasma spray coating that's where we clicked an advantage that which which you can use that porous nature of that coating as a reservoir for the holding the antibiotics so that we have the breakthrough was got there itself where we have reservoir at the antibiotics where it has loaded the.

So that it will release the.

Antibiotics as well as the HS surface will provide the integration with the bone and behind optimize such a way that coating can retain its properties even long term as so as a result we have achieved the breakthrough. So this is this is one of the breakthrough where the porous as well as used for antibiotic reservoirs as antibiotic reservoir as well as ATL try to integrate it with the bone. So that's where the BAITU has happened. So we have successfully our professor has. Patented and I continued the research I took it the research it at at another different level further to expand what could be done in further another thing so that it has been as a result of research I have published.

3 reputed journals such as ACS, Applied Biomaterials and General of Drug Delivery Sensor Technologies. So this extensively research work has been published in these journals. So this is the one of the big two and this particular work is highlighted in the various.

Such a work, I was very fortunate to recognize my research work by these national media outlets and DST so that it it, it always gives that how much the breakthrough has been achieved through this work. Yeah.

National media as well as news Indian Science, one of the government organization websites, so.

Thank you for detailing that process and breakthrough, Professor Rajesh. It’s quite clear how your approach addressed critical limitations of existing methodologies, adding significant value to the field while aligning with global standards like FDA approval. Let’s shift our focus to your teaching abilities. Could you share how you structure your approach when teaching a complex topic in mechanical or materials engineering? How do you make it engaging and comprehensible to students?

Yeah, first of all, when you see that.

The teaching, if you encounter a very difficult topic, first of all you try to if the students also feeling very difficult to understand. So let us break it into the parts, several parts and we will try to go that complex parts as a part by part. The first of all, the complex topic will be divided into parts and we will approach part by part, part by part, part by part through teaching, through video.

Like here through some models, teaching models and through discussions like that, we can break it to the complexity of the concept and to to break it into the several parts through various, various lectures and developing different teaching models and also engaging thorough discussions. And so such a way that we can approach a very complex concept into a simple concept to understand. That's where my simple fund is that.

The students so break it into the complex part, into smaller parts and engage it through, as I said, a lot of discussions and then we can excel the teaching to make the student understand the these concepts. So that's what we can engage like this methodology. Thank you.

Thank you, Professor Rajesh. Your approach to breaking down complex topics into manageable parts and relying on discussions and models reflects a structured and student-centric teaching methodology—it’s valuable for fostering understanding. I'm curious, how do you balance theoretical teaching with practical laboratory sessions in your courses to ensure students gain both conceptual knowledge and hands-on experience?

Yeah. So that's where the important things lies. You have to, you know, theoretical as well as practical. That's where the things is required. If you follow the Indian state education system, most of the went the theoretical and they'll forget about that tomorrow. So that's not how the engineering works. So you have to analyze the concept and.

Have to practically things think about the applications where this concept is utilized well.

So we have to, for example, what, what we can say that, uh.

There is a laboratory experiment, fluid power systems and hydraulics, basically hydraulics, how it works. There is a Pascal. So how we have to explain the theory concept behind the Pascala and based on that theory how the hydraulics is going to work. Even if you see the cranes proclaims and these are all pumps will be there with the small operation of the one lever and with the small.

So that's where the Pascal applies. So you have to learn the concept and you have to know the application where it applies in the practical laboratory. And as well we can even you can see the metallurgy where we in the materials field where we have seen the, the properties depend upon the microstructure. For example, if you take a steel where you have modified some heat treatment, you have done. So then if you see the based on the heat treatment conditions. The properties of the material varies. That's how we study.

Some pressure we can lift heavy, heavy vehicles.

That's how we study in the theoretical material science background. But to the practical point, the student has to know really whether it works or whether it really is scalable working in the industry or not. So let them take the students to their practical laboratory and let them do it some heat treatment on that particular steel and build them know that how the microstructure detailing has been changing before heat treatment and after aging after that heat treatment as well as let them know that do some little bit.

Things like measuring the hardness and doing some tensile treatments so that they will come to know the clear difference without heat treatment and with heat treatment. So this is how the people as learning the class and they have to know that.

Application also so by inculcating such a small practical things, uh, so that the, the they will be motivated towards to contributing or K choosing the path of R&D are are they will think that what we are learning. That is true first of all, and they know that there there is a application will be existed, but on what we learned. So these are all things they must know just theory nowadays, just they will study and forget about it. That's not why and.

We want to play, we get something, they will read it, but until unless people will get the practical things and they will get exposure, then they start trusting it and they will getting motivated. The things they are really things are happening so that we can contribute better, so that I can practical knowledge improve, can improve the practical things about our existed in the current field so that we can do some such things, so that we can take to the things to the next level. So that's how.

Practical things will work so that these things still be balanced when you start, as well as practical is more important. Yeah.

The.

Thank you.

Thank you,

Yeah, basically when as a postdoctoral researcher, as a PhD students we have to we will be getting a students from for the mentorship so that we will be guiding the students. So we will be asking to through start some basic, we'll be providing some concept asking them to start a literature over that and we will be looking after that what the research gap that are existed. By mentoring the students and we will keep motivating that.

So let's, let's do something new so that it will contribute the, the new way of scientific field so that they will keep searching and they'll bring the problem. We will thoroughly discuss how it whether it is feasible or not, whether we can start or not, and we'll think it and we'll finalize the concept. Then we'll start doing the experiments. I'll be getting the students how we have to do approach the experiments, how we have to schedule the experiments and how we have to analyze the results.

Professor Rajesh, I appreciate your detailed explanation. It’s clear you view hands-on laboratory application as an essential complement to theoretical teaching, ensuring students both understand and trust the concepts through real-world experiments. Let’s move ahead. Could you share how you’ve guided students in their research projects or assignments, particularly in areas like

So we we will be all carrying the students. So you know where typically how the research will be going. So how the research has to be done, how the results has to be analyzed, how we have to drafting a publication, how we have to draft a patent, how we have to draft a. Manuscript into a publication. So all these things will be going through a mentorship to the students through the step by step and making them to understand everything in a very clear and conceptual manner.

So that they become a true researcher, researcher like, you know, independent researcher. That's what I said. Thank you.

Thank you, Professor Rajesh. Your mentorship approach is commendable, emphasizing both research foundation through literature analysis and comprehensive guidance—from identifying gaps to deriving results and drafting publications or patents. It highlights your ability to empower students as independent thinkers and researchers. Next, could you elaborate on your experience with evaluating students—for example, during exams, assessments, or performance reviews—and how you ensure fairness and consistency in your evaluation methods?

Yeah, as I said that we have to.

While evaluating as I said that we have to be very consistent, that's where the student performance will be evaluated so that.

Evaluation is the most crucial part once, uh, uh, that's where we can know that how much a student has learned. So that evaluation is quite, uh, we can do through quizzes through examination, through video, PPT and presentations. So we can done the evaluation through different concept nodes where during my teaching in the template GM Kurnool as to conduct that quizzes where I used to conduct the take the present.

Patients and the concepts and how much they good at understanding and then I used to take some exams, some discussions so and also some end exams, mid exams, quizzes. These are all things will be part of the evaluation process so that it will make a very good effective criteria for evaluating the students learnings.

Thank you, Professor Rajesh. Your multi-faceted evaluation approach—leveraging exams, quizzes, presentations, and discussions—shows a clear intent to thoroughly assess various aspects of student learning while remaining fair and transparent. Next, let’s discuss your consultancy experience in coating technology or tribocorrosion. Could you share how you’ve contributed to such projects and the value you provided?

Yes, yes. As I said that travel correlation and coding. So during my PhD where my developing A metallic implant system not only just simply developed. So it was thorough characterization. So basically correlation also one of the part of the my PhD research work so that basically my metallic implant has subjected to the small micro movements between. The implant as well as the.

Bone, cortical bone. So there is a small micrometer so that we have to see the tribological behavior of the developed implant system. So for that what we have developed we have other professor Lahiri lab we had got a tribal correlation. So we have utilized this tribal correction machine to evaluate the effectiveness of the tribology wise this implant system though the corrosion also.

Bit not done, but it is also.

Part of that research work, but we have effectively done the bio tribology where we have taken this implant system, we have simulated the conditions of this implant system like real time, real-time situation, atmospheric condition where the implant are exposed, those implant has been simulated like a simulated body fluid atmosphere were created and we have immersed in that. Metallic implant in the body fluid and we start evaluating the effectiveness of this tribology.

So successfully as I said that tribal corrosion wise our metallic implant system has provided A consistent very good results and which has been in turn resulted in a very good publication. So based on this we can say that based on the publication I carried out my research in the tribal college and so it has led to the.

The best fit for this tribal correction field as well.

Thank you, Professor Rajesh. Your detailed explanation on simulating real-time conditions for testing tribological behavior and body fluid interactions showcases your expertise in the domain and your ability to contribute to advancements in coating technology and tribocorrosion studies. Now, shifting our focus toward innovation, could you describe your approach to developing higher technology readiness levels (TRL) for innovations such as 3D-printed implants? Specifically, how do you plan to scale an innovation from TRL 3 to TRL 6 within defined timelines?

Yeah, we can use that 3D printing also because nowadays the 3D printing has been taken as. Very demanding field in the current biometrics so that we can rather we can say that as I said that a developed advanced manufacturing system that is used through coating on the implant system. We can set another another way also that is also plasma spray coating is one of the 3D printing methodology but not exactly that but 3D printing.

Where it started in plasma spray coating it that as far as my opinion, I can say that that is also one kind of three DPT because where in the plasma spray coating where the deposition of layers over the implant system goes by layer by layer by layer by layer. So one layer is spotted spots, plots, basically we called it splats and where it melted one we get a deposit accelerated in the.