Bio

Originally from Mauritius, I won one of the five 2012 State of Mauritius Science Scholarships which funded my university studies in Physics at the University of Oxford (St Hilda’s College) in the UK. I graduated with a Master of Physics (MPhys) degree in 2017.

After Oxford, I moved to Mainz (Germany) to pursue a PhD at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research as an Early Career Researcher in a Marie Sklodowska Curie Innovative Traning Network (LubISS). Passionate about understanding the natural world, I chose an interdisciplinary PhD topic that allowed me to obtain a deeper understanding of various phenomena that we encounter daily. My PhD research was on topics related to wetting and Interfacial Phenomena: the study of droplets, bubbles, particles, and their interactions with surfaces. I completed my PhD in 2021 and was awarded the 2021 Wilhelm and Else Heraeus prize for my work.

I then moved to Durham (UK) in November 2021 to start a postdoc at Durham University. At Durham, I have been developing a state-of-the-art computational method, called the lattice Boltzmann method, to study multiphase fluid flows. I am applying this method to study the dynamics of drops on a class of super-liquid-repellant surfaces called liquid-infused surfaces (also known as SLIPS). In April 2023, I was awarded a National Fellowship in Fluid Dynamics by the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) to research into self-cleaning surfaces.

I believe that we can learn a lot from the natural world. By taking inspiration from nature, we can develop technologies that are more sustainable and better for the environment. My research is motivated by this line of thought. One of my research interests relates to self-cleaning surfaces. Inspired by the lotus and pitcher plants, self-cleaning surfaces are a class of surfaces that are significantly easier to clean than regular surfaces. My goal is to elucidate the mechanisms that give these surfaces their exceptional self-cleaning property. An understanding of these mechanisms will enable engineers to design coatings for surfaces (e.g. windows and solar panels), such that they can be cleaned more sustainably, using less energy, water, and chemicals.

CV

Click here for my CV.