Group of Diffusion-Microstructure-Properties
Aloke Paul, Professor ( Biography)
Department of Materials Engineering, Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, India 560012
Email: aloke[at]iisc.ac.in
Ph: (91)-080-2293-3242
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The study of diffusion has been profoundly shaped by the contributions of numerous distinguished scientists, including Nobel laureates. Following the formulation of diffusion equations grounded in Lars Onsager’s Nobel Prize–winning theoretical framework, it became widely recognized by the 1940s that diffusion coefficients in systems containing more than three components could not be reliably determined using the conventional diffusion couple method. This perceived limitation contributed to a gradual decline in diffusion research, despite its central importance in governing time-dependent degradation and determining the service life of multicomponent materials employed in high-temperature applications.
One of the noted scientists and author of the popular book on Thermodynamics, R.T. DeHoff, commented in the year 2002:
"The trouble with diffusion is that after more than half a century of experimental and theoretical investigation by some of the best minds in the material science field, the prediction of the results of the operation of this crucial process remains based upon the phenomenological formalism which defines diffusivities that (i) require significant experimental investment for their evaluation and are (ii) experimentally inaccessible for systems with more than three components." [Ref. The trouble with diffusion, Materials Research 5 (2002) 209-229].
We have addressed this long-standing challenge in multicomponent diffusion by introducing an innovative design strategy for diffusion couples, supported by newly formulated equations and analytical frameworks tailored to such profiles. These approaches substantially reduce both experimental and computational effort, while remaining applicable to systems of arbitrary compositional complexity. They have been successfully implemented across diverse classes of multicomponent materials, including nickel- and cobalt-based superalloys, iron-based alloys (steels), complex concentrated (high-entropy) alloys, and high-temperature protective coatings used in jet engines and power generation systems.
Diffusion coefficients can be experimentally estimated at selected compositions, and these values are subsequently integrated with a Physics-Informed Neural Network (PINN)–based numerical inverse method to construct a mobility database spanning multicomponent space. This framework has been advanced through the training of jointly guided students under the supervision of Prof. Saswata Bhattacharya, IIT Hyderabad, ensuring both methodological rigour and sustained expertise development.
Latest Publication update: While publishing multiple articles from a single system has become commonplace, our work distinguishes itself by presenting a unified study across five distinct systems. Through extensive experiments, we have systematically estimated temperature-dependent diffusion coefficients, comparing binary Ni–X and ternary Ni–Al–X systems (X = Cr, Mo, Ta, W, Re). This investigation integrates ab initio analyses with physics-informed neural network (PINN)–based numerical inverse optimization, thereby combining experimental and computational approaches. The study reflects the sustained effort of multiple students over several years and the collaboration of three research groups with complementary expertise. Such work demands considerable patience and perseverance, yet it contributes substantial value to the field. A preprint of this study is available for consultation. One can read the available preprint.
Outcome on developing methods in multicomponent diffusion from the group:
Computaional work-Physics Informed Neural Network (guided by Prof. Saswata Bhattacharya, IIT Hyderabad).
News and Updates
Suman Sadhu won the Best Oral Presentation Award at the Annual Student Symposium, Department of Materials Engineering, IISc, 2026.
Pushkar A. Pandit (jointly guided by Saswata Bhattacharya, IITH) won the Best Poster Award at the IIM, Hyderabad, 2025.
Aloke Paul received the J.C. Bose grant (ANRF) 2025.
Ankur Srivastava received the Larry Kaufman Scholarship from CALPHAD, 2025.
Ankur Srivastava won the Best Oral Presentation Award at the Annual Student Symposium, Department of Materials Engineering, IISc, 2025.
Anuj Dash joined IIT Bhubaneswar as an Assistant Professor in the School of Minerals, Metallurgical and Materials Engineering (2024).
Is it possible to estimate all types, i.e. tracer, intrinsic and interdiffusion coefficients from a single diffusion couple in a multi-component system? This is indeed possible following a relatively straightforward method Article 1 and Article 2 (2024).
The textbook "Thermodynamics, Diffusion and the Kirkendall Effect" is rated as one of the top books written by a IISc professor published during the last decade by Publisher Springer-Nature (2024)
Surajit Basak won the Best MTech Thesis Project award in the Department of 2023.
Anuj Dash won the best oral presentation award at the students' symposium in the Department of Materials Engineering in 2023.
Anuj Dash has proposed an innovative but simple design strategy of diffusion couples by intersecting dissimilar diffusion paths in multicomponent space to estimate diffusion coefficients, which was considered impossible (2023).
Aloke Paul is inducted as a fellow of the Indian National Science Academy (2023)
N. Esakkiraja won the first Graeme Murch Award for his Ph.D. thesis outcome recognizing outstanding achievements in diffusion research declared during the conference Diffusion in Solids and Liquids (DSL), Florence 2022. Currently, he is a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Münster, Germany
Aloke Paul is conferred with Distinguished Alumnus Award, 2021 by NIT, Durgapur.
N. Esakkiraja won the Prof. K.P. Abraham medal for the best PhD thesis in the Department of Materials Engineering, 2021.
Suman Sadhu (PhD Student) is selected for the Prime Minister's Research Fellows (PMRF) Scheme, 2021.
A joint work by Anuj Dash and N. Esakkiraja on estimation of tracer diffusion coefficients by pseudo-binary and pseudo-ternary methods (Article 1, Article 2), which was presented by Esakkiraja won the "Best Young Scientist award" during Diffusion in Materials (DIMAT) 2021 Hungary conference. This is the main conference in this field.
Aloke Paul is elected as the fellow of the Indian Academy of Sciences, 2020
Ujjval Bansal (PhD student) won the best oral presentation award in NMD-ATM, 2019.
Avik Mondal (PhD External: Tata Steel) won Young Metallurgist of the year award, 2019, Ministry of Steel, Government of India.
Varun Baheti joined IIT, Roorkee as assistant professor in the Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, 2019.
Sangeeta Santra joined IIT, Delhi as assistant professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, 2019.
N. Esakkiraja (PhD student) is invited as one of the very few speakers at the Gordon Research Conference (GRC), USA, 2019.
N. Esakkiraja (PhD student) delivered an invited talk on diffusion in concentrated high entropy alloys at the 15th international conference on Diffusion in Solids and Liquids (DSL), Athens, Greece, 2019.
N. Esakkiraja won the best oral presentation, Ujjval Bansal and Muni Kumar (PhD students) won the best and runner up prizes for their SEM micrographs at 31st Students symposium, 2018.
Varun A. Baheti (PhD student) received the James Clerk Maxwell prize for his publication in Philosophical Magazine, 2017. (Link to the article).
Aloke Paul received the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize in Engineering Sciences category, 2017, the highest award conferred by the Government of India (Video link). Listed in Asian Scientist 100, 2018 Edition in Materials Science Category.
Varun Baheti (PhD student) won the Best Presentation Award at 19th International Conference on Electronic Packaging, Systems and Technology, London (UK), 2017.
Sangeeta Santra (PhD student) received the prestigious Royal Newtonian International Fellowship for her postdoctoral position at the Oxford University, UK.
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