RA/VSPs

Soorya Vinod R. K. (RA)

Soorya completed her Master's degree in Physics from the Cochin University of Science and Technology, Kochi, Kerala. She worked at the Ultrashort Pulse High Intensity Laser Laboratory (UPHILL), TIFR Mumbai under Prof. G. Ravindra Kumar for her master's thesis titled "Doppler Shift Spectrometry of Laser-Induced Plasmas: A Comparative Study Using 800 nm and Upconverted 400 nm Pump Pulses". She joined LASE in January 2025 as a VSP to work on double pulse plasma experiments. After completing her tenure as a visiting student in July 2025, she is now working as a research assistant at LASE. She is expected to complete in August 2026.

Anurag Choudhary (RA)

Anurag completed his Master's degree in Physics from the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IIT-Delhi) and has a Bachelor's degree in Physics from the Atma Ram Sanatan Dharma College, affiliated to the University of Delhi. His Master's thesis titled "Ultrafast heat diffusion dynamics in thin films" at IIT-Delhi under Dr Sunil Kumar mapped the transient femtosecond-scale heat diffusion dynamics upon femtosecond laser excitation. He joined LASE in September 2025 to work on experiments involving the investigation of chirality of molecules using femtosecond pulses as well as to work in the development of the upcoming high-harmonics beamline. He is expected to complete his tenure in August 2026.

Vijayakumara (RA)

Vijayakumara completed his Bachelor's degree in Physics from Azim Premji University, Bangalore. He worked as a VSP at LASE before coming back as a research assistant in August 2026. He developed a low-cost, compact, and integrated laser shutter with a filter wheel that is compatible with high-repetition-rate lasers. He also helped develop a compact optical setup for polarization-based experiments at LASE. In his tenure as RA, he will assist in implementing the HHG beamline. He is expected to complete his tenure in August 2027.

Sulafa Masood (RA)

Sulafa completed her Master's degree (Integrated M. Sc) in Physics from Cochin University of Science and Technology, Kerala. She worked on femtosecond laser micromachining at IIT Madras for her master's project before joining LASE as a research assistant in August 2026. At LASE, she will assist in implementing gas target assemblies for the HHG beamline and its optical alignment, perform plasma generation and characterization, and automate experiments. She is expected to complete by August 2027.