Nanotech expert set to be IIT-Hyderabad director

HYDERABAD: An expert in nanotechnology metallurgy from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT-M), professor Budaraju Srinivasa Murty is all set to take charge as the new director of the IIT-Hyderabad (IIT-H), putting an end to the race for the coveted post.
“We have received confirmation that the offer rolled out to the IIT-M professor has been accepted accepted by him. While we are waiting for final orders and itinerary from the ministry of human resource development, he is likely to assume charge as the new director from next week,” Ch Subramanyam, acting director of IIT-Hyderabad told TOI.
Professor Murty currently serves as head of metallurgical and materials department at IIT-M and has held several administrative and academic posts in the past. He will be succeeding professor UB Desai, who served as the director for two consecutive terms, for a five-year period.
Born in Vijayawada, Professor Murty completed his diploma in metallurgy in 1983 followed by a bachelor in engineering from Visvesvaraya Regional College of Engineering (VRCE) Nagpur in 1986. He also has a masters in engineering and PhD from the Indian Institute of Sciences (IISc), Bengaluru. His journey with IIT started from the Kharagpur campus, where he served for 12 years, before moving to IIT-M in 2004.
An expert in nano-materials and its technological viability, he has 20 patents to his credit including nano copper powder and process for manufacturing of nano copper in a green way. He is a recipient of the prestigious JC Bose Fellowship Award and is known for his work in nanocrystalline materials and nanocomposites, bulk metallic glasses, grain refinement and modification of AI-based alloys, AI-based composite etc. During his 26-year-long teaching career, he has also supervised 59 PhD scholars.
His students describe him as a workaholic and humble person, who played a vital role in bringing a high-performance microscope (known as LEAP) to IIT-M, which offers an atom-by-atom view of any material. He has also authored a textbook on nanoscience and nanotechnology that is widely used by engineering students across the country.
“He works on some advanced materials that are not available for industrial application yet. He is an expert in material characterisation and has always encouraged us in being experimental,” said Guru Vidyarthi, a faculty member at National Institute of Technology, Andhra Pradesh, who was mentored by Professor Murty at IIT-M for six years, during his PhD thesis. Professor Murty has authored more than 400 journals and has completed 55 sponsored research projects to the tune of Rs 18.72 crore. He is currently the principal investigator/coordinator for 13 projects with a total funding of Rs 51.72 crore.