Welcome to our Meet the Researchers blog series, where each post features one of the DarChemDN researchers sharing insights into their personal journey and professional life.
Today we introduce DC5 – Mukesh Kumar Sivakumar
Where are you from?
I am from Chennai, a metropolis on the south eastern coast of India. It is known for one of the longest urban beaches in the world. I carry fond memories of the beautiful sunrises and sunsets that were an integral part of my upbringing. Fun fact, the Chennai municipal corporation is the second oldest in the world, after the city of London!
How did you adapt your new environment?
Adapting to France, especially the language and the administrative headaches, was one of the hardest things I’ve managed(still trying to) to do in my adult life. Luckily, my colleagues at the MIC were very welcoming and helped me settle in.
Work experience & research
I have a Masters in Physics. My thesis involved microfabrication and microfluidics. And I’ve stuck with it ever since. Before my PhD, I worked briefly in a couple of startups as a research engineer focusing on developing microfluidic diagnostic devices.
Future professional plans
My aim is to try and simplify complex, real-world problems with the help of microfluidics. I love interdisciplinary projects and would prefer working on them in the future. My goal is to work in industry, ideally in a similar environment to where I am currently working.
Hobbies
I prefer light hearted movies/content that does not require a lot of my attention. I’ve recently taken up a strong interest in building Lego sets. I’ve played football and racquet sports from my childhood and I try to keep that up even now.
Short project summary
I work at the Microfluidics Innovation Center in Paris. My PhD involves developing microfluidic platforms primarily for droplet generation and encapsulation. I also work on developing technologies outside the scope of my PhD project and take part in their valorization.
A day in my life
Always with a coffee. Quite a few brainstorming sessions with the team that I personally enjoy. And a customary game of foosball after lunch that has somewhat become a cherished tradition since the day I joined the MIC.
My take on synthetic biology
I did not have a lot of knowledge about this field before I joined my PhD and I’d argue I still don’t. But it is still fascinating to me to know what the project aims to achieve and I’m thrilled to be a part of it. It also aligns with my personal research interests as I do use microfluidics to help simplify the workflow.
This blog series is set up by Kalliopi Fourli and Lukas Herold the DarChemDN outreach team.
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