Faculty Directory
Vinayak P. Dravid

Abraham Harris Professor of Materials Science and Engineering and (by courtesy) Professor of Chemistry and Dermatology

Founding Director, Northwestern University Atomic and Nanoscale Characterization (NUANCE) Center

Founding Director, Soft and Hybrid Nanotechnology Experimental (SHyNE) Resource, an NSF-NNCI Node

Contact

2145 Sheridan Road
Tech Institute, AB Wing A190
Evanston, IL 60208

Email Vinayak Dravid

Website

The VPD Group

Centers

Northwestern University Atomic and Nanoscale Characterization (NUANCE) Center

Departments

Materials Science and Engineering

Affiliations

PhD Program in Applied Physics

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Education

Ph.D. Materials Science and Engineering, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA

B.S. Metallurgical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, India


Research Interests

Professor Dravid's scholarly interests revolve around exploring and exploiting “nanoscale” solutions to “gigaton” challenges of energy, environment, and sustainability. Towards this goal, he utilizes “imaging” across diverse length-scales and disparate phenomena, from atoms to animals and from arts to astronomy. His research spans a wide spatial range - from atomic-scale analysis of fluid-surface interactions to sponge-based pollution sequestration technology that is being commercialized in the private sector (MFNS-Tech). His education and outreach contributions encompass microscopy and characterization of arts and artifacts as well as dynamic imaging and Ai/ML algorithms inspired by astronomy towards materials discovery.

Professor Dravid is a strong advocate (and practitioner) of experiential and immersion learning with strong hands-on component. His passion for facilities and instrumentation infrastructure has brought global leadership in the broad field of imaging to Northwestern and the Chicago region. He is a tireless advocate of “inclusive innovation” and committed to enhancing the societal and global appreciation for science and technology through the visually appealing medium of imaging.


Significant Recognition

  • Fellow, Royal Microscopical Society (RMS), 2017
  • Elected Honorary Member, Indian Institute of Metals, 2014
  • IIT Bombay Distinguished Alumnus Award, 2012
  • Lee Hsun Research Fellowship, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 2012
  • Elected Fellow, American Associated for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), 2010
  • Elected Fellow, Materials Research Society (MRS), 2010
  • Elected Fellow, American Physical Society (APS), 2010
  • Microscopy Society of America (MSA) Fellowship, 2009, Inception Class
  • Election to Faculty Honor Roll: NU Associated Student Government, 2008-2010
  • Richard M. Fulrath Award, (ACerS), 2008
  • 6th McBain Memorial Award, NCL, India, 2007
  • First McCormick Faculty Excellence Award, 2006
  • Elected Fellow, American Ceramic Society (ACerS), 2003
  • National Institutes of Health Sabbatical Faculty Fellowship, 2001-2002
  • Teacher of the Year, 2001-2002
  • ASM-IIM Visiting Faculty Fellow, 2001
  • Distinguished Alumni Service Award, IIT Bombay, India, 2001
  • Kurt Heinrich Award, Microbeam Analysis Society, 1998
  • R. L. Coble Award for Young Scholars, American Ceramic Society (ACerS), 1998
  • Burton Medal, Microscopy Society of America (MSA), 1996
  • IBM Faculty Development Award, 1995
  • Exxon Foundation Fellowship, 1995
  • National Science Foundation (NSF) Young Investigator Award, 1993–1998

Significant Professional Service

  • Founder and Co-Director, Global McCormick Initiative (GMI)
  • Founding Director, Soft and Hybrid Nanotechnology Experimental (SHyNE) Resource, an NSF-NNCI Node
  • Member, Australian Microscopy and Microanalysis, Research Facility (AMMRF) International Technical and User Advisory Group
  • Member, Space Studies Board of the National Academy of Sciences
  • Member, Science Advisory Committee, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Center for Functional Nanomaterials, Member 2010-2014, Chair 2014-2016
  • Member, Scientific Advisory Committee, Argonne National Laboratory Center for Nanoscale Materials, 2016-Present
  • Member, Argonne National Laboratory Scientific Steering Committee for Ultrafast Electron Microscopy, 2017-Present
  • Chair, 2016 National Science Foundation Nanoscale Science & Engineering Conference Reviewer and Panelist for National Science Foundation, Department of Energy, and Department of Defense
  • Reviewer for Applied Physics Letters, Physical Review Letters, Journal of the American Ceramic Society, Nature, Science, Acta Materialia, Journal of Materials Research, Journal of the Electrochemical Society, and Nano Letters
  • Editor, Journal of Materials Research, MRS Flagship Journal
  • Past Editor, Microscopy & Microanalysis, MSA Flagship Journal
  • Current Editorial Board, Journal of Microscopy
  • Past Editor, Journal of Materials Research
  • Editoral Board, Current Opinion in Solid State and Materials Science
  • Co-Founder and Steering Committee Member, International Institute for Nanotechnology (IIN)
  • Professional Memberships: American Ceramic Society (ACerS), Materials Research Society (MRS), Microbeam Analysis Society (MAS), Microscopy Society of America (MSA), ASM International, The Minerals, Metals, and Materials Society (TMS), American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), American Chemical Society (ACS), American Physics Society (APS), Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineering (IEEE), American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), American Society of Engineering Education (ASEE), Royal Microscopical Society (RMS), Chicago Council on Global Affairs, Sigma XI

Selected Publications

  • Kim, Mansu; Choi, Hyuk; Park, Jonghwan; Liu, Jian; Kim, Sohui; Koo, Kunmo; Dravid, Vinayak P.; Whang, Dongmok; Li, Shuzhou; Hupp, Joseph T., Exploring Atomic-Scale Interactions at the Interface of Reducible Oxide and Ruthenium Nanocatalyst for Ammonia Decomposition, ACS Materials Letters (2025).
  • Samuel, Angel Green; Cornish, Daphne; Simons, Lacy M.; Agarwal, Dilip; Shekhawat, Gajendra S.; Hultquist, Judd F.; Dravid, Vinayak P., Nanomechanical systems for the rapid detection of HIV-1 p24 antigen, Biosensors and Bioelectronics (2025).
  • Reynolds, Robert P.; Persaud, Jessica H.; Volonakis, George; Torma, Andrew J.; Meza, Patricia E.; Kelly, Zek E.; Stoumpos, Constantinos C.; Dravid, Vinayak P.; Katan, Claudine; Mohite, Aditya D.; Kanatzidis, Mercouri G., Design Principles for Narrow-Gap Hybrid Semiconductors, Journal of the American Chemical Society (2025).
  • Hegarty, John; dos Reis, Roberto; Dravid, Vinayak P., Laundry to Laboratory, ACS ES and T Water (2025).
  • Bhawnani, Rajan R.; Sartape, Rohan; Gande, Vamsi V.; Barsoum, Michael L.; Kallon, Elias M.; Reis, Roberto dos; Dravid, Vinayak P.; Singh, Meenesh R., Non-Aqueous Electrochemical CO2 Reduction to Multivariate C2-Products Over Single Atom Catalyst at Current Density up to 100 mA cm−2, Small (2025).
  • Wahl, Carolin B.; Swisher, Jordan H.; Smith, Peter T.; Dravid, Vinayak P.; Mirkin, Chad A., Traversing the Periodic Table through Phase-Separating Nanoreactors, Advanced Materials (2025).
  • Shindel, Benjamin; Hegarty, John; Estradioto, Juliana Davoglio; Barsoum, Michael L.; Yang, Maggie; Farha, Omar K.; Dravid, Vinayak P., Platform Materials for Moisture-Swing Carbon Capture, Environmental Science and Technology (2025).
  • Pandey, Shobhit; Goldfine, Elise A.; Sinha, Shriya; Zhang, Chi; Wenderott, Jill K.; Kaczmarczyk, Lucien; Dabrowiecki, Ksawery; Dravid, Vinayak P.; González, Gabriela B.; Haile, Sossina M., Steam-Assisted Ammonolysis of MoO2 as a Synthetic Pathway to Oxygenated δ-MoN, Materials (2025).