Science, technology and innovations in India

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IIT Delhi to create new centre to boost research in optics and photonics --इंडिया साइंस वायर
India Science Wire

5-7 minutes

IIT Delhi

In order to take teaching, research, development, and innovation in different areas of optics and photonics to a higher level, while keeping a balance between classical and modern areas, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi will create a new centre named ‘Optics and Photonics Centre’. The Institute’s Board of Governors has given its approval to the creation of the new centre.

Optics and photonics is the study of the fundamental properties of light and harnessing them in practical applications. To list a few, the areas covered under optics and photonics include Optical imaging, Optical metrology, Sources and detectors of light, Lasers, Fiber optics, Optical communication, Optical sensors, Colour of light, Vision optics, Remote sensing, Illumination, Diffractive optics, Adaptive optics, Holography, Fourier optics, Optical image processing, Opto-electronics, Optical data storage, Optical computing, Microscopy, Bio-medical optics, Nonlinear optics, IR optics, Terahertz optics, Photonic circuits, Nano-photonics, Plasmonics, Ultra-fast optics, Photonic quantum technologies etc.

The Optics and Photonics Centre, IIT Delhi will seek collaboration with establishments such as the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and industry to undertake R&D in the areas of importance for them. DRDO is already collaborating in this area through a vertical in Photonics in the Joint Advance Technology Centre (JATC) at IIT Delhi.

Optics and photonics is the study of the fundamental properties of light and harnessing them in practical applications. To list a few, the areas covered under optics and photonics include Optical imaging, Optical metrology, Sources and detectors of light, Lasers, Fiber optics, Optical communication, Optical sensors, Colour of light, Vision optics, Remote sensing, Illumination, Diffractive optics, Adaptive optics, Holography, Fourier optics, Optical image processing, Opto-electronics, Optical data storage, Optical computing, Microscopy, Bio-medical optics, Nonlinear optics, IR optics, Terahertz optics, Photonic circuits, Nano-photonics, Plasmonics, Ultra-fast optics, Photonic quantum technologies etc.

“As the spread of photonic technology and its usage is increasing, there would be many opportunities for such collaborations including setting up of start-ups. Apart from this, the Centre will play a pivotal role in the near future development of photonics-based quantum technologies, for next generation computing, secure communications etc.Sustained linkages with industry will also be developed and established,” said Prof Joby Joseph, Coordinator, Optics and Photonics Centre, IIT Delhi.

On the teaching side, the Centre will focus on doctoral and postgraduate programmes including special programs for industry professionals. Innovation and translation of research into products would be very important for the Centre. It will also encourage and help students in entrepreneurial efforts and connect them with suitable investors through due processes at the Institute.

IIT Delhi has been known for its contributions in Optics in India and abroad. Many faculty members in Physics Department, Electrical Engineering, Centre for Sensors, Instrumentation and Cyber Physical System Engineering (SeNSE) and several other academic units are engaged in Optics &Photonics R&D.Over the years, four faculty members of the Physics Department have been recognized with the coveted Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize for their work in optics and photonics.

Prof. Anurag Sharma, JC Bose Fellow, Dept. of Physics, IIT Delhi said, “The Centre will synergize and significantly enhance the activities in Optics and Photonics at IIT Delhi. This is particularly important in view of the strong interdisciplinary nature of the subject.”

Optics and photonics have become extremely important today as enabling technologies, and have immense applications in diverse fields such as communication and information processing; quantum information and computing; energy harvesting and green energy; lighting- particularly solid-state lighting; imaging- particularly bio-imaging; and several engineering fields- aerospace, civil and environment, agriculture, micro-nano fabrication, automotive engineering, research and industrial instrumentation, surveillance and offence in the military.

Many agencies such as the DRDO, CSIR, DAE, Department of Space and industries are increasingly turning towards optics and photonics for technological solutions.

Many new application areas are emerging day-by-day. In recognition of the importance of this, the UN declared 2015 as the International Year of Light and Light-based Technologies and since 2018, May 16 is celebrated as the International Day of Light.

 

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Indias IIT researchers develop smart windows that regulate light, heat to conserve power in buildings
Temperature control and lighting are regarded the predominant energy-consuming resources in large buildings and office complexes that use conventional glass windows.


Now, researchers from IIT Guwahati claim to have developed smart window materials that can control the amount of light and heat permeating through, when a voltage is passed thought it. They say this can help develop efficient automatic climate control systems in buildings.


Smart window materials developed by the researchers make use of 'noble metals' and their comparatively inexpensive alternatives.

India's IIT researchers develop smart windows that regulate light, heat to conserve power in buildings

Temperature control and lighting are regarded the predominant energy-consuming resources in large buildings and office complexes that use conventional glass windows. Now, researchers from IIT Guwahati claim to have developed smart window materials that can control the amount of light and heat...

www.wionews.com

 

[HariPrasad-1]

View attachment 84134

Ayurveda has many medicine of Alzheimer. Highly effective.

 

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[sorcerer]

A natural dye extract may protect our eyes from harmful laser


Posted On: 29 MAY 2021 1:00PM by PIB Delhi



Scientists have found that the natural indigo dye extracted from leaves of a plant of the bean family is capable of protecting human eyes from harmful laser radiation. It could be used to develop optical limiters useful in weakening the potentially harmful radiation and protecting the human eyes or other sensitive optical devices from accidental damage in an environment where such lasers are in use.


The blue dye extracted from Indigoferatinctoria or the famed Indigo plants has been used over the years to colour clothes and clothing materials. Although synthetic indigo dyes are now available, the natural variety also is in common use. It is extracted from the leaves of the plant, following standard protocols in scientific laboratories.


Researchers from the Raman Research Institute (RRI), Bengaluru, and Kensri School and College, Bengaluru, studied the optical properties of the natural Indigo dye and found that it can act as a device to protect human eyes from harmful laser radiation. The study, funded by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, was published in the journal ‘Optical Materials’.


The researchers extracted the dye and stored it in a refrigerator below 4º Celsius to preserve its natural properties. Their study on how much it absorbed light at different wavelengths of the electromagnetic spectrum showed that the absorption is maximum in the ultraviolet region of the spectrum, at a wavelength close to 288 nanometres, and in the visible region, close to 660 nanometres. The absorption is comparatively high for the green light as well. “Indigo absorbs light because of molecular absorption bands. The maximum absorption wavelength can vary over several nanometers depending on the dye’s solvent and concentration,” explains Reji Philip, professor at RRI and a co-author of the study. The absorption’s variation with wavelength indicated that chlorophyll, an organic compound that takes part in photosynthesis, is present in the dye.


The researchers wanted to study whether the organic dye showed additional absorption when the input light intensity is high.


The team found that when they increase the intensity of the laser pulse, the dye absorbs more light. That is, it is more opaque to higher intensity light. Scientists refer to such materials as an ‘optical limiter’.


Optical limiters are useful in weakening the potentially harmful radiation emitted by powerful lasers and protecting both eyes and sensitive optical instruments. “Making a prototype optical limiter using natural Indigo is the next logical step, followed by a commercially viable product,” Reji pointed out.

The Indigoferatinctoria plant.
[Image Credits: Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0]


Publication link:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.optmat.2021.110925


Author(s) of the research/study: Beryl Chandramohan Dasa, Niranjan Rejib, Reji Philipa ––
a Ultrafast and Nonlinear Optics Lab, Light and Matter Physics Group, Raman Research Institute, Bangalore, 560080,bKensri School and College, Mariya Street, Mariyana Palya, Bangalore, 560024


For more details, Reji Philip ([email protected]) can be contacted.

 

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It's a huge break through.

Scientists develop efficient Artificial Synaptic Network that Mimics Human Brain | DD News

DDNews, News, National News, Indian News, Sports News

www.ddnews.gov.in

 

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[sorcerer]

Scientists develop efficient Artificial Synaptic Network that Mimics Human Brain


Posted On: 31 MAY 2021 4:38PM by PIB Delhi



Scientists have fabricated a device that can mimic human brain cognitive actions and is more efficient than conventional techniques in emulating artificial intelligence, thus enhancing the computational speed and power consumption efficiency.


Artificial intelligence is now a part of our daily lives, starting from email filters and smart replies in communication to helping battle the Covid-19 pandemic. But AI can do much more such as facilitate self-driving autonomous vehicles, augmented reality for healthcare, drug discovery, big data handling, real-time pattern/image recognition, solving real-world problems, and so on. These can be realised with the help of a neuromorphic device which can mimic the human brain synapse to bring about brain-inspired efficient computing ability. The human brain comprises of nearly a hundred billion neurons consisting of axons and dendrites. These neurons massively interconnect with each other via axons and dendrites, forming colossal junctions called synapse. This complex bio-neural network is believed to give rise to superior cognitive abilities.


Software-based artificial neural networks (ANN) can be seen defeating humans in games (AlphaGo and AlphaZero) or helping handle the Covid-19 situation. However, the power-hungry (in megawatts) von Neumann computer architecture slows down ANNs performance due to the available serial processing while the brain does the job via parallel processing consuming just 20 W. It is estimated that the brain consumes 20% of the total body energy. From the calory conversion (https://hypertextbook.com/facts/2001/JacquelineLing.shtml), it amounts to 20 watts. While the conventional computing platforms consume megawatts, i.e., 10 lakh watts of energy, to mimic basic human cognition.


To overcome this bottleneck, a hardware-based solution involves an artificial synaptic device that, unlike transistors, could emulate the functions of human brain synapse. Scientists had long been trying to develop a synaptic device that can mimic complex psychological behaviors without the aid of external supporting (CMOS) circuits.


To address this challenge, Scientists from Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bengaluru, an autonomous institute of the Department of Science & Technology, Government of India, devised a novel approach of fabricating an artificial synaptic network (ASN) resembling the biological neural network via a simple self-forming method (the device structure is formed by itself while heating). This work has been recently published in the journal ‘Materials Horizons’.


Aiming to develop a synaptic device for neuromorphic applications with a humble fabrication method, the JNCASR team explored a material system mimicking neuronal bodies and axonal network connectivity much like the biological system. In order to realize such a structure, they found that a self-forming process was easy, scalable, and cost-effective.


In their research JNCASR team dewetted Silver (Ag) metal to form branched islands and nanoparticles with nanogap separations to resemble bio neurons and neurotransmitters where dewetting is a process of rupture of continuous film into disconnected/isolated islands or spherical particles. With such an architecture, several higher-order cognitive activities are emulated. The fabricated artificial synaptic network (ASN) consisted of Silver (Ag) agglomerates network separated by nanogaps filled with isolated nanoparticles. They found that dewetting Ag film at a higher temperature resulted in the formation of island structures separated by nanogaps resembling the bio-neural network.


Using programmed electrical signals as a real-world stimulus, this hierarchical structure emulated various learning activities such as short-term memory (STM), long-term memory (LTM), potentiation, depression, associative learning, interest-based learning, supervision, etc. impression of supervision. Synaptic fatigue due to excessive learning and its self-recovery was also mimicked. Remarkably, all these behaviors were emulated in a single material system without the aid of external CMOS circuits. A prototype kit has been developed to emulate Pavlov’s dog behavior which demonstrates the potential of this device towards neuromorphic artificial intelligence. By organizing a nanomaterial resembling the biological neural substance, the JNCASR team has moved a step further in accomplishing advanced neuromorphic artificial intelligence.


“Nature has had an incredible amount of time and diversity to engineer ever new forms and functions through evolution. Learning and emulating new processes, technologies, materials and devices from the nature and biology are the important pathways to the significant advances of the future which will increasingly integrate the worlds of the living with the man-made technologies,” said Prof Ashutosh Sharma, Secretary, DST.

Figure: Scanning electron microscope image of the artificial synaptic network device resembling a bio-neural network. Associative learning is demonstrated by emulating Pavlov’s dog, where post-training the dog salivates by hearing the bell.

 

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DBT-NII Receives Trademark for India’s First Indigenous Tumour Antigen SPAG9

ASPAGNIITM is being used in dendritic cell (DC) based immunotherapy in cervical, ovarian cancer and will also be used in breast cancer.

ASPAGNIITMmay revolutionise cancer treatment

Posted On: 04 JUN 2021 6:23PM by PIB Delhi

Cancer kills8.51 lakh people in India every year (International Agency for Research on Cancer, 2020,Globocan). As per World Health Organization (WHO), one in 10 Indians will develop cancer during their lifetime, and one in 15 will die of cancer. Therefore, it is all the more critical to make extraordinary breakthroughs and innovations for this deadly disease. To successfully implement innovation newer modalities for cancer treatment, researchers at the New Delhi-based National Institute of Immunology (NII), an Autonomous Institute of Department of Biotechnology (DBT),and clinicians at Cancer Institute, Adyar, Chennai have been working together to translate new scientific discoveries into improved care for cancer patients. Over the past twodecades, this team has been engaged in translating breakthrough that promises to add a highly potent weapon to the armoury against cancer especially employing targeted cancer Immunotherapy. India's first indigenous tumour antigen SPAG9 was discovered by Dr Anil Suri in 1998who is heading the Cancer Research Program at NII. In a recentdevelopment, theSPAG9 antigen has received the trademark ASPAGNIITM. Currently, ASPAGNIITM is being used in dendritic cell (DC) based immunotherapy in cervical, ovarian cancer and will also be used in breast cancer.


Immunotherapy is a new approach that exploits the body’s inner capability to put up a fight against cancer. With this approach, either the immune system is given a boost, or the T cells are “trained’’ to identify recalcitrant cancer cells and kill them. In this personalised intervention,those patients expressing SPAG9 protein can be treated with DC-based vaccine approach. In DC-based vaccine, patient’s cells called monocytes from their blood are collected and modified into what are called dendritic cells. These dendritic cells are primed with ASPAGNIITM and are injected back to the patient to help the ‘fighter’ cells, or T-cells, in the body to kill the cancer cells. DC-based immunotherapy is safe, affordable and can promote antitumor immune responses and prolonged survival of cancer patients.


The Department of Biotechnology has funded Cancer Research Program. Dr Anil Suri said, “we are thankful to DBT for giving us the platform and the necessary support to work all these years.”Dr Suri’s collaboratorDr. T Rajkumar, MD, DM, head of molecular oncology,is conducting clinical trials in cervical cancer patients at Cancer Institute, Adyar, Chennai. Dr T Rajkumar has been funded by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, to establish the Centre for Cancer Immunotherapy and to undertake these cancer trials.Also,Dr Suri and Dr T Rajkumar have been funded to undertake clinical trials using Dendritic cell-based vaccine in 75 recurrent/metastatic ovarian cancer stage IV patients employing ASPAGNIITM funded by the India Council of Medical Research (ICMR). Further with the funding support of the Department of Biotechnology in future, employing ASPAGNIITM, a phase 2 randomised controlled clinical trial to evaluate the role of metronomic chemotherapy and dendritic cell vaccine in recurrent hormone receptor-negative breast cancer will also be initiated at Cancer Institute, Adyar.


The ASPAGNIITM is a true example of translational cancer research and the Atmanirbhar Bharat spirit. It will eventually be helpful to patientsin India and the world. This will be a real morale boost in affordable, personalised,and indigenous products for cancer treatment.

 

[Tshering22]

If only there was a way to marry off these innovations with the corporate sector willing to license make it in partnership with the University -- all public universities could earn patent revenues and become self-funded rather than getting handouts from the government.

 

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New eco-friendly process enhances fatigue life of aluminium alloy used in aerospace components


Posted On: 07 JUN 2021 3:41PM by PIB Delhi



Indian Scientists have developed an environmental-friendly process, which can provide excellent corrosion resistance to the high-strength aluminium (Al) alloys extensively used in aerospace, textile, and automotive applications. It involves an electrochemical method for the production of an oxide film on the metallic substrate.


High-strength aluminium (Al) alloys are extensively used in aerospace, textile, and automotive applications owing to their low density and high specific strength. Aerospace components made out of Al alloys include landing gear, wing spar, which is the main structural part of the wing, fuselage (main body of an aircraft), aircraft skins or outer surface and pressure cabins. These parts often need resistance against wear, corrosion damages, and enhanced fatigue life. The widely used technique for Al alloys to improve corrosion resistance called hard anodizing (HA) process is an electrolyte-based coating deposition. It involves sulphuric/oxalic based electrolytes, which emits not only toxic fumes but are also hazardous to handle during processing.


In order to cater to the growing demand for cleaner industrial processes, an environmental-friendly process called micro-arc oxidation (MAO) has been developed at International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy and New Materials (ARCI), an autonomous R&D Centre of the Department of Science and Technology, Govt. of India. The process which involves an alkaline electrolyte is capable of providing better wear and corrosion resistance compared to the HA process.


MAO is a high-voltage driven anodic-oxidation process, which through an electrochemical method, produces an oxide film on a metallic substrates. ARCI team has further designed and developed a duplex treatment of shot peening (process used to modify the mechanical properties of metals and alloys) followed by MAO coating deposition. Systematic investigations conducted at ARCI have shown that the duplex treatment has led to the remarkable enhancement in aerospace Al alloys' fatigue life while retaining the outstanding corrosion and wear resistance of MAO coating. The efficacy of duplex treatment has been validated for different Al alloys and extended to impart superior corrosion fatigue life. This work has been recently published in the ‘International Journal of Fatigue’.


The MAO process developed at ARCI has been patented in India and abroad. The team at ARCI has mastered the design and development of MAO systems of a lab (20 kVA), bench (75 kVA), and industrial (up to 500 kVA) scales to enable translating the technology from the R&D level to commercial production. As a logical extension, the custom-built technology systems were transferred to various industries and academic institutes in India. To cater to the aerospace segment, extensive research has been carried out at ARCI, and the high-cycle fatigue life of aerospace Al alloys under plain and simultaneous corrosion environments could be significantly improved.


The process with necessary modifications can be used for wear, corrosion, thermal, and fatigue and corrosion-fatigue life enhancement of a variety of components made out of Al, Mg, Ti, Zr, and their alloys.

Fig. 1 (a) A close view of MAO reaction chamber while coating in progress and (b) coating deposition mechanism schematic along with typical MAO coating’s surface and cross-sectional morphology

Fig. 2 Duplex treated MAO coatings exhibiting higher life under both (a) plain-fatigue and (b) corrosion-fatigue conditions as compared to un-treated Al alloy.





Publications link: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijfatigue.2020.105965


For more details, Dr L. Rama Krishna, Scientist- ‘F’, Centre for Engineered Coatings & Chairman, Aerospace Working Group of ARCI, Email id: [email protected] can be contacted.

 

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--India Science Wire
By India Science Wire

4-5 minutes

A view of Hydrogen Fuelled Spark-ignition Engine Generator for Electrical Power Generation

Diesel-fuelled internal combustion engine generator for electrical power generation mainly emits carbon monoxide (CO), Hydrocarbon (HC), Smoke, Particulate Matter (PM), Oxides of Nitrogen (NOx) and Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions resulting in a contribution to air pollution.

To tackle this, researchers at the Engines and Unconventional Fuels Laboratory, IIT Delhi developed a new technology and built “Hydrogen fuelled Spark-Ignition Engine Generator” in collaboration with Kirloskar Oil Engines Limited (KOEL), and the Indian Oil R&D Centre for the utilization of hydrogen in internal combustion engines for zero-emission with higher thermal efficiency. A dedicated lubricating oil for the engine was also developed by the IOCL.

The project was mainly funded by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), Government of India, and supplementary funded by KOEL and IOCL R&D Centre. IIT Delhi and KOEL have jointly filed a patent application for the technology.

“As Hydrogen does not contain carbon, the hydrogen-fuelled engine does not emit any carbonaceous emissions. The emission ‘oxides of nitrogen’ can be controlled to ultra-low level using the appropriate technologies”, said Dr. K.A. Subramanian, Principal Investigator of the project and professor at the Centre for Energy Studies, IIT Delhi.

Diesel-fuelled internal combustion engine generator for electrical power generation mainly emits carbon monoxide (CO), Hydrocarbon (HC), Smoke, Particulate Matter (PM), Oxides of Nitrogen (NOx) and Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions resulting in a contribution to air pollution.

Hydrogen is available as a tangible product from industries including chloro-Alkali, ammonia, and refineries. Hydrogen can also be produced from the splitting of water using electrolyzers coupled with renewable energy sources (solar, wind, biomass, etc.). The surplus electricity can be converted into hydrogen using the electrolyzer and then, the electricity can be produced using this engine whenever needed such as meeting peak load demand, no short-term grid power available, emergency, etc.

The hydrogen fuel at up to 4 bar from the gaseous cylinder (150 bar / 350 bar / 700 bar) or the pipeline stored at low pressure (10 bar and above) in the industries will be injected into the intake manifold of the engine.

The technology will be useful to the industries (chloro-Alkali, Ammonia, etc.), those are producing hydrogen as tangible or main products, to generate electrical power to meet their inhouse-power requirement in the industry”.

The developed hydrogen engine can also be used in decentralized power generation for industries, buildings, etc. Thus, the green power with hydrogen can be generated using the multi-cylinder spark-ignition engine generator with the developed technology for strengthening the sustainable energy and environment.”

Dr. Subramanian added, “If hydrogen infrastructure can be developed and made available in the future, diesel generators can be replaced with hydrogen generators for electrical power generation. It will help to control air pollution, especially in urban areas.”

 

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[FalconSlayers]

Niti aayog funding should be increased, they are doing a phenomenal job.

 

[Lonewolf]

Niti aayog funding should be increased, they are doing a phenomenal job.

This was a brainchild of nda 1.0 ,really outstanding job so far , no corruption and all , their job is being diversified but like a hitman , more of project specific

 

[FalconSlayers]

This was a brainchild of nda 1.0 ,really outstanding job so far , no corruption and all , their job is being diversified but like a hitman , more of project specific

UPI is their work, they infact have opened Incubation centre in my college.

 

[Lonewolf]

UPI is their work, they infact have opened Incubation centre in my college.

Last i remember was they were working on something about a sort of catalogue type system for job specific employee and employer ,to ease down search for appropriate workers

 

[FalconSlayers]

Last i remember was they were working on something about a sort of catalogue type system for job specific employee and employer ,to ease down search for appropriate workers

Niti ayog should do it’s best for Industry 4.0 in India.

 

[Lonewolf]

Niti ayog should do it’s best for Industry 4.0 in India.

MAKE it AI enabled , and link it with a server of our own .

They should also make a section on their website for suggestions ,for ideas from public ,in case they may get a small hint , and develop it

 

[SavageKing456]