S.K. Sundaram

Inamori Professor
Matls Science & Engineering
Inamori School of Engineering
Hall of Glass Science & Engine
Mon: 11:00 am - 1:00 pm
Tue: 11:00 am - 1:00 pm
Wed: 11:00 am - 1:00 pm
sundaram@alfred.edu
607-871-2789

Education

  • Executive Certification: Strategy and Innovation Sloan School of Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2007
  • PhD: Ceramic Engineering/Materials Science and Engineering Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, USA, 1994
  • MTech: Materials Science and Engineering Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, India, 1986
  • Certification: Leadership SUNY Executive Leadership Academy, 2015

Biography

Dr. S. K. Sundaram is an Inamori Professor of Materials Science and Engineering (Endowed Chair) at the Inamori School of Engineering, The New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University appointed in 2011. The Inamori Professorships were created in 2005, when the Kyocera Corporation, one of the world’s largest manufacturers of advanced ceramic materials, made a $10 million gift to the University’s endowment to support the School of Engineering. The gift honored Kazuo Inamori, founder and chairman of the board of Kyocera. The University, in consultation with the Kyocera Corporation, agreed to use the income generated by the $10 million endowment to support the Inamori Professors, all recognized experts in their fields. Prior to joining Alfred University, Dr. Sundaram was a Materials Scientist at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) until December 31, 2010.  He joined PNNL first in 1994 as a post-doctoral fellow and then as a Senior Research Scientist in 1996.  He became Chief Materials Scientist in January 2002.  Overall, he has over 20 years of scientific research and leadership.  On technical front, he has been working on several aspects of advanced transformational materials science and engineering.  Dr. Sundaram’s research focuses on photon-matter interactions across visible to terahertz (THz) frequencies of the electromagnetic spectrum. His major areas of interest and contributions are: millimeter/THz wave science and technology, ultrafast materials science and engineering, and multiscale (nano- to macro-) materials processing. Dr. Sundaram is internationally recognized for interdisciplinary research.  He has managed small – large tasks and projects. He has long experience in assembling highly functional multidisciplinary research teams and working with his peer and colleagues.  He is very active in several scientific societies.  He has published over 150 scientific reports, publications and technical reports, made over 170 scientific/technical presentations, edited/contributed to 15 books, taught/mentored/supported over 100 students, and organized/co-organized several national and international symposia on advanced topics in materials science.

Research, Publications, & Presentations

Research & Publications

  • B. M. Clark, S. K. Sundaram, and S. T. Misture, “Polymorphic Transitions in Cerium-Substituted Zirconolite (CaZrTi2O7),” Scientific Reports, 7, 5920 (2017). doi:10.1038/s41598-017-06407-5
  • D. W. Steere, P. Tumurugoti, and S. K. Sundaram, “Ultrafast Postprocessing of Yttrium Aluminum Garnet Ceramics via Femtosecond Pulse Laser Irradiation,” Opt. Eng., 56(3), 037108 (2017), doi: 10.1117/1.OE.56.3.037108.
  • B. M. Clark, P. Tumurugoti, S. K. Sundaram, J. W. Amoroso, J. C. Marra, V. Shutthanandan, and M. Tang, “Radiation Damage of Hollandite in Multiphase Ceramic Waste Forms,” J. Nuclear Materials, 494, 61-66 (2017).
  • D. W. Steere, B. M. Clark, R. Gaume, and S. K. Sundaram, “Structure-Terahertz Property Relationship is Yittrium Aluminum Garnet Ceramics,” Appl. Phys. A, 123, 515 (2017).
  • B. M. Clark and S. K. Sundaram, “Terahertz Time-Domain Spectroscopy for in-situ Monitoring of Ceramic Nuclear Waste Forms,” Journal of Infrared, Millimeter, and Terahertz Waves, DOI: 10.1007/s10762-016-0289-2
  • M. Tang, P. Tumurugoti, B. Clark, S. K. Sundaram, J. Amoroso, J. Marra, C. Sun, P. Lu, Y. Wang, and Y-B. Jiang, “Heavy Ion Irradiations on Synthetic Hollandite-Type Materials: Ba1.0Cs0.3A2.3Ti5.7O16 (A = Cr, Fe, Al),” J. Solid State Chem., 239, 58-63 (2016).
  • P. Tumurugoti, S. K. Sundaram, S. T. Misture, J. C. Marra, and J. Amoroso, “Crystallization Behavior during Melt-Processing of Ceramic Waste Forms,” J. Nucl. Materials 473, 167-177 (2016).
  • Y. Gong, R. Dongol, C. Yatongchai, A. W. Wren, S. K. Sundaram, and N. P. Mellott, “Recycling of Waste Amber Glass and Porcine Bone into Fast Sintered and High Strength Glass Foams,” Journal of Cleaner Production 112(5), 4534-4539 (2016).
  • K. C. Phillips, H. H. Gandhi, E. Mazur, and S. K. Sundaram, “Ultrafast Laser Processing of Materials: A Review,” Adv. Optics and Photonics 7(4), 684-711 (2015).
  • R. Dongol, K. Chambliss, S. K. Sundaram, and M. Diwan, “Mechanical Properties of Photomultiplier Tube Glasses for Neutrino Detection,” International Journal of Applied Glass Science 7(1), 94-103 (2015). doi:10.1111/ijag.12140
  • P. Tumurugoti, B. M. Clark, and S. K. Sundaram, “Microstructural Modifications of Ceramic Waste Forms using Femtosecond Pulse Laser,” Optical Materials Express, 5(12), 2941-2950 (2015).
  • C. Yatongchai, A. W. Wren, and S. K. Sundaram, “Characterization of Hydroxyapatite-Glass Composites using Terahertz Time-Domain Spectroscopy,” International Journal of Infrared and Millimeter Waves 36(1), 81-93 (2015).
  • K. Chambliss, S. K. Sundaram, N. Simos, and M. V. Diwan, "Photomultiplier Tube Failure Under Hydrostatic Pressure in Future Neutrino Detectors," Journal of Instrumentation, 9 [10] (2014). [http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/1748-0221/9/10/T10002]
  • B. M. Clark, S. K. Sundaram, K. S. Brinkman, K. M. Fox, and J. W. Amoroso, “Spark Plasma Sintering of Neodymium Titanate Pyrochlore for Advanced Ceramic Waste Forms,” in Advances in Materials Science for Environmental and Energy Technologies III, Edited by Tatsuki Ohji, Josef Matyas, Navin Jose Manjooran, Gary Pickrell and Andrei Jitianu, pp.127-135, The American Ceramic Society, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2014.
  • P. Tumurugoti, S. K. Sundaram, K. S. Brinkman, and K. M. Fox, “Melt-Processed Multiphasic Ceramic Waste Forms,” in Advances in Materials Science for Environmental and Energy Technologies III, Edited by Tatsuki Ohji, Josef Matyas, Navin Jose Manjooran, Gary Pickrell and Andrei Jitianu, pp. 205-212, The American Ceramic Society, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2014.
  • B. M. Clark, P. Tumurugoti, S. K. Sundaram, J. W. Amoroso, J. C. Marra, and K. S. Brinkman, “Microstructures of Melt Processed and Spark Plasma Sintered Ceramic Waste Forms,” Metallurgical and Materials Transactions E: Materials for Energy Systems, 1E, 341348 (2014).
  • R. Gaume, D. Steere, and S. K. Sundaram, "Effect of Nonstoichiometry on the Terahertz Absorption of Y3Al5O12 Optical Ceramics," Journal of Materials Research, 760 (2014). [http://dx.doi.org/10.1557/jmr.2014.236]
  • M. Redjdal, K. Hadidi, R. A. Ristau, and S. K. Sundaram, "Production of Nanostructured Materials via Uniform Melt State Process," pp 90-93 in Technical Proceedings of the 2014 NSTI Nanotechnology Conference and Expo, NSTI-Nanotech 2014, Vol. 1 (proceedings of 2014 NSTI Nanotechnology Conference and Expo, NSTI-Nanotech 2014, Washington, DC.). Nano Science and Technology Institute. [http://www.nsti.org/procs/Nanotech2014v1]
  • Satya R. Ganti, S. K. Sundaram, John S. McCloy, “Frequency Dependent Optical and Dielectric Properties of Zinc Sulfide in Terahertz Regime,” Infrared Physics and Technology, 65, 67-71 (2014). http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.infrared.2014.03.013 ?
  • S. K. Sundaram, P. Colombo, and Y. Katoh, “Selected Emerging Opportunities for Ceramics in Energy, Environment, and Transportation,” International Journal of Applied Ceramic Technology, 10(5), 731-739 (2013).
  • Jiajie Ling, Mary Bishai, Milind Diwan, Jeffrey Dolph, Steve Kettell, Kenneth Sexton, Rahul Sharma, Nikolaos Simos, James Stewart, Hidekazu Tanaka, Brett Viren, Douglas Arnold, Philip Tabor, Stephen Turner, Terry Benson, Daniel Wahl, Christopher Wendt, Alan Hahn, Marc Kaducak, Paul Mantsch, S. K. Sundaram, “Implosion Chain Reaction Mitigation in Underwater Assemblies of Photomultiplier Tubes,” Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research A, 729, 491-499 (2013).
  • S. K. Sundaram, C. A. Sacksteder, T. J. Weber, B. J. Riley, R. S. Addleman, B. J. Harrer, and J. W. Peterman, “Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy for Rapid Screening and Live-Cell Monitoring: Application to Nanotoxicology,” Nanomedicine 8(1), 145–156 (2013).
  • B. J. Riley, B. R. Johnson, H. T. Schaef, and S. K. Sundaram, “Sublimation-Condensation of Multiscale Tellurium Structures,” J. Phys. Chem. C 117, 10128-10134 (2013).
  • Chung CW, J Chun, W Um, SK Sundaram, and JH Westsik, Jr. 2013. "Setting and Stiffening of Cementitious Components in Cast Stone Waste Form for Disposal of Secondary Wastes from the Hanford waste treatment and immobilization plant." Cement and Concrete Research 46:14-22. doi:10.1016/j.cemconres.2013.01.003
  • C.-W. Chung, W. Um, M. M. Valenta, S. K. Sundaram, J. Chun, K. E. Parker, M. L. Kimura, and J. H. Westsik, Jr., "Characteristics of Cast Stone Cementitious Waste Form for Immobilization of Secondary Wastes from Vitrification Process," J. Nuclear Materials, 420 [1-3] 164-74 (2012). [http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jnucmat.2011.09.021]
  • B. J. Riley, B. T. Rieck, J. S. McCloy, J. V. Crum, S. K. Sundaram, and J. D. Vienna, "Tellurite Glass as a Waste Form for Mixed Alkali-Chloride Waste Streams: Candidate Materials Selection and Initial Testing," J. Nuclear Materials, 424 [1-3] 29-37 (2012). [http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jnucmat.2012.01.024]
  • C-W. Chung, W. Um, M. M. Valenta, S. K. Sundaram, J. Chun, K. E. Parker, M. L. Kimura, and J. H. Westsik, Jr., "Characteristics of Cast Stone Cementitious Waste Form for Immobilization of Secondary Wastes from Vitrification Process," J. Nuclear Materials, 420 [1-3] 164-74 (2012).[http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jnucmat.2011.09.021]
  • P. P. Woslov and S. K. Sundaram, “High Temperature 2-D Millimeter Wave Radiometry of Micro Grooved Nuclear Graphite,” in Proceedings of MRS Fall Meeting, 2012.
  • S. K. Sundaram, C. H. Henager Jr, D. J. Edwards, A. L. Schemer-Kohrn, M. Bliss, B. R. Riley, M. B. Toloczko, and K. G. Lynn, "Hierarchical Microstructures in CZT," Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A: Accelerators, Spectrometers, Detectors and Associated Equipment, 652 [1] 174–177 (2011).[http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nima.2010.09.128]
  • S. K. Sundaram, J. S McCloy, B. J. Riley, M. K. Murphy, H. A. Qiao, C. F. Windisch, Jr, E. D. Walter, J. V. Crum, R. Golovchak, and O. Shpotyuk. 2012. "Gamma Radiation Effects on Physical, Optical, and Structural Properties of Binary As-S glasses." Journal of the American Ceramic Society 95(3):1048-1055 (2011). doi:10.1111/j.1551-2916.2011.04938.x
  • P. Lucas, E. A. King, R. G. Erdmann, B. J. Riley, S. K. Sundaram, and J. S. McCloy, "Thermal and Gamma-Ray Induced Relaxation in As-S Glasses: Modeling and Experiment," J. Physics D: Applied Physics, 44 [39] 395402/1-/5 (2011).[http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/0022-3727/44/39/395402]
  • J. S. McCloy, J. V. Crum, S. K. Sundaram, R. Slaugh, and P. P. Woskov, "High Temperature Millimeter Wave Radiometric and Interferometric Measurements of Slag-Refractory Interaction for Applications to Coal Gasifiers," J. Infrared, Millimeter, and Terahertz Waves, 32 [11] 1337-49 (2011).[http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10762-011-9823-4]
  • S. K. Sundaram, C. H. Henager Jr, D. J. Edwards, A. L. Schemer-Kohrn, M. Bliss, and B. R. Riley, "Electron backscatter diffraction analysis of a CZT growth tip from a vertical gradient freeze furnace," Journal of Crystal Growth, in press (available online) (2011) [http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jcrysgro.2011.02.008].
  • R. Golovchak, O. Shpotyuk, A. Kozdras, B. J. Riley, S. K. Sundaram, and J. S. McCloy, "Radiation effects in physical aging of binary As-S and As-Se glasses," Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry, 103 [1] 213-8 (2011) [http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10973-010-0876-8].
  • J. S. McCloy, S. K. Sundaram, J. Matyas, and P. P. Woskov, "Simultaneous Measurement of Temperature and Emissivity of Lunar Regolith Simulant using Dual-Channel Millimeter-Wave Radiometry." Review of Scientific Instruments 82(5), 054703 (2011). doi:10.1063/1.3590016
  • J. S. Chun, J. S. McCloy, J. V. Crum, and S. K. Sundaram, "Millimeter Wave Rheometry: Theory and Experiment." Rheologica Acta 50(2), 125-130 (2011). doi:10.1007/s00397-010-0522-1.

Awards/Honors

  • D. T. Rankin Award for exemplary service to the Nuclear & Environmental Technology Division (NETD) of the American Ceramic Society, 2015
  • Federal Laboratory Consortium Technology Transfer Award for “IncubATR – live-cell monitor”, 2011
  • R&D100 Award for “IncubATR – live-cell monitor”, 2010
  • R&D 100 Award for “Multiscale Materials Processing”, 2008
  • Awarded “Outstanding Performance Award” for “Discovery of a new metastable crystalline phase in Cd-Ge-As system”, December 2007.
  • Roland B. Snow Award, Placed 1st in Ceramographic Competition under Combined Techniques category – “Discovery of Metastable Crystalline Phases in Cd-Ge-As Glass,” Team: BR Johnson, BJ Riley, JV Crum, SK Sundaram, Chuck Henager, Jr., DJ Edwards, and AL Schemer-Kohrn, MS&T2007, Detroit, MI, 2007.
  • Inducted into “Order of Engineer”, 2006
  • R&D 100 Award for “Milliwave Thermal Analyzer”, 2006
  • Siemens Foundation Award for outstanding service as a competition judge for Materials Science at the Siemens Westinghouse Competition, 2005
  • Outstanding Performance Award (OPA) - Team Award from ETD for the PJM project, 2004
  • Outstanding Performance Award (OPA) from NSD for the NRO project on acousto-optic gratings, 2004
  • Invited by the National Academy of Engineering and Alexander von Humboldt Foundation to attend German-American Frontiers of Engineering, Ludwigsburg, Germany, April-May, 2003
  • Outstanding Mentor, Office of Science, Department of Energy, Fellowship Programs, 2002
  • Nominated for Battelle’s Community Spirit Award, 2001, 2002, 2005
  • Awarded “Outstanding Performance Award” for volunteer work in the “Expanding Your Horizons Program, 2002
  • Laboratory Director’s Fitzner-Eberhardt Award for outstanding contributions to Science and Engineering Education, 2001
  • R&D 100 Award for “Milliwave Viscometer”, 2001
  • Nominated and invited by the National Academy of Engineering to participate in the “Frontiers of Engineering” program, March 2001
  • Best Paper Award for Nuclear & Environmental Division of the American Ceramic Society, 2001
  • Represented ETD in the Steering Committee of the VPP – help win STAR status for the PNNL, May 2001
  • Won Battelle’s Science & Technology Challenges Award, April 2001
  • Awarded “Outstanding Performance Award” for team work in “Achieving VPP Star Recognition for PNNL”, September, 2001
  • Awarded “Outstanding Performance Award” for a publication in J. Non-Cryst. Solids, 2001
  • Awarded “Outstanding Performance Award” for contribution to the Battelle Speakers Bureau, December, 2000
  • Selected by PNNL for Community Spot Light, September, 2000
  • Awarded “Outstanding Team Performance Award” (Team Leader) for Argentine Resin Vitrification Testing, August, 2000
  • Identified as a “Key Contributor on a Commercialization Agreement,” Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, October 1999

Affiliations & Memberships

  • Elected Senior Member/Life Member, The International Society for Optical Engineering (SPIE) (2011/2016),
  • Elected Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science (2006),
  • Elected Fellow/Life Member, American Ceramic Society (2006/2016),
  • Elected Fellow, Society of Glass Technology (2009),
  • Life Member, Optical Society of America (2016),
  • Life Member: Indian Ceramic Society, Materials Research Society – India,
  • Member, New York Academy of Sciences (invitational), National Institute of Ceramic Engineers, Ceramics Educational Council, Materials Research Society, American Physical Society, and American Society for Engineering Education,
  • Honor Societies: Keramos, Sigma Xi, and Order of Engineer (2006),

Professional Experience

Administrative Experience 

Chair, Mechanical and Renewable Energy Programs                                                    2015-Present

The Kazuo Inamori School of Engineering includes privately endowed programs in mechanical, electrical and renewable energy engineering. These programs offer undergraduate majors in mechanical and renewable energy engineering and masters degrees in electrical and mechanical engineering. The enrollment for these programs has steadily grown approaching a total of 200.

  • As the Chair, nine faculty and staff directly report to me. I oversee a budget of about $750K, reviewing faculty and staffs, promotion and tenure (P&T) processes, strategy, and support of students, staffs, and faculty.
  • Fostering collaborations across private and public sides of the Engineering programs as well as other Schools within the University to grow sponsored research.
  • Actively leading renewable energy aspects of campus-wide sustainability and green programs within the University.


Patents Held 

  • P. P. Woskov, S. K. Sundaram, D. Cohn, J. E. Surma, and D. A. Lamar, “Directed Energy Melter,” US Patent: 8,525,085, September 3, 2013.
  • W. E. Daniel, P. P. Woskov, and S. K. Sundaram, “Milliwave Melter Monitoring System,” US Patent: 7,997,121, August 16, 2011.
  • S. K. Sundaram, B. J. Riley, T. J. Weber, C. A. Sacksteder, and R. S. Addleman, “System, Device, and Methods for Real-Time Screening of Live Cells, Biomarkers, and Chemical Signatures,” US Patent: 7,956,328, June 7, 2011.
  • B. R. Johnson, M. J. Schweiger, B. D. MacIssac, and S. K. Sundaram, “Chalcogenide Glass Nanostructures,” US Patent: 7, 211, 296, May 1, 2007.
  • S. K. Sundaram, K. K. Meher and P. C. Kapur, “A Rice Husk Ash Based Domestic Water Filter,” Indian Patent No. 187147, 16 February 2002.
  • J. Matyas and S. K. Sundaram, “Method and Composition for Protection of Refractory Materials in Aggressive Environments,” US Patent Application: 20110033613 A1, February 10, 2011.

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