about

For Scientists:

Shayanta Chowdhury is a fifth-year PhD Candidate in Chemistry at the University of Notre Dame, working with Prof. Jon Camden. His research utilizes plasmonic nanostructures to study surface-bound molecules. His work focuses on the binding, orientation, stability, and exchange of N-heterocyclic carbene ligands on noble metal surfaces, ultrasensitive detection of analytes, and low-frequency Raman spectroscopy. He received his B.S. in Chemistry from the University of Dhaka, Bangladesh, where he worked in the Material Chemistry Research Lab on the temperature-dependent transport properties of ionic liquids and their mixtures.

He is deeply interested in the intersection of art and science. At Notre Dame, he has organized art-science events and exhibitions, contributed photographs and illustrations for magazines, books, and journal covers, and photographed and interviewed interdisciplinary academics to share their work with broader audiences.

He is currently seeking postdoctoral fellowships in conservation science to apply his training in spectroscopy and nanomaterials to the study and preservation of cultural heritage.

Jargon-Free Version:

Shayanta is a Chemistry PhD Candidate at the University of Notre Dame. For his research, he focuses monochromatic beams of light on nanoscopic specks of gold covered with useful molecules and studies changes in the light scattered by said molecules. He also occasionally focuses polychromatic light onto films of silver salt crystals, which can then be dunked in chemical baths to produce images from his memories. He likes to get his hands dirty, but at work, that would be a safety hazard. So, for fun, he plays with inks, paints, and bicycle grease.

Shayanta grew up in Dhaka, Bangladesh, where his family equally indulged his scientific and artistic curiosities. He is currently seeking a career where he can be in proximity to both.