STAFF PROFILE
Professor Sumeet Walia
Professor Sumeet Walia is an innovator, research leader and serial inventor passionate about using technology as a vehicle to make people's lives better.
Professor Sumeet Walia has built a strong capability in engineering new material systems and nanoelectronic/photonic devices for addressing critical technological bottlenecks particularly in healthcare, energy and manufacturing. This has enabled a wide range of partnerships with industry to translate cutting edge research into real world impact.
He has published over 125 peer-reviewed journal articles. His work appears in the highest quality outlets including Nature Communications, Advanced Materials, among many others. He is a named inventor on ten patents covering multi-sector technological innovations and products.
Professor Walia is an award-winning researcher who has served on multiple boards with extensive contributions towards Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Access in the STEM sector. He has built strong national and international partnerships with stakeholders to drive common goals.
Research
Prof Walia's research is highly multidisciplinary underpinned by a strong focus on ultra-thin (only few atoms thick) materials that show quantum-confinement induced properties and device engineering. His research is focused on creation and development of new miniaturised technology through discoveries at the interfaces of materials science, nano/optoelectronics, device engineering, artificial intelligence and biology.
Examples include creating miniaturised technology that will help overcome Moore's Law in electronic transistors, high-speed imaging sensors embedded with artificial intelligence (neuromorphics) to mimic human vision, ultra-thin functional coatings for energy efficient windows, sensors (light, environment, chemical, bio) and new materials integrated into medical devices to tackle antimicrobial resistance. Prof Walia's research uses a combination of materials engineering, nanoelectronics and optics to create technology platforms with desired function.
- 2013: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD., Electronic Materials), RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia
- 2009: Bachelor of Engineering (BEng., Electronics with 1st Class Honours), RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia
Awards and scholarships
- 2023 India Australia Business & Community Alliance (Australia India Science, Research & Development Award) (Finalist)
- 2022 3M Eureka Prize for Emerging Leader in Science
- 2021 40 under 40 Most Influential Asian-Australians Award in Science & Medicine category. ANU Centre for Asian-Australian Leadership, PwC, Johnson Partners and Asialink.
- 2020 Australian Academy of Science EMCR Fellowship
- 2018 Royal Society of Victoria Phillip Law Award for Physical Sciences
- 2018 Australia's Most Innovative Engineers 2018 by Engineers Australia
- 2018 Victoria Fellowship, Victorian Government
- 2017 MIT Technology Review Top 10 Technology Innovators under 35 in Asia Pacific
- 2017 Victorian Young Tall Poppy Award for Excellence in Science and Communication (Australian Institute of Policy and Science)
- 2017 Victorian Young Achiever of the Year for Research Impact – Victorian Government
Professional Activities and memberships
- Co-Chair, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Committee, Science and Technology Australia (2020 – Current)
- Advisory Board, Elevate Program, Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering (2022 – Current)
- Project Governance Board of the Victorian Government International Education Recovery Plan (2021 – 2023)
- Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Committee, ARC Centre of Excellence in Future Low Energy Electronics Technologies (2020 – Current)
- Founder and Chair, IEEE Nanotechnology Council's Victoria Chapter (2019)
- Executive Board member, Science and Technology Australia (2018-2020)
- Australian Academy of Science Early-mid Career Research forum
- Royal Society of Victoria (RSV)
- Australian Microscopy and Microanalysis Society
- Australian Nanotechnology network (ANN)
Editorial roles
- Book Editor - CRC Press (1. ISBN 9781138587984, 2. ISBN 9781138710368)
- Guest Editor, Beilstein Journal of Nanotechnology – Special Issue on 2D Materials
Assessor for grants and international peer-reviewed journals
- Australian Research Council – Discovery Early Career Researcher Awards, Discovery Projects, Linkage Infrastructure Equipment and Facilities Grants, Future and Laureate Fellowships
- Netherlands body of Scientific Research,
- German Research Foundation
- Science Fund of the Republic of Serbia
- Peer-reviewer for >30 international journals (Selected examples): Energy and Environmental Science, Nature Communications, Advanced Materials, ACS Nano, Nanoscale).
- Verma, A.,Johari, K.,Dubey, P.,Candolfi, C.,Lenoir, B.,Walia, S.,Dhakate, S.,Gahtori, B. (2023). Coupling of electronic transport and defect engineering substantially enhances the thermoelectric performance of p-type TiCoSb HH alloy In: Journal of Alloys and Compounds, 947, 1 - 10
- Vashishtha, P.,Prajapat, P.,Sharma, A.,Goswami, P.,Walia, S.,Gupta, G. (2023). Self-driven and thermally resilient highly responsive nano-fenced MoS2 based photodetector for near-infrared optical signal In: Materials Research Bulletin, 164, 1 - 7
- Hossain, M.,Shabbir, B.,Liu, J.,Wan, Z.,Walia, S.,Bao, Q.,Alan, T.,Mokkapati, S. (2023). Bisphenol A Detection Using Molybdenum Disulfide (MoS2) Field-Effect Transistor Functionalized with DNA Aptamers In: Advanced Materials Technologies, 8, 1 - 11
- Ahmed, T.,Jannat, A.,Krishnamurthi, V.,Aung, T.,Mazumder, A.,Zavabeti, A.,Syed, N.,Daeneke, T.,Ou, J.,Al-Hourani, A.,Walia, S. (2023). In press - Atomically Thin Synaptic Devices for Optoelectronic Neuromorphic Vision In: Advanced Materials Technologies, , 1 - 10
- Loomba, S.,Khan, M.,Haris, M.,Mousavi, S.,Zavabeti, A.,Xu, K.,Tadich, A.,Li, Y.,Walia, S.,Mahmood, N., et al, . (2023). Nitrogen-Doped Porous Nickel Molybdenum Phosphide Sheets for Efficient Seawater Splitting In: Small, 19, 1 - 11
- Mazumder, A.,Nguyen, C.,Aung, T.,Low, M.,Rahman, M.,Russo, S.,Tawfik, S.,Krishnamurthi, V.,Syed, N.,Zavabeti, A.,Abidi, I.,Guo, X.,Li, Y.,Ahmed, T.,Daeneke, T.,Hourani, A.,Walia, S., et al, . (2023). Long Duration Persistent Photocurrent in 3 nm Thin Doped Indium Oxide for Integrated Light Sensing and In-Sensor Neuromorphic Computation In: Advanced Functional Materials, , 1 - 8
- Hourani, A.,Balendhran, S.,Walia, S.,Hourani, T. (2023). Line Scan Hyperspectral Imaging Framework for Open Source Low-Cost Platforms In: Remote Sensing, 15, 1 - 20
- Singh, M.,Ingle, A.,Gonzalez, A.,Mariathomas, P.,Ramanathan, R.,Taylor, P.,Christofferson, A.,Spencer, M.,Low, M.,Ahmed, T.,Walia, S.,Bansal, V., et al, . (2023). Repairing and Preventing Photooxidation of Few-Layer Black Phosphorus with ß-Carotene In: ACS Nano, 17, 8083 - 8097
- Jain, S.,Syed, N.,Abbas, S.,Ako, R.,Low, M.,Bhaskaran, M.,Russo, S.,Daeneke, T.,Walia, S. (2023). Atomically Thin Gallium Nitride for High-Performance Photodetection In: Advanced Optical Materials, 11, 1 - 11
- Virgo, E.,Haidari, H.,Shaw, Z.,Huang, L.,Bryant, S.,Walia, S.,Elbourne, A. J., et al, . (2023). Layered Black Phosphorus Nanoflakes Reduce Bacterial Burden and Enhance Healing of Murine Infected Wounds In: Advanced Therapeutics, , 1 - 14
14 PhD Completions and 1 Masters by Research Completions20 PhD Current Supervisions and 3 Masters by Research Current Supervisions
- Neuromorphic vision sensor for real-time detection and tracking. Funded by: Office of National Intelligence National Intelligence and Security Discovery Research Grants from (2023 to 2026)
- Ultrathin coatings for IR selective switchable smart windows (FLEET Translation Program - administered by Monash University). Funded by: MONASH UNIVERSITY - CAT0 from (2023 to 2023)
- Visible switching coatings for Smart Windows (administered by Wallace Building Systems Pty Ltd). Funded by: Innovation Connections grant - Cat 1 from (2023 to 2023)
- Scalable atom-thin materials for monolithic electronics and optoelectronics. Funded by: ARC Discovery Projects commencing in 2022 from (2022 to 2024)
- Large-Area Detection of Improvised Explosive Devices by Portable Artificial Intelligence-Powered Electronic Noses (administered by USyd). Funded by: Office of National Intelligence National Intelligence and Security Discovery Research Grants from (2022 to 2025)