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Prof. J. Ramkumar


Dean of Infrastructure & Planning (DoIP),
Professor (HAG), Department of ME & Design,
FNAE, FETE, FIE(I), Chartered Engineer (India),
Chairman, Kanpur Local Centre, Institute of Engineers (India),
Co-ordinator for MedTech IIT Kanpur & RuTAG IIT Kanpur
Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, 208016 (U.P.), India


An important trend in engineering design and manufacturing is the growth in the number of products and components of the products whose features sizes are measured in microns (10-6m). There is an increasing demand for the miniaturized components in the various fields, including aerospace, defense, medical instruments and many other fields. Micro and nano machining are tool-based machining techniques developed to produce miniaturized components of complex geometry and functionality.

Smaller products and sub assemblies means low power requirements, less material usage, better functionality per unit space; however the cost of the product is influenced significantly by micromachining processes which can be categorized as a silicon layering process, the LIGA process and other microscopic processes. Most of the products in micro technology use Silicon because it not only posses great electronic properties, but also useful mechanical properties like high strength, high elasticity, moderately low density and many more. The technologies for processing silicon are well-established owing to its widespread use in microelectronics.

Nanomachining is a newly developed technology for machining engineering materials with the undeformed chip thickness in nanometric scales. Nanomachining technology can be used to achieve ductile mode cutting with crack free and smooth surface in brittle materials like silicon, quartz, glass and ceramic.

High power is generated in most semi-conductors which act as a heat source. The present heat transfer capacity of heat sink cannot catch up with high power density generated. Many methods are used like forced cooling by heat pipe, heat absorption by phase transformation and more. However, they are not a good solution. Microtexturing is a good alternative in which micro patterns are made on the heat reservoir units and they act as a good heat sink. Lithography, plasma oxygen etching, CNC stamping are some of the techniques used to achieve micro Texturing.

Associated Labs & Groups

RuTAG
IIT Kanpur

Imagineering Lab
IIT Kanpur

MedTech
IIT Kanpur

About Prof. Janakarajan Ramkumar

Prof. Ramkumar (Dean of Infrastructure & Planning) has an experience of more than two decades in research, academia, and industry. He has been influential in developing tremendously accurate micro/nano machining processes which have been an integral part of current age defense systems in development of metamaterials for defense technology, Unmanned Air Vehicle, machining process for aerospace and missile parts such as the components and shells used in Man Portable Anti-Tank Guided Missile (MPATGM). As a researcher he has focused to use his knowledge and expertise to employ sympathy studies to cater the unmet needs of the deserving people; has established assistive technologies in locomotive (and visual) disability to overcome architectural barriers and tools for the Agritech.


Since his inception at IIT Kanpur in 2003 his journey of research has employed good teaching-learning practices with an ultimate motive of coalescing research & academics in an innovative manner so as to develop solutions which increase efficiency of products & pose minimum damage to environment. Imagineering Laboratory, Tinkering Lab Maker's space MedTech IIT Kanpur and RuTAG IIT Kanpur at IIT Kanpur are all his brain child that provides an ecosystem to cater to the requirements of needful users be it students, scholar, faculties or for project work across the country.


He has mentored and nourished more than 15 start-ups spread across the nation who had been exceptional in providing novel products and have stepped up into the market. Prof. Ramkumar is a frugal innovator, with a deep interest in manufacturing sciences & in the trying times of covid brought many innovations which were used pan India, like the SWASA masks and Sanjeevani (Oxygen Concentrator) were a blessing for the frontrunners and hospitals. He has brought out eight MOOCs courses (having over 48 lakhs views) including international audience, conducted & organized 100+ workshops in the area of Design Thinking to propagate science & research among students, scholars, industrial practitioners and faculties.

Owing to his ingenious & inquisitive contributions, it would not be an overstate to say that Prof. Ramkumar's name is now synonymous to Manufacturing Engineering in the research community.

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