Nanoscience and Nanotechnology
     The properties of nanoscale materials and systems are different from the ones observed at smaller and larger scales. Because the fundamental properties of such entities are established at nanoscale, it is a necessity to understand the governing forces behind these systems and material properties. Therefore, our research focuses on both understanding nature of nanometer size material and development of the techniques and approaches to bring them into the desired 2D or 3D structures such as self-assembly.

• Self-Assembly: Assembly from a drying droplet, assembly via DNA hybridization

• Plasmonics: Synthesis and applications of novel AgNPs and AuNPs; Surface-enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS)

• Novel Characterization Techniques: Development of new approaches and techniques for nanomaterial characterization

     Nanomedicine and Nanotoxicology
     As the novel properties of nanometer size materials are better understood, their use in many fields is perused. One of the first impact areas of the applications of nanomaterials is the medicine. Their use in drug and gene delivery, targeting and therapeutic applications is investigated. It is foreseen that the way of conventional medicine will enter a new era. However, there are many questions that must be answered before moving that direction. Our research effort in this direction is both making new nanomaterial based medical tools and understanding their adverse effects on living systems staring from cellular level to animal models. We synthesize several nanoparticles for medical applications and test their effect in vivo and in vitro.

     Detection and Identification: From single molecule to molecular organizations
     It is a great challenge to detect minute amount of biologically important molecules in living cells and environmentally important molecules and molecular structures such as microorganisms in our environment. Although the advances in science and technology have reached a point where it has ever imagined today, due to the complexity of the problems, it is still a major challenge detect and identify the undesired molecules and structures in their natural environment. The research projects in my group aim the development nature inspired bio- and nano- sensors for the solutions of several challenging problems of today’s world. For example, in one project, we focus on the identification of microorganisms using surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS); in another we work on the development of novel nanostructured SERS substrates for the detection of several biologically important molecules.

     Our research projects are interdisciplinary in nature and usually blended with biology, chemistry, physics and material science. We employ several techniques and approaches in the form of modified or borrowed from the fields such as chemistry, molecular biology, microbiology, and material science.