Faculty Profile
Gaurav Bahl
Profile Sections
Education
- PhD, Electrical Engineering, Stanford University, September 2010
- MS, Electrical Engineering, Stanford University, June 2008
- B.Eng, Summa cum laude, Electrical Engineering, McMaster University, ON, Canada, June 2005
Academic Positions
- Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical Science and Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, August 16, 2018-date
- Affiliate, Technology Entrepreneur Center, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, May 5, 2017-date.
- Affiliate, Micro and Nanotechnology Laboratory, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, January 16, 2013-date
- Affiliate, Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, August 16, 2012-date
- Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical Science and Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, August 16, 2012-2018
- Postdoctoral Research Fellow, EECS, Optics and Photonics Laboratory, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, September 2010-August 2012
- Research Assistant, Mechanical Engineering, Micro-Structures and Sensors Laboratory, Stanford, April 2006-August 2010
For more information
Course Development
- Developed a new special topics class for mechanical engineers ME 498 PM4 "Photonic MEMS". Offered first time in Fall 2012. Subsequently offered in Spring 2014 and Fall 2016.
Research Statement
Gaurav Bahl performs experimental research at the interface between optical and mechanical systems. Of particular interest are the mechanisms by which light interacts mechanically with photonic microsystems (i.e. via radiation pressure, gradient force, electrostrictive pressure, and photothermal effects), and how mechanical devices can affect and manipulate light. Applications of this research include inertial sensors, microfluidic bio-chemical devices, microwave frequency references, and harsh-environment physical sensors.
While the forces exerted on matter by single photons are miniscule, micro/nanodevices that are both optically and mechanically resonant can enhance such opto-mechanical interactions by several orders-of-magnitude. These devices are excellent scientific platforms for research in nonlinear optics, quantum mechanics, laser development, and thermal management via laser heating and cooling.
Graduate Research Opportunities
PhD oriented Electrical Engineering graduate students with a strong background in experimental optics are encouraged to contact Prof. Bahl with a complete CV.
Undergraduate Research Opportunities
Our group is seeking talented undergraduate researchers for summer 2015 positions, with the potential for continued work into the school year.Students with strong backgrounds in the following topics are encouraged to apply -- electromagnetics, RF and microwave circuits, photonics, and microfabrication.Interested students should contact Prof. Bahl (bahl@illinois.edu) with a complete CV, accompanied by a short paragraph highlighting relevant experience and coursework.Please see our group website (http://bahl.mechse.illinois.edu) for representative work.Women and students from minority backgrounds are encouraged to apply.
Research Areas
- Applied Physics
- Energy
- Fluid Mechanics
- Health and Bio
- Manufacturing
- Security and Defense
- Solid Mechanics and Materials
- Thermo and Heat Transfer
Selected Articles in Journals
- Kim, S., X. Xu, J.M. Taylor, and G. Bahl, Dynamically induced robust phonon transport and chiral cooling in an optomechanical system, Nature Communications 8, 205, doi:10.1038/s41467-017-00247-7, 2017.
- Kim, J., M. Kuzyk, K. Han, H. Wang, and G. Bahl, "Non-reciprocal Brillouin scattering induced transparency," Nature Physics 11, pp.275-280, doi:10.1038/nphys3236, 2015.
- Zhu, K., K. Han, T. Carmon, X. Fan, and G. Bahl, "Opto-Acoustic Biosensing with Optomechanofluidic Resonators," European Physical Journal Special Topics, 223, 1937-1947, 2014.
- Gartia, M.R., S. Seo, J. Kim, T.-W. Chang, G. Bahl, M. Lu, G.L. Liu, and J.G. Eden, "Injection-Seeded Optoplasmonic Amplifier in the Visible," Scientific Reports 4, 6168, doi:10.1038/srep06168, 2014.
- Han, K., K. Zhu, and G. Bahl, "Opto-Mechano-Fluidic Viscometer," Applied Physics Letters, 105, 014103, 2014.
- Han, K., K.H. Kim, J. Kim, W. Lee, J. Liu, X. Fan, T. Carmon, and G. Bahl, "Fabrication and testing of microfluidic optomechanical oscillators," Journal of Visualized Experiments, vol.87, e51497, doi:10.3791.51497, 2014.
- Han,, K., J. Kim, and G. Bahl, "Aerostatically tunable optomechanical oscillators," Optics Express, vol. 22, issue 2, pp. 1267-1276, 2014.
- Kim, K. H.*, G. Bahl*, W. Lee, J. Liu, M. Tomes, X. Fan, T. Carmon [* = equal contribution], "Cavity Optomechanics on a Microfluidic Resonator," Light: Science & Applications, vol. 2, e110; doi:10.1038/lsa.2013.66, 2013.
- Bahl, G., K. H. Kim, W. Lee, J. Liu, X. Fan, and T. Carmon, "Brillouin cavity optomechanics with microfluidic devices," Nature Communications, 4:1994, doi:10.1038/ncomms2994, 2013.
- Bahl, G., X. Fan, and T. Carmon, "Acoustic Whispering-Gallery Modes in Optomechanical Shells," New Journal of Physics, Vol. 14, 115026, 2012.
- Bahl, G., M. Tomes, F. Marquardt, and T. Carmon, Observation of Spontaneous Brillouin Cooling, Nature Physics, doi:10.1038/nphys2206, 2012.
- Tomes, M., F. Marquardt, G. Bahl, and T. Carmon, Quantum Mechanical Theory of Optomechanical Brillouin Cooling, Physical Review A, 84, 063806, 2011.
- Bahl, G., J. Zehnpfennig, M. Tomes, and T. Carmon, Stimulated Optomechanical Excitation of Surface Acoustic Waves in a Microdevice, Nature Communications, 2:403, doi:10.1038/ncomms1412, 2011.
- Zehnpfennig, J., G. Bahl, M. Tomes, and T. Carmon, Surface Optomechanics: Calculating Optically Excited Acoustical Whispering Gallery Modes in Microspheres, Optics Express, Vol. 19, pp.14240-8, 2011.
- Bahl, G., J. Salvia, R. Melamud, B. Kim, R.T. Howe, and T. W. Kenny, AC Polarization for Charge-Drift Elimination in Resonant Electrostatic MEMS and Oscillators, Journal of Microelectromechanical Systems, Vol. 20, No. 2, April 2011.
- Yoneoka, S., J. Salvia, G. Bahl, R. Melamud, S. A. Chandorkar, and T. W. Kenny, Active Electrostatic Compensation of Micromechanical Resonators Under Random Vibrations, JMEMS Letters, Vol. 19, No. 5, October 2010.
- Bahl, G., R. Melamud, B. Kim, S. A. Chandorkar, J. Salvia, M. A. Hopcroft, D. Elata, R. G. Hennessy, R. N. Candler, R.T. Howe, and T. W. Kenny, Model and Observations of Dielectric Charge in Thermally Oxidized Silicon Resonators, Journal of Microelectromechanical Systems, Vol. 19, No. 1, Feb 2010.
- Melamud, R., S. A. Chandorkar, B. Kim, H. K. Lee, J. Salvia, G. Bahl, M. A. Hopcroft, and T. W. Kenny, Temperature Insensitive Composite Micromechanical Resonators, Journal of Microelectromechanical Systems, Vol. 18, No. 6, Dec 2009.
- Agarwal, M., S. A. Chandorkar, H. Mehta, R. N. Candler, B. Kim, M. A. Hopcroft, R. Melamud, C. M. Jha, G. Bahl, G. Yama, T. W. Kenny, and B. Murmann, A Study of Electrostatic Force Nonlinearities in Resonant Microstructures, Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 92, pp. 104106-3, 2008.
- Agarwal, M., H. Mehta, R. N. Candler, S. A. Chandorkar, B. Kim, M. A. Hopcroft, R. Melamud, G. Bahl, G. Yama, T. W. Kenny, and B. Murmann, Scaling of Amptitude-Frequency-Dependence Nonlinearities in Electrostatically Transduced Microresonators, Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 102, p. 74903, 2007.
- Jha, C. M., G. Bahl, R. Melamud, S. A. Chandorkar, M. A. Hopcroft, B. Kim, M. Agarwal, J. Salvia, H. Mehta, and T. W. Kenny, "High Resolution Microresonator-Based Digital Temperature Sensor, "Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 91, p. 74101, 2007.
- Hopcroft, M. A., B. Kim, S. Chandorkar, R. Melamud, M. Agarwal, C. M. Jha, G. Bahl, J. Salvia, H. Mehta, H. K. Lee, R. N. Candler, and T. W. Kenny, "Using The Temperature Dependence of Resonator Quality Factor as a Thermometer," Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 91, p. 013505, 2007.
Articles in Conference Proceedings
- Zhang, Z., S. Shi, K. Han, G. Bahl, and S. Tawfick, "Flexible Transparent Conductor/Strain Sensors from Downsizing Traditional Metallic Wires to the Nanoscale," MRS Conference Spring, April 2015.
- Ng, E., Y. Yang, V.A. Hong, C.H. Ahn, D.B. Heinz, I. Flader, Y. Chen, C.L.M. Everhart, B. Kim, R. Melamud, R.N. Candler, M.A. Hopcroft, J.C. Salvia, S. Yoneoka, A.B. Graham, M. Agarwal, M.W. Messana, K.L. Chen, H.K. Lee, S. Wang, G. Bahl, V. Qu, C.F. Chiang, T.W. Kenny, A. Partridge, M. Lutz, G. Yama, and G.J. O'Brien, "The long path from MEMS resonators to timing products," Proc. 28th IEEE MEMS 2015, Estoril, Portugal, 18-22 Jan 2015.
Professional Societies
- Member, SPIE, 2014-date
- Member, Optical Society of America (OSA), 2010-date
- Senior Member, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), Member: 2009-2016, Senior member: 2016-Present