Sunday, Feb 28, 2010
Establishment of the centres at Bharathidasan University generates expectations and confidence

Tiruchi: Centre for Nano Science and Nano Technology and Centre for High Pressure Research were declared open at the Bharathidasan University by T. Ramasami, Secretary, Department of Science and Technology (DST), here on Saturday.

While the university has contributed the initial seed capital of Rs.75 lakh for setting up the Centre for Nano Science and Nano Technology, the DST has sanctioned Rs.2.50 crore under the Nano Mission project. The centre has been set up with the objective of undertaking research and development in the field of nano science and technology; train students in nano technology and develop cutting-edge technologies and establish a nano user facility with state-of-the-art experimental facilities. The Centre for High Pressure Research, also under the School of Physics of the varsity, comes as an extension of the High Pressure Low Temperature Laboratory. The DST has sanctioned Rs.2.35 crore for establishing ‘High Pressure Low Temperature and High Magnetic Field Facilities’ and the university has recently sanctioned the establishment of an exclusive centre for high pressure research, said to be the first of its kind in the country with hi-tech facilities.

Inaugurating the centres, Dr. Ramasami observed that the establishment of the centres has generated both expectations and confidence and hoped the university faculty would live up to them.

He emphasised the need for researchers to focus on newer areas in modern science rather than reiterating what has been already known. The facilities should help expand the research base, he said.

Vice-Chancellor M. Ponnavaikko said the university had a strong research base in basic sciences and has to its credit over 6,000 research papers since inception.

The new centres would help promote higher scientific research in emerging areas.

Nano science and technology, in particular, have wide applications in various fields, he observed and added that the two centres could be utilised by the affiliate colleges of the varsity also.

K. Jeganathan, Coordinator, Centre for Nano Science and Nano Technology, said one of the key objectives of the centre would be establishing leadership in the emerging field by interfacing nano structures with bio-system for diverse and exciting applications in life sciences.

S. Arumugam, Coordinator, Centre for High Pressure Research, said the centre would act as a focal point for R&D with periodic training in the area of high pressure and low temperature physics in the field of cryogenics, low temperature instrumentation, high pressure experimental techniques, magnetic and transport measurements. N. Ramanujam, Dean of Science, Bharathidasan University, S. Natarajan, former Dean of Science and Humanities, Anna University, Chennai, T. Ramaswamy, Registrar, Bharathidasan University, K. Ramamurthi, Head, School of Physics, and others spoke.