Rivers from sources miles apart and traversing widely different regions and terrain often converge into one. I was surprised to realize that the same could be true for markedly different engineering spheres—and the fact that my graduate research was a part of the flow made it even more pleasant.

My masters research in India exposed me to thermal barrier coating materials, an exciting class of refractory oxide ceramics utilized in gas-turbine engines that enable them to operate at increasingly higher temperatures and thus continuously improving efficiencies.