Dr. Kamlesh Kumar
(Associate Professor)
Dr. Kamlesh Kumar joined the Department of Chemistry, University of Delhi in April 2025. Before this appointment, he served as Associate Professor at the Central University of Jammu (04/2023-04/2025), Senior Scientist at CSIR–Central Scientific Instruments Organisation (CSIR-CSIO) Chandigarh (07/2018-04/2023), Assistant Professor at the Central University of Gujarat (01/2017-07/2018), and Associate Professor at Manipal University Jaipur (08/2016-01/2017).
He received his Ph.D. in Chemistry from the Leibniz Institute of Polymer Research, Dresden University of Technology, Germany (2009), following an M. Tech. in Polymer Science and Technology from IIT Delhi (2005) and an M.Sc. in Chemistry from the University of Rajasthan (2002). Dr. Kumar pursued postdoctoral research at leading international institutions, including Oregon Health & Science University (USA) (12/2009-01/2012), the University of Groningen (Netherlands) (01/2012-01-2014), and the Eindhoven University of Technology (Netherlands), (02/2014-07/2016) where he worked on biomolecular complexes, pulmonary surfactant mechanisms, and photo-responsive liquid crystal elastomers.
Dr. Kumar has over two decades of academic and research experience across leading institutes in India and abroad. His research focuses on smart and responsive materials, including polymers, nanocomposites, thin films, sensors, and soft actuators. He has made notable contributions to thermochromic and photo-responsive polymers, including smart actuators and sunlight-driven self-oscillating systems published in leading journals such as Nature Communications, ACS Applied Polymer Materials, Advanced Materials Technologies, etc. Dr. Kumar has authored over 45 publications, holds three international patents on self-rolled carbon micro/nanotubes and thermoresponsive LED devices, and his work has received more than 2400 citations.
Currently, his group is developing smart photo and thermochromic indicators for food and pharmaceutical packaging for environmental and biomedical applications. With extensive collaborations across India, Europe, and the USA, Dr. Kumar continues to drive interdisciplinary research at the interface of chemistry, polymers, materials science, and nanotechnology, while mentoring the next generation of scientists.
Selected Publications:
- Deepika Sharma, Sachin Goyal, Kamlesh Kumar
Design and synthesis of dual stimuli-responsive Azo-bis (spiropyran) based advanced chromic materials for sensing applications
Materials Today Chemistry, 47, 102827 (2025). - Deepika Sharma, Sachin Goyal, Kamlesh Kumar, Amit Lochan Sharma
Multi‐Stimuli Response of Advanced Functional Spiropyran‐Based Smart Chromic Material: Acid Vapors Sensing Applications
Advanced Materials Technologies (2025). - Sachin Goyal, Deepika Sharma, Akash Deep, Kamlesh Kumar, Amit L. Sharma
Polydiacetylene/Poly(vinyl alcohol) Composite Films as a Low-Temperature Irreversible Indicator for Drug Storage Applications
ACS Applied Polymer Materials, 6 (7), 4186–4194 (2024). - Sachin Goyal, Deepika Sharma, Kamlesh Kumar, Synthesis of low-temperature irreversible thermochromic indicator based on functional polydiacetylene for food storage applications
- Journal of Material Science, 2024, 59, 7561-7573,
- Kamlesh Kumar, Michael G. Debije, Christopher Knie, David Bléger, Mark A. Peletier, Heiner Friedrich, Stefan Hecht, Dirk J. Broer, Albertus P. H. J. Schenning
A Chaotic Self-Oscillating Sunlight Driven Polymer Actuator
Nature Communications, 7, 11975 (2016).
Patents
- Bhanu Nandan, Kamlesh Kumar, Peter Formanek, Manfred Stamm
Fabrication of Carbon Nano- or Microtubes by Using a Self-rolling Process
European Patent, EP 2 423 162 B1. - Hugo Cornelissen, Joan Yu, Giovanni Cennini, Kamlesh Kumar, Dick Broer
LED with thermoresponsive black body dimming
US Patent, 2018. US 10 330 266 B2. - Hugo Cornelissen, Joan Yu, Giovanni Cennini, Kamlesh Kumar, Dick Broer
LED with thermoresponsive black body dimming
European Patent, EP 3 247 764 B1.