Hrishikesh Pingulkar is a mechanical engineer turned soft matter physicist with a strong background in experimental research. He holds a PhD in rheology and has extensive expertise in microfluidics, colloidal science, and the physics of drying.
His PhD research at the Laboratoire d’Ondes et Milieux Complexes (LOMC), a Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS) laboratory in France, focused on extensional rheology, investigating the formation of filaments and beads-on-a-string (BOAS) structures with applications in printing and food industries.
Following his PhD, Hrishikesh conducted postdoctoral research at the Laboratoire du Futur (LOF), a CNRS–Solvay laboratory in France, where he specialised in microfluidics and the drying of colloidal dispersions. His work focused on designing and fabricating advanced microfluidic devices, including biomimetic PDMS “artificial leaves,” and investigating drying phenomena relevant to paints, coatings, and personal care products. He also developed PDMS chips with integrated pressure sensors, enabling a deeper understanding of evaporation through porous media.
Since joining ECFP in 2024, Hrishikesh has led both academic and industrial projects in soft matter physics. He brings expertise in the formation of colloidal solids and the development of “skins” in polymers and cellulose to optimise thin films, coatings, and drying processes. He has collaborated with companies across the coatings, food production, and bio-based materials sectors, as well as with Hawk-Eye Innovations, drawing on his interest in cricket.
Currently, he is working on two industrial projects, one is studying the sedimentation behaviour of slurries, and another studying biobased materials used for coatings.
Student Projects:
Alongside his research and industrial collaborations, Hrishikesh supervises a range of student projects through Senior Honours (SH) and Industry Summer Project (ISP) programs.
• Finley Paul (2024) – Quantifying the Bounce of a Cricket Pitch, Hawk-Eye Innovations (SH)
• Seamus Swan (2025) – Evaporation from protein solutions, Arda Biomaterials (ISP)
• Divyam Aneja (2025) – Hawk-eye Ball Tracking, Hawk-Eye Innovations (ISP)
• Lukas Vallet (2025) – Investigating the effects of colloids on bead-on-a-string formation (ISP)
• Kiran Mukherjee (2026) – Confined drying of a nanoparticle dispersion droplet (SH)