In this episode, Kavitha Arunachalam, Professor in the Department of Engineering Design at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras, speaks with John C. Young, Associate Professor at the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Kentucky. Kavitha shares her journey from Chennai to IIT Madras, highlighting the achievements she is most proud of, including the development of hyperthermia devices for cancer treatment and microwave sensors for radioactive waste management. She also emphasizes the growing opportunities for women in engineering, advocating for mentorship, persistence, and hands-on learning to encourage greater female participation in the field.
Main points of the discussion
| Timestamps | Questions |
|---|---|
| 00:00 | Introduction |
| 01:09 | Introducing Professor Kavitha Arunachalam. |
| 01:46 | Could you tell me a little bit about yourself and your background? |
| 03:50 | What originally got you interested in science and engineering, as well as the more particular field of electromagnetics and microwave engineering? |
| 05:05 | Why did you choose to focus your research on the biomedical field in particular? |
| 06:06 | What research achievements are you most proud of in your career so far? |
| 07:43 | What specific challenges have you faced, and what challenges do women currently encounter in science and engineering in India? |
| 09:45 | Did you have a mentor, who significantly helped you in your career and in what ways helped you? |
| 11:35 | How do you think that opportunities for women have changed over time since you've been in our field? |
| 13:30 | What do you think is required to involve women more in our field, both worldwide and in India in particular? |
| 16:33 | Do you have any specific insights or advice for young women interested in pursuing a career in our field? |
About Kavitha
Kavitha Arunachalam received her bachelor’s degree in Electronics and Communications Engineering from College of Engineering Guindy, Anna University, India, in 1998, and doctoral degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Michigan State University, MI, USA, in 2007.
From April 2007 to May 2010 she served as post-doctoral researcher at the Department of Radiation Oncology, Duke University Medical Centre. She began her academic career as an assistant professor at the Department of Engineering Design, Indian Institute of Technology Madras, India in June 2010 where she continued to serve as an associate professor from July 2016-June 2021, and is serving as a professor since July 2021.
Dr. Arunachalam’s broad research interests are in the applications of electromagnetics (EM) in medicine and engineering technology. Her specific research topics include EM sensors, antennas, measurement techniques for EM nondestructive testing, EM material characterization, bio-electromagnetics, hyperthermia physics, medical microwave radiometry, medical device development, and clinical translational research. She is a senior member of IEEE, member and current president of the Indian Association of Hyperthermic Oncology and Medicine (IAHOM), member of the Programme Formulation and Management Board and Working Group on Electromagnetic Non-Destructive Evaluation, Indian Society for Non-destructive Testing (ISNT), India, and an expert member of the electrical sciences committee, Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF), India.
About John
John C. Young (S’97–M’03-SM'10) received the B.E.E. degree in electrical engineering from Auburn University in 1997, the M.S. degree in electrical engineering from Clemson University in 2000, and the Ph.D. degree in electrical engineering also from Clemson University in 2002.
From January 2003 to April 2003, he served as a post-doctoral researcher at Clemson University, and from 2003 to 2005, he served as a post-doctoral researcher at Tokyo Institute of Technology, Tokyo, Japan. From 2005 to 2008, he worked at Japan Radio Co. He is with the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY where he was a research professor from 2008 to 2014 and is currently an associate professor.
Dr. Young’s research interests include integral equation methods, finite element methods, electromagnetic theory, waveguides, array antennas, and magnetic signature modeling of hysteretic materials. He is a member of IEEE, the Applied Electromagnetics Society (ACES), and URSI Commission B. He currently serves as an Associate Editor for the IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation and on the Education Committee of the Antennas and Propagation Society. He also served (2020-2023) on the Board of Directors of ACES and is currently the Society Secretary.
Recent research published by Kavitha and John in TAP
- Ferrite Sleeve as a Choke for Intracavitary Microwave Hyperthermia Treatment Using Coaxial Antennas, K. P. S. Ahamed and K. Arunachalam, vol. 70, no. 9, pp. 7745-7754, Sept. 2022
- Design and Experimental Verification of 434 MHz Phased Array Applicator for Hyperthermia Treatment of Locally Advanced Breast Cancer, D. Baskaran and K. Arunachalam, vol. 69, no. 3, pp. 1706-1715, March 2021
- A Weighted Average Adaptive Cross Approximation, J. N. Blackburn, J. C. Young and R. J. Adams, vol. 71, no. 10, pp. 8121-8129, Oct. 2023
- Divergence-Conforming Constrained Basis Functions for Hexahedral Volume Elements, R. A. Pfeiffer, J. C. Young and R. J. Adams, vol. 66, no. 1, pp. 501-504, Jan. 2018
- High-Order Divergence-Conforming Constrained Bases for Triangular Cells, J. C. Young and R. J. Adams, vol. 65, no. 9, pp. 4717-4727, Sept. 2017