Anish Rao (आनिश) / (ਅਨੀਸ਼)

Assistant Professor,

Department of Chemistry, BITS Pilani.

Email: anish.rao@pilani.bits-pilani.ac.in

Contact: +91 1596 255899

Office: 2243 - H, FD II

Hi, I am Anish. Although my parents are from Uttar Pradesh (UP), I was born and raised in Punjab. My schooling later took me first to Lucknow and then to Ghaziabad. In 2013, I completed my BSc (H) in Chemistry from Ramjas College, Delhi University. After that, I moved to Pune for my master’s and PhD at IISER Pune, where I focused on designing and controlling the outcomes of nanoparticle self-assembly processes.

My post-PhD journey took me not only outside India but also outside my comfort zone. After completing my PhD in 2020, I moved to Spain, where I honed my self-assembly skills and learned the synthesis of high-quality nanoparticles. These skills proved invaluable when I took a larger step—developing an autonomous platform for the design and synthesis of nanoparticles, which involved a deep dive into both software and hardware programming.

Since 2025, I have been based in Switzerland, working with DNA origami and single-particle spectroscopy to create advanced nanoplasmonic platforms. My research experience spans equilibrium and non-equilibrium systems, nanoparticle catalysis, artificial intelligence for science, and the development of advanced sensing protocols. I enjoy building bridges across disciplines, combining chemistry, physics, and engineering to design and develop next-generation materials.

selected publications

Self-assembly and Sensing

Regulation of Interparticle Forces Reveals Controlled Aggregation in Charged Nanoparticles

Anish Rao, Soumendu Roy, Mahima Unnikrishnan, and 3 more authors

Chem. Mater. 2016, 28 (7), 2348–2355

DOI

Selective Sensing

Turn-On Selectivity in Inherently Nonselective Gold Nanoparticles for Pb2+ Detection by Preferential Breaking of Interparticle Interactions

Anish Rao, Govind Sasi Kumar, Soumendu Roy, and 3 more authors

ACS Appl. Nano Mater. 2019, 2 (9), 5625–5633

DOI

Nanoparticle Catalysis

Accelerated Reduction of 4-Nitrophenol: Bridging Interaction Outplays Reducing Power in the Model Nanoparticle-Catalyzed Reaction

Shana Shirin, Soumendu Roy, Anish Rao, and 1 more author

J. Phys. Chem. C 2020, 124 (35), 19157–19165

DOI

Transient Self-assembly

Temporal Changes in Interparticle Interactions Drive the Formation of Transiently Stable Nanoparticle Precipitates

Anish Rao, Soumendu Roy, and Pramod P Pillai

Langmuir 2021, 37 (5), 1843–1849

DOI

Bayesian Optimization

Revisiting El-Sayed Synthesis: Bayesian Optimization for Revealing New Insights during the Growth of Gold Nanorods

Anish Rao and Marek Grzelczak

Chem. Mater. 2024, 36 (5), 2577–2587

DOI

Oscillating Systems

Choreographing Oscillatory Hydrodynamics with DNA-Coated Gold Nanoparticles

Anish Rao, Ana Sanchez-Iglesias, and Marek Grzelczak

J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2024, 146 (27), 18236

DOI