Pulickel Ajayan

Pulickel Ajayan

Pulickel Madhavapanicker Ajayan (Malayalam: പുളിക്കല്‍ മാധവപ്പണിക്കര്‍ അജയന്‍), known as P. M. Ajayan, is the Benjamin M. and Mary Greenwood Anderson Professor in Engineering at Rice University. His primary appointment at Rice University is in the Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science department but also holds joint appointments with the department of Chemistry and department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. Prior to joining Rice, he was the Henry Burlage Professor of Material Sciences and Engineering and the director of the NYSTAR interconnect focus center at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute until 2007. Known for his relaxed attitude and liberal thinking, he has broad interests ranging from science and technology to poetry. He is married to Poornima Ajayan and has two daughters, Anakha and Ahi.